On the application of the method of IT startups in training future IT professionals

Software development includes many different tasks and makes high demands on the efficiency and quality of work both at the individual and at the team level, which depend on the competencies of the employees. However, there is a definite flaw in the traditional teaching of software development students regarding the practical application of the concepts and methods required for software design and development. The research describes the experience of applying the approach to teaching modeling and designing information systems of students of a higher educational institution based on the method of IT startups. The proposed approach integrates concepts from subjects such as programming languages, project management, and entrepreneurship. The work used general scientific methods of empirical research. The main research method is description, which allows getting more meaningful information. The article describes the tasks of the course on software development. As a result of the research, we gained a holistic view of how best to promote team competencies (“soft skills”) and successfully apply group projects in the field of IT education. It is shown that there is a variety in the use of techniques and the formulation of personal and educational goals by students in teamwork when performing projects in terms of adaptation to new methods and approaches to software development, effective use of time and experience gained in projects. Our approach to teaching software development and project management techniques allows integrating and practicing the technical skills required for engineering students, as well as developing “soft skills”.