S.I. Gorlov, professor, Dr.Sc. (Phys.-Math.)
A.V. Korichko, associate professor, Ph.D.
Nizhnevartovsk State University, Nizhnevartovsk

Keywords: Nizhnevartovsk State University, educational programs, research, further education, international activities.

Federal State Budgetary Educational Institution of Higher Professional Education Nizhnevartovsk State University was established in 1988 as a branch of Tobolsk State Pedagogical Institute named after D.I. Mendeleev and included three departments with 25 teachers working and 150 students learning there. In 1992, the branch was converted to Nizhnevartovsk Pedagogical Institute. In 1998 Nizhnevartovsk Pedagogical Institute was renamed Nizhnevartovsk State Pedagogical Institute of the Ministry of Education of Russia. In 2005, Nizhnevartovsk State Pedagogical Institute was granted the university status. In 2010, based on the results of the monitoring of the Ministry of Education and Science of the Russian Federation the University was 6^th in the group of higher education institutions of teachers' training and linguistics. In 2013, State Educational Institution of Higher Professional Education “Nizhnevartovsk State Humanitarian University” was renamed the Federal State Educational Institution of Higher Professional Education “Nizhnevartovsk State University”. The first teachers graduated from the university in 1992. Since then, over 15,000 professionals for various industries of the region have been trained in the University.

The university consists of 9 faculties - Humanities, Geography and Natural Sciences, Information Technologies and Mathematics, Economics and Management, Physical Education and Sport, Pedagogics and Psychology, Art and Design, Culture and Service, further education - and 22 departments. There are 13 aggregated groups of training areas. Teaching and research are performed by more than 200 professionals, including 137 PhD’s and 30 doctors of sciences.

The organizational structure of the science and innovation complex of the university combines 8 research laboratories for the following purposes: geoenvironmental studies, regional historical researches, applied didactics, linguo-pedagogics and problem-centered training, energy audit, innovative technologies in education, historiography and archeological field methods, sports and health-improving technologies, and a test laboratory.

A number of scientific schools, that have been formed in the university, conduct the researches in 5 main areas: psychology and pedagogics, humanities, philosophy and cultural studies, natural sciences, physics and mathematics. These researches are reflected in various monographs, teaching aids and study guides, including those approved by the Ministry of Education and Science of the Russian Federation, educational methodological associations and councils; they are published in the journals from the list of the State Commission for Academic Degrees and Titles, in international journals and theses. Over the past six years, the university research teams created more than 100 scientific papers, won the contests of the Ministry of Education and Science, the Prize of the President of the Russian Federation “Young Scientist”, received the grants from the Russian Foundation for Humanities and the Russian Foundation for Basic Research. The results of these studies are presented in 1345 scientific articles, 608 of which are published in peer-reviewed journals from the list of the State Commission for Academic Degrees and Titles; more than 150 monographs were published and more than 70 theoretical and practical conferences were organized and conducted in the university. 4 collected scientific papers and at least 8 collections of conference materials are published in the university every year. All materials are included in the Russian Science Citation Index.

The university issues the scientific bulletin “Vestnik NVGU” divided into 6 areas: “Philology”; “Historical science”; “Cultural Studies. Philosophy. Sociology”; “Psychological and pedagogical sciences”; “Physical, mathematical and engineering sciences”; “Natural sciences and earth sciences”. The bulletin is a subscription edition and is included in the catalogue of the Russian press and in the database of journals of the Russian Science Citation Index. There are 22 issues with more than 300 scientific articles.

Training of highly qualified personnel is being carried out within the post-graduate course. Annually senior students and graduates who have proved themselves during the research apply for admission to postgraduate study. It involves 13 departments, 10 research areas and 25 specialties. Over 300 people graduated from the post-graduate studies and more than 100 have successfully defended their theses.

The traditions of professional development of talented and enthusiastic researchers are preserved at all stages of postgraduate training. Every year, students of Nizhnevartovsk State University take part in conferences, forums and competitions at various levels, receive prestigious awards and scholarships from academic and government funds: the state scholarship of the President and the Government of the Russian Federation; the scholarship of the Governor of Khanty-Mansi Autonomous Region Yugra, the Vernadsky scholarship, the Dunin-Gorkavich scholarship and others.

The best students undertake internships in IT enterprises in Germany, organized under the program “Lift to the Future”, Germany (Hamburg); the reports of our students are often noted as the best at many international scientific conferences of students and young scientists, at All-Russian forums. 25 students have a certificate of copyright registration of intellectual property.

