Problems of competencies formation among IT-specialists in the Vologda oblast universities

Transition to the digital economy, accompanied by the processes of informatization, creation and application of information technology in various industries, is a priority task for almost all the countries of the world. High rates of the economy and society transformation in the conditions of transition to the digital economy require specialists in the information technology industry to develop new skills and competencies which are accumulated in educational organizations. In this regard, the issue of developing the personnel competencies for the information technology industry is particularly relevant. It is necessary to form educational programs that satisfy global trends in digitalization and informatization. The purpose of our work is to identify the problems of the competence formation among specialists in the IT-industry in the Vologda region’s universities. Based on the available scientific literature, the authors conducted a survey of existing approaches to the differentiation of the concepts of “competence” and “competency”, and formulated their position on this issue. Educational programs related to the training of specialists in the field of IT-technology are analyzed. As a result, the researchers found out which professional competencies are emphasized, they considered the common features of programs and their differences, and estimated the level of their practical orientation. In the final part of the article, the main problems of competence development for IT-specialists in higher education institutions of the Vologda region are highlighted, directions for their solution are outlined, and research prospects are determined. The scientific significance of the work is to systematize the problems that hinder high-quality training for the IT-industry. The scientists who are interested in staffing and development of the digital economy can use the research results. The practical significance lies in the fact that the proposals set out in the final part of the article will, to a certain extent, allow solving the indicated problems in the education system. The proposed measures can be used by federal and regional authorities to improve the staff training process.