**2. Materials and Methods**

Despite a fairly large number of studies in the sphere of education for Arctic training [10–18], there is no consolidated international or Russian statistics on training specialists for the oil and gas industry in the Arctic at the moment. In this regard, this study focuses on studying the directions of transformation of the personnel training system.

Based on the analysis of modern foreign and Russian scientific literature on the problem of training personnel for work in the Arctic region, the main current global trends in the training of Arctic specialists were identified.

To identify qualitative characteristics for developing the educational system, in August 2020, an expert survey was conducted among the heads of educational and scientific organizations engaged in training Arctic personnel, as well as among representatives of mining enterprises and businesses in the oil and gas industry of the Russian Federation. The expert survey was sent to 42 respondents from 23 institutions. As a result, 30 experts participated in the survey: Unfortunately, 12 respondents could not participate (Table 1).

Using the methods of systematization and classification, we analyzed the scientific and educational programs for training personnel for the Arctic suggested by those universities that were named by experts to be the leading centers for training Arctic specialists. Based on the method of comparative analysis, the authors analyzed the level of compliance of scientific and educational programs at these universities with the selected global trends.


#### **Table 1.** Expert group description 1.

**3. Results of the Expert Survey**

According to the results of the survey, the experts identified themselves as specialists working in the following areas of professional activity:


It is noteworthy that 100% of the respondents who took part in the survey agree with the statement that there is currently a shortage of qualified personnel for implementing Russian oil and gas projects in the Arctic.

The respondents were asked to assess the qualitative characteristics of the development of the educational system for training personnel for oil and gas projects in the Arctic.

The absolute majority of respondents note that today, in the process of training "Arctic personnel", the importance of using digital technologies to solve professional problems is growing. They all emphasize the need to develop international cooperation in the sphere of training "Arctic personnel" and a practice-oriented approach to training specialists for Arctic projects. 13% of respondents in the sphere of economics/consulting (7% of respondents) and science (6% of respondents) question the statement that in the process of training modern specialists, the importance of mastering basic knowledge in meteorology, physics, biology, and ecology is growing, regardless of the direction of training. 28% of respondents also related to economics/consulting (20%) and education (8%) questioned the statement that the participation of universities from non-Arctic countries in training specialists for the Arctic contributes to increasing the e ffectiveness of Arctic projects (Table 2).

Thus, all the surveyed representatives of the oil and gas industry and business, as well as the vast majority of representatives of science and education, note that all the above quality characteristics are necessary for training qualified modern specialists for oil and gas projects in the Arctic, thus confirming the need to implement an interdisciplinary, integrated and international approach in the educational process. In turn, it is noteworthy that representatives of business (economics and consulting) underestimate the role of interdisciplinary knowledge (knowledge of meteorology, physics, biology, ecology) and an international approach in training specialists. We dare to assume that this is due to the professional specifics of respondents who are focused on developing narrowly focused competencies and specific skills.


**Table 2.** Qualitative characteristics of the development of the educational system for training personnel for oil and gas projects in the Arctic (30 experts interviewed) 1.


**Table 2.** *Cont.*

Composed by the authors basing on the experts' interview analyses.

1

As a result of the survey, the top five Russian universities that train qualified specialists in the oil and gas sector that meet modern requirements for developing the oil and gas industry include: I. M. Gubkin Russian State University of oil and gas (28.2% of the total number of responses), Saint Petersburg Mining University (25.6%), Saint Petersburg Polytechnic University (12.8%), Northern (Arctic) Federal University (10.2%), Murmansk State Technical University and Ufa State Oil Technical University (5.1% each) (Table 3).

**Table 3.** Russian universities that train qualified specialists in the oil and gas sector that meet modern requirements for developing the oil and gas industry in the Arctic (30 experts interviewed) 1.


1Composed by the authors basing on the experts' interview analyses.

It is worth noting that representatives of extractive enterprises and businesses in the oil and gas industry (i.e., representatives of potential employers interested in university graduates), in addition to the obvious leading universities, also mentioned the following universities: Northern (Arctic) Federal University, Ufa State Oil Technical University, Murmansk State Technical University, Ukhta State Technical University, Tomsk Polytechnic University and North-Eastern Federal University named after M. K. Ammosov.

To analyze the objectivity of the university assessment, respondents were asked to answer the question: "Which university did you graduate from?". The survey showed that four respondents (13%) indicated their "Alma mater" among the leading universities that provide training for Arctic oil and gas projects. Therefore, the psychological moment of commitment to "their own" university could play a role in the assessment, and this percentage can be considered a probable error. The high percentage of probable error can be explained by several reasons: First, the specifics of the expert survey, when a small number of professional participants take part in it; second, the specifics of the sphere the survey is aimed at.

