Effectiveness Evaluation of Higher Education in Technical-Engeneering Specialties: Retention Rate

The article analyzes the effectiveness of education based on the results of admission to state-funded places in engineering and technical specialties at Russian universities. The retention rate is considered as an indicator that complements the universal indicators of the Russian Ministry of Higher Education and Science’s Monitoring, and characterizes the quality of admission, the educational process, and educational outcomes. The aim of the study is to develop a typology of training programs based on admission and completion indicators, taking into account the significance of the retention rate indicators. Based on data from the VPO-1 form of the Ministry for the period from 2014 to 2024, the influence of the dynamics of budget place redistribution in favor of engineering and technical specialties on changes in the retention rate is analyzed. It is concluded that an increase in the number of state-funded places in engineering and technical fields generally does not lead to a corresponding increase in the number of graduates. It is revealed that the gap between admission and graduation is particularly pronounced in regional universities, where the retention rate is significantly lower than in metropolitan universities. The analysis was conducted both for the Russian Federation as a whole and for individual subjects of the Russian Federation, including the Krasnoyarsk Region and the city of Moscow. It is shown that engineering and technical fields form a separate type of training, characterized by a decrease in the retention rate when budget places are redistributed in their favor. Based on the conducted research, recommendations are formulated on improving the management of budget place allocation for engineering and technical specialties for executive authorities and founders of higher education institutions in the Russian Federation.