Higher Education in the Far Eastern Macroregion: Compliance with Development Needs and Demand

Abstract

This research article studies the compliance of educational services offer in the macroregional (Far Eastern Federal District) system of higher education with the needs of the social and economic development of the territory and the demand for these services. Accelerating the growth of the economic potential of the Far Eastern region requires the availability and training of highly qualified personnel in the region to serve the needs of a developing economy. The purpose of the article, as set by the authors, was to analyse the correspondence of the Far Eastern macroregional higher education system to the current and future needs of its social and economic development, as well as to the applicants’ demand. The research, in the context of each subject of the Russian Federation as a part of the Far Eastern Federal District, studied the state supply of training specialists with higher education. This supply was compared with the relevant personnel’s current and future economic needs. In addition, the figures on the population’s demand for higher education programmes were studied, and then correlated with the structure and scope of supply in the context of integrated groups of specialties. The study is based on the data from the Federal State Statistics Service of the Russian Federation and the website of the Unified Information System to support the activities of the Ministry of Education and Science of Russia. As a result, for most regions of the Far East the study revealed the non-compliance of the system of personnel training with the needs of social and economic development of territories and with the demand of the population. The authors see the solution of this problem in redistributing responsibilities of federal, regional, and macroregional bodies of higher education, in strengthening the mechanisms for taking into account the capabilities and needs of territories when determining the structure and scope of higher education services for the medium term.