Systematic Assessment of The Development of Innovation Ecosystems in Russian Universities of The Northwestern Federal District

Abstract

–The article analyzes the current level of development of Russian universities located in the Northwestern Federal District (NWFD), examines various aspects of their activities, and searches for an adequate comprehensive assessment of the effectiveness of a modern university that meets the standards of the best world practices. As part of the research of the National University Rating Interfax (NUR-Interfax) analytical group, an information base has been accumulated on a number of indicators of Russian universities. Some observations from the analysis of the NUR-Interfax rating databank are presented in this paper. Within the framework of the restart of the National Projects (NP) in 2019-2024, it is planned to merge NP Science and NP Education into a single NP that has an almost well-established name “Science and Universities”. The project aims at continuity in the development of the higher education system in the Russian Federation. The most attention in the regions of Russia should be given to the creation of so-called “belts of innovative enterprises” around the leading regional university. The universities themselves, in turn, should clearly define priorities and create realistic and promising development programs in order to produce the effect of a "snowball of progress" in the university to attract all types of resources, not only material, but also human. The development of higher education should follow and correspond to the global trends in the development of the 21st century university. However, the features of the socio-political and economic development of the Northwestern Federal District, primarily the level of the actual development of universities and their geographical location, should be taken into account. Keywords––academic rankings, transformation of higher education, universities, peer reviews, scientometrics.