Students’ work-based practical placement as the most important educational component: vectors of development

This paper builds up a picture of proposals for improving the organization of students’ work-based practical placements on the basis of strengthening the university-business cooperation. The key goals of improvement are to promote the quality of university education and ensure the employment of graduates. The theoretical and empirical analysis led to the conclusion that the current situation in the field of organization of students’ work-based practice does not entirely meet the modern requirements of the business environment. The article contributes to the existing volume of research and knowledge related to partnerships between universities and employers, and suggests positive steps that need to be taken for upgrading efficiency of practical placements. For the study undertaken by the working group of the Siberian Federal University within the framework of the international project ERASMUS + "Work-based practical placements: a step forward from the university to the labor market in the 21st century", the following research methods were applied: analysis of current documents, ,review of lit-erature and experience of project partners in order to study the best practices, survey of companies/organizations, interviews with stakeholders, focus group discussions with the participation of students, teachers, business representatives, university management and public organizations, politicians, mass media in order to study the current state and identify critical issues in interaction of educational institutions with the labor market in general and the organization of students’ work-based practice in particular. The study recorded a discrepancy between the requirements of the modern business environment and the competencies formed during students’ practical placement. To resolve this problematic issue, a set of measures was proposed to ensure close connection with real business, including by improving the organization of students' work-based practical placements. The paper proposes five key directions to improve the organization of work-based practice that require involvement of both the universities and the host companies.