The survey identified the most popular professions for Arctic oil and gas projects in the next 5–10 years. The experts named 21 professions, among which the most frequently mentioned were:


The data obtained on the professions that will be in demand in the Arctic in the future are quite correlated with the list of universities that, according to experts, train qualified specialists in the oil and gas sector that meet modern requirements for developing the oil and gas industry in the region: The leading universities mentioned above train personnel in these specialties.

Given the complexity of living and working conditions in the Arctic, the absolute majority of experts surveyed (87%) consider it necessary to conduct special psychophysical training for future Arctic specialists.

#### **4. Discussion: New Trends in Training Specialists for the Arctic**

Modern foreign and Russian experts in the field of education, analyzing the main global trends in the training of "Arctic" personnel, note that the transformation of the training system is influenced by the following global factors:


It is noteworthy that the presented trends overlap with the qualitative characteristics identified in the expert survey that are necessary for developing the educational system for training personnel for oil and gas projects in the Russian Arctic. Moreover, the characteristics allow us to more accurately reveal the manifestations of these trends in the Russian educational system.

#### *4.1. Increased Competition, Development of New Standards*

Analysis of the survey results and modern pedagogical and professional literature [6,19] showed that "Arctic cadres" should have interdisciplinary knowledge. So, regardless of the chosen direction of future professional activity, students should ge<sup>t</sup> a basic knowledge of meteorology, geography, geo-ecology, physics, chemistry, and biology to form a more complete understanding of the region's features. This is important because when solving professional tasks in Northern latitudes, it is necessary to understand the nature of natural and climatic factors and the associated risks and dangers to human life and the security of industrial facilities [20]. Environmental and socio-economic spheres of life are the most important areas of human activity in the Arctic [21], so it is no accident that the method of modeling environmental and economic risks in the region is increasingly used in the implementation of Arctic projects [22], in particular in the oil and gas industry [23,24].

In addition, extreme weather conditions, lack of convenient logistics, and a complex communication situation lead to the need to solve non-standard tasks in the course of performing professional activities. A modern specialist in the oil and gas industry should start implementing projects in a comprehensive manner, taking into account the level of scientific and technological progress in the industry, the specifics of the socio-economic life of the Arctic region, and should be psychologically ready to live and work in extreme Arctic conditions [25–27].

Accordingly, the specialist should be able to flexibly and creatively approach the solution of complex situations that do not fit into the "standard templates".

In this regard, the competencies of "problem solving skills" are of particular importance, and not just "knowing the classic ways to solve them". The focus on obtaining skills and abilities is emphasized by researchers who analyze the sta ff training system for the Arctic [12,20].

It should be emphasized that it is important to increase the adaptability of the national training system to ensure its sustainability in the face of rapid changes in the socio-economic sphere. Education is the most important factor in the sustainable development of the Arctic territories. When considering the features of the education system in the Arctic, several researchers emphasize the implementation of the concept of Arctic sustainable education (ASE) [28,29], which is provided in several domains, such as: Community, cooperation, problem-solving skills, and opportunities for active, local, and cultural training in sustainable development [28,29] through an inclusive approach that takes into account the cultural, linguistic, and other characteristics of the peoples living in the Arctic.

A relevant area of work is the preparation of new educational standards for training specialists for the Arctic. Work in this direction began in 2018–2019, when the "Arctic national scientific-educational consortium" Association conducted preliminary work to explore the possibilities of developing these standards. Now it regularly provides them to the Ministry of education, presents them at the meetings of the Council for the Arctic and Antarctic under the Federation Council of the Russian Federation, at the meetings of the Expert Council under the State Duma for legislative support of the Far North regions development, and so on [20].

So, in Russia today, programs are being implemented to train engineers for technological support of the oil and gas industry in the Arctic, geological exploration in the Northern latitudes. A special standard of educational programs is being developed for doctors who will work in the Arctic.

To date, 42 educational organizations of higher education, 12 of higher professional education, and 72 of secondary professional education operate in the Arctic zone of the Russian Federation [9]. At the same time, specialists with higher education for the Arctic are also trained in "non—Arctic" subjects of the Russian Federation—a total of 17 subjects of the Russian Federation (including six subjects of the Russian Arctic) [20]. In this regard, it becomes necessary to concord the network interaction of universities that train specialists for the Arctic. To this end, in 2016, the Ministry of education and science of the Russian Federation (today the Ministry of higher education and science of the Russian Federation) created "National Arctic scientific and educational consortium" Association.

