VK experts will teach students of the Academy of Strategic Communications how to work with new media

The SHUM Youth Media Development Center and VK have launched the educational course "New Media: SMM and Digital Marketing". It is designed specifically for media managers and is dedicated to working with new media and promoting on social networks.

Under the guidance of VK experts, students go through the full cycle of work of a communications specialist: from setting tasks and analyzing the target audience to developing materials, setting up advertising and managing communities in a digital environment.

The educational course "New Media: SMM and Digital Marketing" combines theoretical training with solving practical problems. Participants work with cases that are close to the real conditions of the media market, and gain skills that are in demand in the field of public and government communications.

The training takes place online on the digital platform "Russia - the Land of Opportunities" within the framework of the Academy of Strategic Communications, the first federal training program for government—oriented media managers. Based on the results of the online course and competitive selection, students can apply for participation in the full-time part of the educational program of the Academy of Strategic Communications, which will be held from May 20 to 22, 2026 at the SHUM Center in the Kaliningrad region.

Among the experts and authors of the course: Nikolay Afinogenov, Head of VK's Promotion and Analytics department, Mikhail Matykin, Project Manager for VK communities, Sergey Tomilov, Director of Strategic Communications at VK, Tamara Chechetkina, Head of Marketing at VK's information security team, Anastasia Moskvitina, head of VK's content group, Evgenia Voronina, Head of directions for working with content creators, Ivan Markov, head of design at VK Tech, Maria Izgina, senior editor of VKontakte and other VK experts.

"VK actively supports initiatives related to the education and self-realization of young media professionals. Today, a media manager must work equally confidently with strategy, analytics, and communication content. It is important not only to understand your audience, but also to see how their behavior is changing, which formats are effective, and how digital tools help build a sustainable dialogue with the audience. We have made the program as applied as possible: participants will receive not only knowledge, but also ready—made solutions for their professional activities," said Dmitry Uvarov, Director of Strategic Partnership at VK.

You can take the online course up to and including April 22 on the digital platform "Russia — the land of opportunities".