Spatial distribution of human resources: education and labor spheres

The article discusses current issues of the formation and use of human resources in Russia. The purpose of the study is to identify the parameters of the spatial relationship between the received vocational education and employment in the acquired specialty. The object of the study is the relationship between two spheres of social space: 1) the sphere of education, where the choice of a future specialty and the receipt of vocational education at various levels is fixed, and 2) the sphere of employment, which corresponds or does not correspond to the specialty obtained, and depending on this affects the achievability of the task of human resource development. The empirical basis for the study was data from Rosstat, job search platforms, and sociological surveys from Russian Public Opinion Research Center (VCIOM). There is presented the dynamics (2006-2021) of the Russians’ ideas regarding the relationship between the prestige of professions and their profitability. The correspondence of the work performed by Russians with the acquired professional skills was analyzed (by type of settlement and level of education). The conclusion is drawn: the knowledge and skills acquired in the process of education and consolidation of a certain professional level in a specific specialty are either implemented in the economy and contribute to the further formation of human resources (typical of large cities), or the existing knowledge is not used due to employment in the«wrong» specialty. The results obtained have both theoretical and practical significance for scientists, researchers and specialists who deal with the problem of discrepancy between the acquired specialty (as knowledge and skills, which are an essential part of human resources) and the actual work performed in the profession, as well as for various authorities that take part in solving problems of a social and economic nature, in particular: formation of target figures for admission to educational institutions and regulation of the labor market.