The consortium is a voluntary association of universities, scientific organizations, and enterprises that implement training programs and scientific research of the region for the sustainable development of the Russian Arctic territories. In fact, the National Arctic scientific and educational consortium acts as the national counterpart of UArctic. As of September 2020, the Association includes 33 organizations, including 23 higher education institutions, of which only nine are located directly in the Russian Arctic (Table 4) [30]. Thus, it is clear that the Russian scientific and educational environment has clearly formed an opinion that network interaction is necessary for implementing Arctic projects.



1 Composed by the authors basing on National Arctic scientific and educational consortium site data analyses [30].

It is noteworthy that the Association does not include two leading universities that train specialists in the production of hydrocarbons in the Arctic—Gubkin Russian State University of Oil and Gas (Scientific Research Institute) and Saint Petersburg Mining University. In turn, the expert survey showed that these two universities are among the leaders in training qualified specialists in the oil and gas sector that meet modern requirements for developing the oil and gas industry in the Arctic. Along with them, the Association does not include the third leader of the expert survey—Saint Petersburg Polytechnic University.

Therefore, we can say that these universities somewhat ignore the domestic project of scientific and educational collaboration in the sphere of Arctic projects. This position is probably related to the broad scientific and educational ties of these universities directly with oil and gas companies and enterprises operating in the Arctic, as well as to the traditionally broad and direct ties with the leading scientific, educational, and industrial centers of the country. Saint Petersburg Mining University and Saint Petersburg Polytechnic University are the largest technical universities with a rich history: They have been creating technical, scientific-technical, and scientific-educational personnel for the entire country for decades and even centuries, thus creating entire scientific schools. In addition, these universities, despite many years of experience in training specialists for the oil and gas industry (including in the complicated conditions of the Arctic), relatively recently announced "their Arctic specialization". So, in 2019, the Centre of competence in the field of engineering and technology of field development in the Arctic conditions (CC "Arctic") was established at Saint Petersburg Mining University, which has already received a patent for invention No. 2704451 "Methods for constructing an offshore drilling platform on the shallow shelf of the Arctic seas" [31]. At the beginning of 2020, Saint Petersburg Mining University decided to start training specialists in the specialty "liquefied natural gas", in particular for 'Yamal SPG' project.

In 2019, the Centre for innovative Arctic technologies was established at Saint Petersburg Polytechnic University. At the same time, since 2015, the university has had a scientific and educational center "Gazpromneft-Polytech", which is engaged in scientific and practical developments and training of specialists in the sphere of developing mathematical models of oil and gas production processes by solving real problems of industry, i.e., directly in digital technologies that are so necessary for modern conditions of the oil and gas industry in the Arctic [32]. Thus, a scientific and educational "block" in the sphere of oil and gas projects in the Arctic is potentially cooperated and created in St. Petersburg between these two universities, which can create strong competition in the industry both in Russia and internationally.

As noted above, the expert survey showed that the leading university that traditionally trains specialists for oil and gas projects in the Arctic is I.M. Gubkin Russian State University of oil and gas. The university is a participant in major oil and gas projects in the Arctic, and also trains specialists for Arctic projects together with major oil and gas companies. So, in 2018, the university and 'NOVATEK' launched a master's degree program in the sphere of 'Cryogenic technologies and equipment for the gas industry' to train specialists in the LNG industry. Students enrolled in this program have an internship at the company's enterprises with the possibility of further employment.

In addition, the university trains masters in the sphere of "development and operation of o ffshore oil and gas fields". The research and education center "Underwater mining complexes" was created together with 'Gazprom' PJSC. To improve the skills, additional educational programs are being implemented, in particular, "Introduction to subsea hydrocarbon production systems" (initiated by 'Gazprom' PJSC).

In addition to Gubkin Russian State University, several universities provide personnel for implementing Arctic oil and gas megaprojects: Lomonosov Northern (Arctic) Federal University, Murmansk Technical State University, Novosibirsk State Technical University, Tyumen Industrial Institute, Siberian State University of Geosystems and Technologies, Marine State University named after Admiral G. I. Nevelsky, Far Eastern Federal University, Ukhta State Technical University, North-Eastern Federal University named after M. K. Ammosov, Tomsk Polytechnic University, Ufa State Oil Technical University, etc.

