The Ceaseless Chain: Why Schools and Universities Have to Collaborate?

Career Guidance

We are a physical-mathematical lyceum, so the problem of training future engineers is something we can relate to. The deep theoretical knowledge the children get here must be further developed during practical sessions, including research and project activities. This helps promote science to children, which can become the key aspect in choosing one's future career path. One of the tasks that stand before the lyceum's pedagogical staff is creating a chain of ceaseless engineering education, the active participation in the system of training future qualified personnel.

The lyceum is a center for pre-professional education. Its goal is to create the educational environment that helps children with their self-identification — the opportunity to pick additional elective lessons and provision with all relative information and career guidance is part of it. Schoolers participate in different contests and attend such events as the «St Petersburg's Young Engineers» festival, «A Step to Your Profession» and «Educational Horizons» exhibitions.

It's also important to have different clubs. For instance, we've got clubs for robotics, programming, modeling, and provide additional courses in mathematics, physics, and astronomy. Participation of university lecturers in the educational process is essential as well. Thus, we collaborate with ITMO University whose representatives lead the «Nanoengineering and Biotechnologies» club in collaboration with the Center of Advanced Education, and the Theoretical Mechanics Department of St. Petersburg Polytechnic University now prepares a course in 3D modeling. During such lessons, schoolers can put their theoretical knowledge to practice and develop particular projects.

ITMO's «World of Science» Conference

Schoolers present their projects at different conferences and festivals that are hosted by different universities — for example, ITMO's «World of Science» international conference or the annual «Wind of Change» festival in Saint Petersburg State University of Aerospace Instrumentation. Thank to that, these projects can be evaluated by real professionals, which greatly contributes to a child's interest in this field.

Surely, parents play a great role in a child's self-identification — at the very least by admitting him to a profession-oriented school. But the child grows, develops, and it’s the school and university that help them make a conscious career choice by providing information on different professions and their competitive ability on the labor market.

The Role of Universities

To maintain the ceaseless chain of education, our university has long been working with many of St Petersburg’s universities — Institute of Applied Mathematics and Mechanics of St. Petersburg Polytechnic University, Information Technologies and Programming Faculty and Faculty of Natural Sciences of ITMO University, Saint Petersburg State University's Mathematics & Mechanics, Physics and Economics Departments, Saint Petersburg Electrotechnical University and others.

Students of Physical-Mathematical Lyceum № 366

It's hard to overestimate the significance of such events as tours to specialized departments and meetings with staff of different universities. Our lyceum conducts about 5 such events every year. During them, university staff members talk about the professions their students are trained for, about research and student life in different departments and faculties. Other meetings are dedicated to admission campaigns, applying documents and such. Many of our former students participate in such events as representatives of different universities.

Elena Osipova, deputy dean of the Physical-Mathematical Lyceum № 366

Now, new engineering centers for children organized on the basis of physical-mathematical lyceums and profession-oriented schools. We also partake in this undertaking. Such centers will give the children an opportunity to become familiar with science and engineering. It'd be great if universities would participate in these initiatives as well — by lending both lecturers and equipment, as there is always a lack of it.

The Role of Enterprises

The main goal of education is to prepare a child for his future professional life. In this context, schools and universities collaborate not only with each other, but with enterprises as well. One can start this work with tours to production sites. At our lyceum, we conduct such events for older students. Thus, the children can understand what they want to do and whether they want to study this or that profession at a university.

Physical-Mathematical Lyceum № 366

So, we'd really liked it if enterprises were more active about collaborating with schools and universities. As of now, enterprises understand that they are facing problems on the labor market, so they are eager to help with career guidance. Still, I suppose that they have no clear understanding of which schools and universities they should work with to get results. From my point of view, those are educational establishments that train personnel in specific fields. The same can be said about universities: they should focus on helping profession-oriented schools. Then we'll be able to achieve great results.