Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a decree on the implementation of a pilot project from the 2023-2026 academic years aimed at changing the levels of vocational education - "in order to promote the improvement of the higher education system, train qualified personnel to meet the long-term needs of economic and social sectors." On Friday, May 12, the document was published on the portal of legal information.

From the approved provisions, it follows that within the framework of the project, two levels of higher education will be established: basic (with a period of development of programs from four to six years) and specialized (from one to three years). The second will include master's, residency and assistantship-internship programs. Postgraduate studies, according to the document, are allocated to a separate level of professional education.

As explained in the Ministry of Education and Science of the Russian Federation, the purpose of the pilot project is to see how certain elements of the new national system of higher education will be perceived by its participants and what results will be achieved within the framework of the initiative.

"Today, six universities have been identified, and starting this year, they will organize admission to study as part of the new approach. This will enable universities to work with their programs and consider the terms of training, adjusting them depending on the needs of the employer, "explained the head of the department, Valery Falkov.

The participants of the pilot project will be the Immanuel Kant Baltic Federal University, the Moscow Aviation Institute (NRU), the National University of Science and Technology MISIS, the Moscow State Pedagogical University, the St. Petersburg Mining University and the National Research Tomsk State University.

The document instructs universities participating in the initiative to develop and approve by June 30, 2023 standards and requirements for new levels of education, as well as relevant higher education and postgraduate programs.

From the 2023/24 academic year, along with admission to study under the programs provided for by the Federal Law "On Education in the Russian Federation" of 2012, admission to programs of basic, specialized higher education and postgraduate studies should start - within the quota of places established by the project participants.

Also on the russian.rt.com of the Ministry of Education and Science: basic education should be enough for a full-fledged career

The document clarifies that students in new programs are subject to all the rights, social guarantees, duties and responsibilities provided for students in bachelor's, specialist's, master's and postgraduate programs.

According to Valery Falkov, students who are already studying and those who enter universities this year will receive additional opportunities and will not face difficulties within the framework of the new initiative. The minister added that the department is working on options for informing about the differences that may appear in the rules of admission.

"I can assure you that there will be no cardinal differences in terms of the exam or other fundamental points in this case. And of course, these will be additional opportunities for applicants," Falkov assured.

He recalled that the work on testing the new national model of higher education is carried out in accordance with the list of instructions given by the head of state in his February address to the Federal Assembly.

Then the president expressed support for the idea of returning to the traditional Russian basic training of specialists with higher education with a training period of four to six years. At the same time, as Putin noted, even within the framework of one specialty and one university, programs can be offered that are different in terms of training, depending on the specific profession, industry and labor market demand.

He added that if the profession requires additional training and narrow specialization, then education can be continued in the magistracy or residency, and postgraduate studies should be allocated to a separate level of professional education, the task of which is to train personnel for scientific and teaching activities.

The President stressed that the transition to the new system should be smooth and worked out to the smallest detail.

"Young people, our citizens should have new opportunities for quality education, employment, and professional growth. I repeat once again: opportunities, not problems," Putin said at the time.

Commenting on the launch of the pilot project, Lilia Gumerova, Chairman of the Federation Council Committee on Science, Education and Culture, said that these are very long-awaited measures. In an interview with RT, the senator recalled that the president's message clearly stated that Russia should create its own, sovereign education system.

"A lot, especially representatives of business, the real sector of the economy, especially technical areas, talked about how today the level of competence, training of engineering personnel, technical specialties is insufficient, that four years of bachelor's degree is clearly not enough for high-quality training of specialists," Gumerova explained.

"It is very important that we take into account the pros and cons (which will be identified as part of the pilot project. - RT), so that when these approaches are projected everywhere, throughout the country, the system works very clearly, "the senator emphasized.

In turn, the first deputy chairman of the State Duma Committee on Science and Higher Education, Alexander Mazhuga, positively assessed the launch of the initiative and noted the importance of returning graduate school to the training of scientific personnel.

"For a while, it was purely in education, and the emphasis shifted towards the educational track. And we need graduate students to do science. These are our future scientific personnel," he said in a conversation with RT. - The second innovation: it is very important that you can go to the magistracy after the basic level. But, in my opinion, such an opportunity should be realized when a person finishes the basic level, works and understands that he lacks something, and goes to the magistracy on the budget. To hone your knowledge on purpose, to immerse yourself in the profession.

According to the deputy, within the framework of the pilot project, leading universities that have good competencies in the field of science and technology have been selected.