Human Capital Multidisciplinary Research Center

4.4.1 Human Resources Reproduction in the Field of S&T: Education, Attraction and Retention of Highly Qualified Personnel

Natalia Shmatko
Project Leader

Project period

2020-2022

Context of Research Project within a Subject of Human Capital

Accelerating the production of scientific results and innovative products is associated with an increase in the number of highly qualified specialists, holders of academic degrees. This category of specialists includes workers professionally engaged in the production of scientific knowledge and the development of new technologies. The issues ensuring the volume and pace of training of such specialists are on the agenda of scientific and technical policy of many countries and international organizations. Research of human potential in the field of science and technology is aimed at solving the problems of human resources reproduction in this field, at analyzing the professional career of highly qualified specialists considering the ongoing technological changes (including the digital transformation of the economy and society), as well as at identifying factors determining the demand and supply of research competencies in the labor market.

The scientific project Human Resources Reproduction in the Field of S&T: Education, Attraction and Retention of Highly Qualified Personnel focuses on issues of increasing the attractiveness of a scientific career in Russia for young researchers and leading Russian scientists

Project Aim

Building a reproduction model of highly qualified personnel in the field of science and technology and assessing the prospective demand for research competencies in the conditions of technological transformation of the economy

Project Objectives:

  1. Creating a conceptual framework to analyze national systems of personnel reproduction in the field of science and technology: training, recruitment, consolidation
  2. Conducting empirical research of highly qualified scientific and technical personnel employed in organizations of academic and non-academic sectors of the labor market
  3. Studying the attractiveness of a scientific career for leading Russian scientists and young researchers

Key Findings

2020

A detailed analysis of the systems of education, attraction and retention of scientific and technical personnel in countries that are world leaders in the number of personnel engaged in research and development, and in the number of students at the postgraduate level (or equivalent) has been conducted. Moreover, estimates of the employment of science and technology personnel have been obtained, and the main trends in demand for the competence of scientific and technical personnel have been identified, taking into account materials comprehensive foresight studies of major challenges and global trends related to human development

A statistical database has been created to accumulate a unique set of information about human potential in the field of science and technology for Russia and compensates for gaps in state statistics with the possibility of its annual updating

2021

A statistical database of personnel and professions in high-tech and knowledge-intensive sectors of the economy has been developed. Quantitative estimates of the employment of this category of personnel have been obtained, forming the basis for full-scale monitoring of the state of human potential in the field of science and technology in Russia and comparison with the world level. The main forms of employment of highly qualified scientific personnel in the field of science and technology have been identified; special emphasis has been placed on the analysis of academic and non-academic sectors of employment of researchers. A conceptual framework for the analysis of ‘portfolios of competencies’ has been elaborated, taking into account advanced Russian and foreign experiences in studying and assessing the demand for human resources competencies in the field of science and technology, reflecting the demand for different types of skills. Considering the approaches developed earlier in line with the sociology of science, the sociology of employment and the theory of life cycles, as well as on the basis of their own developments, an original model of a scientific career has been proposed in the project

2022

Information characterizing the current state and new trends in terms of working conditions, motivation, employment and mobility of scientific personnel has been collected and analyzed. Data on the motives for choosing a profession by young scientists have been obtained. The potential of postdoctoral studies institute for creating a system of support for scientists at an early stage of a research career in Russia has been assessed.

Subjective assessments of the ‘growth factors’ of a scientific career attractiveness for leading and novice researchers have been identified. The main tools for increasing motivation and involvement of specialists employed in organizations in the field of science and technology have been analyzed.

Взаимодействие внешних стимулов и внутренней мотивации ученых

Educational Programs

Educational Modules at the English-language Master's Program Science, Technology and Innovation Management and Policy (Governance of Science, Technology and Innovation)

Publications

  1. N. Shmatko, V. Permyakova, The Contribution of Entrepreneurial Skills to the Social Stratification of Highly Qualified R&D Personnel: the Case of Russia // WP BRP 122/STI/2021
  2. Yurij L. Katchanov, Yulia V. Markova, Dynamics of Senses of New Physics Discourse: Co-keywords Analysis // Journal of Informetrics, Volume 16, Issue 1, 2022

Conferences

4th ISA Forum of Sociology (IV Sociological Forum of the International Sociological Association) (Porto Alegre, Brazil, February 23-28, 2021):

Bershadskaya M., Serova A., and Artamonova M. Competences of the Graduates of Sociological Higher Education in Accordance with the Requirements of the Professional Community (26/02/2021)

Workshop for researchers and students Technological Sovereignty in the Age of Openness (Moscow, Russia, November 19, 2021)

Workshop for researchers and students Responding to the Challenge of Technological Sovereignty  (Moscow, Russia, December 3, 2021)