There is a scholar school in the university - the Council of Young Scientists and Specialists of Nizhnevartovsk State University. One of the main areas of scientific work of the Council of Young Scientists is the organization and support of competitions and international conferences and the development of research projects. The grants from the Russian Research Foundation for Humanities, the Russian Foundation for Basic Research and the grants for young scientists-PhDs in social sciences and humanities from the President of the Russian Federation, wins at the All-Russian contest of scientific researches of the students and graduates in the field of earth science are the results of the work of the Council.

Post-secondary training in the university is a key element of the system of continuing professional education and is aimed at satisfying the educational and professional needs, at professional development of any person involved, ensuring the compliance of his qualification with changing conditions of professional work and social environment, along with the preservation and development of human resources of innovation economy. When implementing additional professional programs various forms of organization of educational activities based on the means of distance educational technologies and e-learning are applied in the university.

The training at refresher courses is held in the field of pedagogics, psychology, organization of the work of educational institution, advanced technologies in the field of teaching, physical education and sport, music and art education, foreign languages, efficient energy use, information technologies, human resources, environmental safety and others.

The quality management system (QMS) in the field of education is implemented in the university and certified (in 2011 and 2014) at the Center for certification of management systems (Croatia) CroCert ISO 9001: 2008. Nizhnevartovsk State University received the public and professional accreditation of its educational programs in December 2013. The university received a certificate of international external expertise of educational programs in the following areas: 050100.62 “Pedagogic education” (the profile “Foreign language”) and 13.00.01 “General pedagogics, history of pedagogics and education.”

The material and technical basis of the university consists of 5 academic buildings, a fitness center, dormitories, a publishing house, a stationary base for the field, practical training of students, learning and practice classes.

Every year the educational programs of Nizhnevartovsk State University are among the best innovative programs in Russia. The university is the winner of the interregional competition “Top universities of the Urals” held within the framework of the National Competition “Top universities of the Russian Federation”. Nizhnevartovsk State University is the first university in Russia that joined the International Association of Student Affairs and Services.

The priorities of the development of international activities of the university are the internationalization of education and the search for new forms of international cooperation to facilitate the harmonization of Russian and European education and improve the quality of the educational process. With the active support of foreign partners the university promotes the international exchange of students and the academic mobility of teaching staff. In order to develop their professional competence the teachers of the university undergo language and scientific training in Germany, Spain, Czech Republic, Great Britain, Poland and China. In 2014, according to the results of the 6^th contest of project proposals within the framework of the programme of the European Commission Tempus IV, the project proposal “Assessment of the quality of cooperation of educational ecosystem as a mechanism of formation of professional competences” was approved for funding.

The faculty of physical education and sports of Nizhnevartovsk State University, established in 1994, initiated the training of specialists in the field of physical culture and sport in Nizhnevartovsk. Research and teaching staff of the faculty makes a significant contribution to the scientific and methodological support of physical culture and sport of Khanty-Mansi Autonomous Region Yugra and trains elite scientific and pedagogical personnel via the postgraduate courses. 8 PhD theses were defended under the guidance of professors L.I. Lubysheva and V.K. Balsevich.

The research laboratory of sports and health technologies at the faculty works in the following areas: monitoring of morphofunctional and psychophysiological state of participants of the educational process related to the motor and intellectual activities; development and implementation of health and fitness technologies in institutions of general, further and vocational education.

The following events and activities are conducted regularly at the premises of the faculty: Russian theoretical-practical conference with international participation, masterclasses, round tables, advanced training and retraining courses, the regional stage of All-Russian Olympiad on the subject “Physical Education”.

The students and graduates of the faculty are the pride of national sport; they become Olympic medalists, World and Europe Championships winners, among them: Alexander Maletin, Evgeny Makarenko, Vera Moskalyuk, Radik Zaripov, Nikita Ul’yanov.

 According to monitoring of professional activity of the graduates, many of them successfully occupied the leading teaching and managerial positions in the field of physical culture and sport of Khanty-Mansi Autonomous Region Yugra and Russia, some of them are honored teachers and coaches of Russia, honored workers of physical culture, high achievers of physical culture, judges of regional and international categories.

The faculty of physical culture and sport celebrates its 20^th anniversary. It has good scientific human resources and good prospects in the development of educational, scientific and mass sports activities.

In view of the foregoing, it is safe to say that today Nizhnevartovsk State University is an innovative organization, centre for higher education of the Eastern Educational District of Yugra, is among the top 10 leading universities of the Ural Federal District and is a major supplier of elite, competitive and sought-after specialists for various sectors of economy and education in the region.

References

1. Gorlov S.I. University management: From pedagogical institute - to university: collective monograph / S.I. Gorlov, V.I. Grebenyukov, I.M. Ibragimov et al. – Nizhnevartovsk: Publ. h-se of Nizhnevartovsk State University, 2014. – 170 P. (In Russian)

Corresponding author: kaa_03@mail.ru