Veronika Efremova: "Our students win prizes in the CASE-IN championship

Veronika Efremova: our advantage is the opportunity to immerse ourselves in the production process even at the stage of studying at the university

At the Tyumen Oil and Gas Forum on September 22-24, the information partner of which was Neftegaz.RU One of the topics discussed was the personnel challenges of the digital economy. The organizer of the plenary session with the same name was Tyumen Industrial University. In continuation of the discussion about the processes of digitalization in education, promising areas and advantages of Russian oil and gas education in comparison with foreign ones, we talked with Veronika Efremova, Rector of Tyumen Industrial University, Chairman of the Council of Rectors of Universities of the Tyumen Region. 

– Veronika Vasilyevna, following the discussion at TNF 2020, can you summarize what skills fuel and energy complex specialists should have today in order to be in demand?

– Employees of small fuel and energy companies and large oil and gas corporations should have the knowledge, skills and competencies that allow them to effectively implement innovative approaches aimed at solving production problems, understand how business processes work, be able to optimize production and think strategically. They should understand their tasks and be responsible for the consequences of their decisions, especially in relation to the environmental situation. Solving environmental issues is the most urgent and necessary trend of our time. Also, regardless of the time and specialty, such qualities as professionalism, responsibility, optimism and dedication remain important.

Good specialists should be ready to work in a team and solve difficult production tasks almost from the first days of employment. In addition to professional skills (hard skills), they must have soft skills, or universal personal competencies, which we strive to develop within the framework of educational and educational processes.

I would like to note that the university takes into account global trends and assumes responsibility for the implementation of technologies and the training of engineers with a sought-after set of competencies. For example, a Student Innovation Platform has been created at TIU to develop business qualities, technological entrepreneurship skills, and creative thinking. Project-based learning is also used in the educational process, which allows students to develop skills of interaction within a group when performing specific production tasks. 

– The Safety Skills continuous in–house workplace training system - what is its role for fuel and energy companies?

– Due to the specifics of their activities, enterprises of the fuel and energy complex are industries with increased anthropogenic risks, which creates special requirements for the design, construction and maintenance of production facilities. The prevention of environmental violations is a priority for any company, but it is equally important to ensure the safety of workplaces, the protection of the health of the company's personnel and the population living in its area of responsibility, therefore the role of Safety Skills is especially important.

We are working closely with industrial partners on this issue, and for several years we have been implementing the Industrial Safety and Labor Protection professional development program at our Institute of Additional and Distance Education. Its goal is to increase the level of competence in occupational safety, fire, industrial and environmental safety. The program is intended for engineering and technical workers with basic higher or secondary vocational education.

We have also created massive open online courses on industrial safety, which will appear on the TIU platform in the near future. 

– How is the active development of digital technologies affecting the university's educational process?

– The process of universal digitalization invariably affects all areas of our lives, and education is one of the key areas here. Digital technologies are being actively implemented in TIU. The university has been creating and successfully operating an electronic educational environment for 15 years, and we have tested its strength in the face of a pandemic. In the special laboratory of our Institute of Additional and Distance Education, massive online courses, virtual laboratory work and workshops were previously prepared. Their quality, detailed study of topics, and professional approach to script development and creation have already been appreciated by leading universities and world-renowned companies.

Tyumen Industrial University is one of the cohort of 16 universities that develop courses on the Open Education platform. Anyone can master the content of online courses, they are available for free. Our university has opened access to its virtual laboratories, workshops and simulators for all users, previously only our students could use the resource. We are currently launching a course on learning Russian as a foreign language, which will help foreign applicants come to us more prepared.

The Industrial University was one of the first engineering universities to introduce the technology of "Individual Educational Trajectories" into the educational process. The new learning format helps students develop individually, taking into account their interests, abilities, and the demands of the modern world. Students are free to choose disciplines that meet the needs of specific employers, and form a portfolio of professional competencies based on personal preferences. This will allow you to become a specialist with a broad outlook or an expert in a specific field. There are obvious advantages for students in employment: the period of adaptation of a newcomer to an enterprise is shortened, employers do not need to retrain a graduate.

