More than 2,500 people visit the stand of St Petersburg University at the 2022 Moscow International Education Salon

Natalia Vlasova, Head of the Teaching Methods Department of the Centre of E-Learning Development at St Petersburg University, and Maiia Rusakova, Head of the group for developing the content and methodological approaches to organising clinical practices for students at St Petersburg University, took part in the discussions about changing educational products that were undergoing changes due to the current challenges and rapid digitalisation.

Today, hybrid learning and online courses are an integral part of education, as Natalia Vlasova put it.

‘It is an effective tool to enable universities to show their capabilities, present their academic staff, and attract applicants from other cities and countries. For students who want to continue their studies at St Petersburg University or enrol in a master’s programme in another field of study, online courses are an opportunity to fill in the gaps in their knowledge or advance their knowledge and expertise,’ said Natalia Vlasova.

Today, St Petersburg University has developed more than 300 online courses for students, schoolchildren, and teachers. In 2022, St Petersburg University launched its own online educational platform ‘St Petersburg University Open Educational Space’. Students can take numerous online courses offered by the University and pursue academic programmes implemented remotely.

Today, St Petersburg University ranks first in terms of the number of courses and audience coverage on the national Open Education platform. The number of students pursuing the courses of St Petersburg University has exceeded two million people. The University is the first Russian university to launch its courses on the Chinese platform XuetangX and offer online courses on the Stepik.org. platform.

Today, living in the digital world almost from birth is new normal for most applicants, Natalia Vlasova said. We should take it into account when developing curricula. St Petersburg University is launching an online master’s programme in Data-Driven Management.The programme bridges independent study of the material at a convenient time and a synchronous component of learning: webinars and workshops to name just a few. We should also take into account what employers seek in graduates when we are developing curricula and practices, said Maiia Rusakova, Director of the Sociological Clinic and Head of the Centre for Monitoring the Quality of Education at St Petersburg University.

‘To ensure that the master’s programmes at the University are in demand and effective, we should always study the opinions of those who are involved in the teaching and learning process. What I mean is what applicants expect from education; what competencies the academic staff has; and what the real needs of employers are. This approach will ensure that we respond to changes in a timely manner to improve academic programmes,’ said Maiia Rusakova.

It is vital to include real-life projects of potential employers in the teaching and learning process, said Maiia Rusakova. This approach has already been implemented at the St Petersburg University’s clinics.

The model of clinical practices for students in Russia first appeared at St Petersburg University. The oldest clinic is the Legal Clinic. It opened at the University in 1998. Today, more than 10 different clinics work at St Petersburg University. This enables students to gain unique experience in being engaged in real-world projects during their studies. Partners, in their turn, can find successful early-career professionals among students.

‘Today, most employers do not have a long-term perspective on what they are seeking in graduates. Rather, what they seek in graduates is largely due to the current situation. Yet changing curricula overnight is far from being possible. How we can solve this task is to engage employers in student practice. In other words, an employer places an order, and a student improves skills by working on a real case,’ explained Maiia Rusakova.

Those who visited the University’s stand could test their knowledge in the history of the Russia’s oldest university. More than 600 participants in the Moscow International Education Salon passed the historical quiz prepared by the experts at the St Petersburg University History Museum. The quiz is set to mark the 350th anniversary of Peter the Great. The stand had a book display of publications of the time of Peter the Great. The publications are part of the book collection of the University. The display was prepared by the Department of Rare Books at the M. Gorky Scientific Library at St Petersburg University.

The visitors could take an online tour of the Mikhailovskaya Dacha campus using VR glasses technology. An album was presented that revealed the history of the campus, modern infrastructure, and student life. The participants could take pictures in the gowns of graduates of St Petersburg University. In total, more than 1,500 photographs were taken during the exhibition stand.

On the online platform of the Moscow International Education Salon, leading scientists and experts from St Petersburg University spoke about their latest achievements and about various fields of study at the University. The "Hour of Science" cycle featured: Tatiana Chernigovskaya, Director of the Institute for Cognitive Studies at St Petersburg University, Corresponding Member of the Russian Academy of Education, Doctor of Philology and Biology; Igor Tikhonovich, Dean of the Faculty of Biology at St Petersburg University, Member of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Doctor of Biology; and Pavel Skutschas, Associate Professor in the Department of Vertebrate Zoology, Doctor of Biology to name just a few.

At the 2022 MMSO, there was am awarding ceremony of certificates of acknowledgement from the Administration of the President of the Russian Federation for the contribution to developing the All-Russian Olympiad of Students "I am a Professional". It is the flagship project of the ANO "Russia — the Land of Opportunities".

The certificates of acknowledgement were also awarded for the development of the Olympiad movement in Russia. The certificates of acknowledgment were received by the representatives of universities who were organisers of the Olympiad in different fields of study. Among them was Andrei Ivasko, Deputy Head of the Admissions Office, Head of the Career Guidance Office at St Petersburg University.

In the 2021/22 academic year, the University is responsible for organising the contests in four areas of study. Jurisprudence is traditionally among the top 5 fields of study among the participants who reached the final round. St Petersburg University is also responsible for organising the contests in linguistics, philology, and geography. There are 1,184 contestants who will take part to win the intellectual competition.

The All-Russian Olympiad ‘I am a Professional’ is among the large-scale student contests in Russia. Its main goal is to support talented students in various fields of study. This will enable students to: pursue master’s, doctoral and clinical residency programmes in the leading universities in Russia, including St Petersburg University; start a career; or receive a financial reward.