It is obvious that the title of the center for Arctic research and the main Arctic university, including in oil and gas projects, is claimed by the Northern (Arctic) Federal University, based on which NANOK was formed. The University trains bachelors in the profile "Operation and maintenance of oil and gas facilities of the Arctic shelf (full-time training) and masters in the program "Development of oil and gas fields of the Arctic shelf". Since 2011, the University has an Innovation and Technology Centre for Arctic oil and gas laboratory research. And in March 2019 it was decided to create an international center for integrated research of the shelf and coastal zone of the Arctic seas of Russia. In addition, since 2012, the university has been implementing the unique for Russia educational program "Arctic Floating University", which is an annual interdisciplinary scientific and educational marine expedition on board the "Professor Molchanov" research vessel. The program is focused on studying and monitoring the ecology, climate, and bioresources of the Arctic region, as well as studying the humanitarian side (the history of Arctic development, the Arctic in the system of international relations, and the legal space of the Arctic) [33].

Murmansk State University is a leading university that trains specialists in the sphere of Arctic sea transport and shipping, as well as oil and gas projects in the Arctic. The university annually recruits students in the profile of training "Operation and maintenance of oil and gas facilities of the Arctic shelf", as well as training specialists in the sphere of ice shipbuilding, navigation, construction of port and shipping infrastructure, human-made security [34].

According to experts, Tomsk Polytechnic University trains specialists in the sphere of oil and gas, and is also one of the leaders in comprehensive research of the Arctic shelf. The University has created an international scientific and educational laboratory for the study of carbon in the Arctic seas, which performs research work in the direction of "Siberian Arctic shelf as a source of greenhouse gases of planetary significance: Quantitative assessment of flows and identification of possible environmental and climate consequences" [35]. In addition, it should be noted that Tomsk State University implements the Master's program "Study of Siberia and the Arctic", which is aimed at training specialists in the field of ecology and environmental managemen<sup>t</sup> in Siberia and the Arctic. Such specialists would know modern methods of environmental research and methodology for conducting scientific research to solve applied problems. In this regard, we can say that Tomsk is forming one of Russia's leading scientific and educational centers for training personnel for Arctic projects [36].

Based on a comparative analysis of the number of educational programs for training Arctic personnel, the following world leaders in training specialists for oil and gas projects can be identified: UiT The Arctic University of Norway, University of Copenhagen, University of Lapland, The Norwegian Institute of Bioeconomy Research (research Institute), University of Iceland, Luleå University of Technology. At the same time, we can note a significant increase in the number of programs in the Arctic direction, for example, "Arctic engineering", in all leading universities in Denmark, Iceland, Canada, Norway, the USA, Finland, and Sweden. At the same time, university programs are interdisciplinary in nature, for example: McGill University implements the "Arctic Field Studies Semester" training program [37], the University of Northern British Columbia implements the "Northern Studies" program [38], the University of Alaska-Fairbanks—"Arctic and Northern Studies" [39]; since 2019, Colorado School of Mines has opened several Arctic-themed programs.

It can be noted that the training system in the named countries, as well as in Russia, pays less attention to the Humanities, focusing more on the training of engineers, geologists, biologists, logisticians. At the same time, major Arctic universities, such as the University of Northern British Columbia, enroll students for arts, social sciences, and health sciences [40].

In addition, since years 2013–2014, training programs in near-Arctic countries have been actively developed. In particular, the UK began the first steps in training personnel for the Arctic in 2013 as part of the first British Arctic policy framework, "Adapting to Change" [41]. The UK has also established the UK government's Science and Innovation Network (SIN), which includes representatives of the Arctic powers and serves as a necessary tool for research collaborations. SIN's activities are aimed at providing training and student exchanges, as well as creating and building scientific potential [42]. Since 2018, the amount of financial support for the Scientific network from the UK governmen<sup>t</sup> has increased significantly, which indicates that the country is interested in Arctic research.

A comparative analysis of leading Russian universities (according to experts) and world leaders in training personnel for the oil and gas industry according to the QS rating showed that Russian universities are significantly behind Western leaders. Moreover, the failure of specialized universities for the oil and gas industry is revealed (including Gubkin Russian State University of oil and gas and Saint Petersburg Mining University) both in the world ranking and in subject ratings. The situation is somewhat better with three universities (Peter the Great Saint Petersburg Polytechnic University, Tomsk Polytechnic University, "MISiS" National Research Technological University), but their achievements are lost against the background of obvious leaders—the University of Northern British Columbia, McGill University and the University of Copenhagen. The exceptions are several European universities that are not included in any rating at all: The University of Lapland and the University of Iceland. Table 5. [43] There is low competitiveness of Russian universities at the world level, and the nature of their training is catching up.


## *Resources* **2020**, *9*, 137


34

University Rankings site analyses [43].

## *Resources* **2020**, *9*, 137