The current situation in the world has helped us to see the advantages of the distance learning format. So, this year, for the first time, with the support of the Boiling Point – Tyumen collective work space, an open defense of final qualifying papers of bachelors and undergraduates studying under the Automation in Construction program and the Information Systems and Technologies profile was successfully conducted on the ZOOM online platform. Relatives, friends, and future employers could watch the defense of graduation projects.

Another important trend in modern education is the individualization and personification of educational trajectories, as well as a high degree of academic freedom. To ensure the quality of education and the effectiveness of universities, the formation of the university's own educational environment should not be reduced to formalism. It is important to maintain a balance in the logic of mastering professional competencies and competencies that ensure the breadth of knowledge of the student. Thus, by participating in these strategic transformations, universities will be able to become more innovative without changing traditional academic requirements. 

– Is oil and gas education very different in Russia and abroad? What are our advantages?

– In Russia, oil and gas education is much more attractive, and the numbers speak for themselves: today, more than 1.5 thousand international students study at TIU.

Our advantages are the highest level of engineering and technical education, a combination of traditional and innovative educational technologies, and the opportunity to immerse oneself in the production process at the university stage. And of course, an important factor is the cost of training. In Russia, education is more financially affordable. TIU implements the sought-after master's degree programs in English "Offshore Drilling" and "Geonavigation", so every year the number of students who want to enroll with us increases.

The advantages include the fact that in some engineering areas, our university has retained such a level of higher education as a specialty.

Students have a choice. The programs are designed to implement various educational strategies. One model is related to the possibility of students' self-determination in the learning process and their choice of professional trajectories at later stages with professional deepening in the master's degree. This system was introduced in a timely manner. Thanks to its implementation, universities can be more flexible and quickly adapt their educational programs, which is possible in the paradigm "2+2+2 ".  Another system, specialization, is especially relevant for the industry orientation of educational programs, it allows you to competently integrate industry standards into the program and train specialists who are able to integrate into the established industry chain. 

– Veronika Vasilyevna, tell me, how is the scientific and educational activity of universities being transformed in the interests of industrial partners?

– Education is becoming more and more applied. For example, practical modular training provides for the implementation of practical exercises on company sites. This transformation has affected all educational programs, and we take into account the requirements and wishes of our industrial partners, focusing on current trends and trends in the oil and gas, construction, and transportation industries. Since 2017, the university has been implementing the project "Head of the educational program". A group of developers is responsible for each program, which submits it to employers and, based on the results of an open competition, receives the right to implement it. The university's industrial partners and trustees help to place the right emphasis in the concept of educational programs, design and evaluation of learning outcomes. Thesis defense also takes place in the presence of employers, they can assess the potential of our graduate and offer employment.

The ideology of practical work has changed, for example, we create project groups from students of different specialties. This allows us to bring our students as close as possible to real working conditions, forming not only professional skills, but also socialization skills. The EG Higher School of Engineering project has been created on completely new principles, which implements the bachelor's degree programs in Oil and Gas Engineering and the specialty in Oil and Gas Engineering and Technology. Employers actively participate in the School's educational process, students from the first year conduct project work, participate in the Oil&Gas Industry project, where they learn about the work of fuel and energy companies using the example of a virtual company, and the Honors Track scientific and educational project are the "live" cases of our industrial partners. Every year our students take prizes in the engineering Case-in championship. By completing cases from enterprises, they immerse themselves in solving questions about their future professional activities.

Master's degree programs are increasingly focused on the order of potential employers. Companies often send us groups of employees to the project master's program, whom we teach to develop projects to improve their enterprises. Today, the labor market is changing very rapidly, and those who have been in the profession for a long time are also forced to receive additional education.

At the same time, we are also modernizing secondary vocational education. The Multidisciplinary College of TIU has a large portfolio of educational programs in the most sought-after specialties and an annual high competition for admission. Our students actively participate in the WorldSkills Championship competitions, where the best in their profession is determined. I like the format of the demonstration exam, where you need not only to demonstrate your professional skills to future employers, but also to show knowledge in the field of physics, chemistry and other disciplines. This approach to exams enhances both the students' professionalism and their presentation skills.

Author: M. Korotkova

A source : Neftegaz.RU