Prospects for the development of Russian cities in the context of the education-related migration of young people

Introduction. Modern urbanization is characterized by uneven development of territories as well as by differentiation of cities in terms of population growth or decline rates. An important role in this belongs to young people who move to other cities in order to ensure the best possible self-fulfillment and comfortable living. The relevance of the study is determined by the emergence of the potential of polarization development of cities and adjacent territories, which forms the effect of socio-economic destabilization in the regions as a whole. The purpose of the paper is to analyze the prospects for the development of cities that are not included in the category of "megalopolis" in the context of the academic mobility of young people. Materials and Methods. The analysis of the data of the 2002 and 2010 All-Russia Population Censuses and of the 2014 and 2017 micro-censuses of the population, as well as a survey of first-year students enrolled in institutions of higher education in St. Petersburg in 2017 became the empirical basis of the study. Results. The study has demonstrated the centripetal migration attitudes of young people, which increases the risks of negative prognoses for the development prospects of the cities they leave. The problematic and attractive aspects of the cities where many students are living have been revealed, as well as the potential and directions of urban development, and the attitude of young people to the changes and their own participation in them. The areas of non-economic measures for the development of urban settlements have been identified, which make it possible to form a positive socio-psychological climate and image. Discussion and Conclusion. The data obtained make it possible to conclude that the trend of the unbalanced development of Russian cities still remains. Factors of life in a megalopolis, attractive to resettlement and modeling of young people's life plans, are determined by the activity of the population and the city authorities in such areas as economy, culture, social sphere, centripetal movement of resource flows, and the production of innovations that have economic and socio-cultural effects. The practical significance of the research results is lies in the identification of problem areas in the functioning of cities and the determination of areas of urban development for the formation of aspects of urban life attractive for young people.