Annual rating of psychological universities presented in Moscow

The Civic Chamber of the Russian Federation hosted a round table dedicated to key areas of development of psychological education in the country, the press service of the organizers reported. The central event of the event was the presentation of the fourth annual ranking of universities in the field of Psychology. The Interfax National University Rating research group evaluated 120 universities based on their reputation, the quality of their educational programs, the academic activity of their teachers, and the achievements of their graduates. The top 5 included Lomonosov Moscow State University, St. Petersburg State University, the National Research University of Higher School of Economics, the Moscow Institute of Psychoanalysis and the RANEPA. The Moscow Institute of Psychoanalysis became the only non-governmental university in the top five of the list.

The round table brought together representatives of leading Russian universities teaching students in the field of Psychology. The experts discussed the prospects of the profession, the impact of modern anthropological trends on the economy, as well as issues of preserving human subjectivity in the context of active digital transformation. According to experts, modern training of psychologists goes beyond the formation of professional competencies. First of all, it acts as an important socio-cultural tool contributing to the development of a holistic understanding of human nature in a changing world.

During the round table, Svetlana Kostromina, Dean of the Faculty of Psychology at St. Petersburg State University, noted that the rating helps universities improve their strategy and serves as a guideline for applicants. Honored Professor of Moscow State University, Academician of the Russian Academy of Sciences Alexander Asmolov emphasized the importance of participating in the ranking of regional universities, in particular, Tomsk State and Kazan Federal Universities. He also drew attention to the growing role of psychology in everyday life: there is a growing demand for coaches, facilitators and psychologists in corporations, and the importance of practical psychology in schools is increasing.

Timofey Nestik, a representative of the Institute of Psychology of the Russian Academy of Sciences, pointed to the transition of business to a human—centered model, which increases the demand for specialists capable of comprehensively assessing human nature. In response, universities are developing interdisciplinary programs, including in the field of behavioral economics.

Alexander Demidov, first vice-rector of the Moscow Institute of Psychoanalysis, said that he considers the university as a space where a multifaceted, holistic vision of a person is formed. In his opinion, psychology by itself cannot capture the full complexity of human nature — it needs a connection with other human-centered disciplines. The IIP implements this idea in practice: interdisciplinary programs are already operating at the institute, for example, "Neurobiology of Mental Health" and "Cultural Production and Cognitive Technologies", and this year "Geography and Human Psychology" and "Digital Anthropology and Cyberpsychology" will start.

"Psychology is not only a profession, but also a significant part of the culture and intellectual history of mankind. Speaking of psychological education, it is important to ask what tasks the university should solve today as a historical social institution. In its development over almost 30 years, the Moscow Institute of Psychoanalysis has gone from a specialized psychological and pedagogical institute to a model university of human sciences. At our university, we collect complex, multifaceted optics related to an attempt at a holistic vision of a person," Demidov said.

Experts have identified other important challenges. Thus, Galina Soldatova, an academician of the Russian Academy of Sciences, sees the psychologist of the future as a creative specialist who designs new approaches at the junction of fields of knowledge. Alexander Savenkov, representing the Moscow State Pedagogical University, warned about the risk of loss of basic cognitive skills due to excessive reliance on technology and noted the importance of the work of school psychology teachers. And Maria Ghazaryan from the Pirogov Russian National Research Medical University emphasized the need for a balance between professional training and the ability to use modern technologies: educational programs should take into account the dynamics of student development.

According to the participants of the round table, large-scale changes in politics, economics and the social sphere affect a person's psychological stability. Under these conditions, psychology is becoming one of the key factors in shaping the quality of human resources. As Alexander Asmolov summarized, every second in the world there is a struggle for trust between people, and it is the appeal to humanity, including through psychology, that gives a chance for success in this struggle.