On June 13, Saratov State University hosted an introductory session and presentation of strategic projects of the Priority 2030 SSU programme to the specialists of the Social Centre.

Chair of the Department of Histology, Cytology, and Embryology, the Institute of Medicine, RUDN, Timur Fatkhudinov made a report on the mirror of priority. He presented the results of on-site design and analytical sessions at universities who were implementing the basic part of the Priority 2030 grant, drawing attention to the main problems that were found in universities. Timur Fatkhudinov shared recommendations how to improve the implementation of the programme.

Rector Aleksei Chumachenko presented the Priority 2030 programme. Anticipating the reports of the university scientists, the rector spoke about the first stage of the programme and its strategic directions at the university level.

He said that potential interdisciplinary training taking into account the regional aspect was considered an important specific feature of university education. There were new demands of the economy, to which the university had to respond immediately.

According to Aleksei Chumachenko, the SSU mission is to conduct applied research focusing on import substitution and the development of the potential of youth. The purpose of the university is to identify the demand for strategic projects at the federal and global levels and to build close cooperation with industrial partners.

In his report, Vice-Rector for Research and Digital Development Aleksei Koronovskii explained what made up the financing of research at SSU, what difficulties the university faced implementing the research projects. He showed the citation index of SSU scientific publications in various fields and the Hirsch index.

Aleksei Koronovskii recalled that, this year, the university had won two grants from the Russian Academy of Sciences for research by world-class scientific laboratories – Nanoscale multifunctional devices of magnon logic and reservoir calculations on spin waves in periodic magnetic heterostructures and Pilot technology of photomodulation of the immune system of the brain of animals and humans: innovative strategies in the treatment of Alzheimer's disease.

Then the university scientists – heads of strategic projects told them about the objectives in their areas, achieved indicators, purchases of necessary equipment and identified possible risks.

Head of the Research Medical Centre Valerii Tuchin presented the strategic project entitled Technologies of Personalised Medicine, the purpose of which is to reach the world's leading positions in high-tech personalised medicine based on transdisciplinary methods and technologies. The scientists are working on new methods and technologies for the diagnosis, monitoring, and treatment of socially significant diseases, on mathematical modelling and analysis of signals of living systems, breakthrough technologies for neuro-regenerative medicine, and the development of an educational medical cluster.

Andrei Slepnev, Deputy Director of the Institute of Physics for Research, Head of the Scientific Smart Sleep Laboratory, presented the stratproject entitled Infocommunication technologies and the element base of terahertz micro- and nanoelectronics. Its goal is to achieve world-leading positions in the development and production of a new element base of micro- and nanoelectronics, magnonics, and spintronics based on new promising materials. As part of the project, the lab has successfully cooperated with defence industry enterprises.

Part of the project is to establish the education-to-research Digital Integrative Bioengineering Systems Interfaculty Technological Fablab, which was described in detail by Chair of the Department of Dynamic Modelling and Biomedical Engineering Anatolii Karavayev. The complex can be used in training and research. Much attention in the development of the project is paid to work with young people.

The experts of the Social Centre learned about the Chemistry and New Materials project from the report of Director of the Institute of Chemistry Irina Goryacheva. The goal that scientists face is to reach the world-leading positions in the development of promising nanomaterials, coatings, biologically active substances, new generation chemical technologies for industry, energy, as well as medical and environmental research. An important component of the project was the development of courses commissioned by enterprises with which SSU had been cooperating for several years.

The goal of the Teachers in the Educational Paradigm strategic project is to change the national system of continuing education of school and university teaching staff, taking into account new social challenges. This was stated in her speech by Head of Priority Projects and Programmes Elena Yelina.

She stressed that the ideas had influenced the Virtual Pedagogical Classroom, as well as the CONSILIUM Support Centre for Young Teachers. Thus, the university implements an education system from career guidance work with high school students to the support of young teachers. The stratproject also includes a lot of other significant events for teachers.

Head of the Office of Education Sergei Udalov revealed the features of the SSU educational policy. Saratov State University as a classical university presents a wide range of courses – more than 300 ones of different levels of training. The university studies high school students starting from the Institute of Pre-University Education to the Institute of Continuing Professional Education.

Other opportunities that the university provides to its students are interdisciplinary integration in education, networking and mobility of students, project training, social and technological entrepreneurship skills, additional education, and expanding the range of interdisciplinary competencies.

Head of the Office of Digital and Information Technologies Leonid Bessonov outlined the policy of digital transformation of the university. Its main directions are to develop and modernise hardware and software infrastructure, as well as to pass to new business processes.

Each report caused a lively discussion and interest from the experts of the Social Centre. The speakers were asked dozens of different questions.

On June 14, after the installation for the design and analytical session, the work of the university staff in groups is to begin.