Ivan Ermokhin, Researcher at the International Best Practices Analysis Department at the Gaidar Institute, assessed the reform of target university admissions in a commentary for ”Nezavisimaya gazeta”.
The RF government intends to change the rules for targeted education, strengthening the ties between students and future employers and effectively creating a system of state-mandated specialist training. These measures are aimed at addressing the labor shortage and more precisely aligning the relationship between the education system and the economy.
According to new approaches, each targeted university place will be assigned to a specific client organization interested in training specialists to meet their specific needs. This is expected to increase the transparency of the educational path and facilitate graduates' transition to the labor market, while mitigating the risk of shortages of skilled workers in key sectors.
"This decision follows a series of other measures adopted by the government and is intended to balance the current situation in the labor market. In compliance with new procedure, each targeted placement is assigned to a specific client for such training, making the "training-to-labor market entry" system more transparent. However, popularity of targeted places among talented applicants will depend on what companies are willing to offer their future employees," noted Ivan Eermokhin.