**5. Conclusions**

The changes in the system of training specialists described in this work are aimed at minimizing the existing imbalances in the labor market in the Arctic zone of the Russian Federation.

The focus on high-tech technologies in the Arctic leads to an increase in the importance of human capital as a factor in the e fficiency of economic development in the Arctic. It is obvious that as economic activity increases, the personnel deficit will increase. In this regard, based on existing forecasts, the training system should adapt to new challenges and adjust educational programs and directions. The future of the Arctic is in the hands of highly qualified specialists who have the skills to remotely control complex technological processes in oil and gas fields and marine transport.

In the twenty-first century, young specialists in the oil and gas industry who are being trained to work in the Arctic should acquire fluency in information technology and competence in working with complex robotics. Artificial Intelligence (AI) in the harsh natural conditions of the Arctic is already helping people, and in the near future, may even replace them.

At the same time, we can conclude that education is an important factor in preserving the unity of the social space of the Arctic. The development of international cooperation in the field of personnel training, in addition to practical educational tasks, makes it possible to strengthen cross-cultural ties that create the basis for sustainable development of the region.

As the results of the study showed, training personnel for work in the Arctic has a special specificity and often falls out of the general principles of ensuring the educational process. Global trends in training "Arctic personnel" show the need to develop an interdisciplinary approach, basic knowledge of natural sciences, to study the socio-cultural specifics of the region, to develop new educational standards, to implement the concept of 'Life Long Learning', to widely introduce digital technologies and internationalize education.

The analysis of Russian educational programs for training specialists allowed us to conclude that, in general, the domestic system of training is adapting to changing conditions, in particular, certain progress has been made in the formation of "digital" competencies and skills in the conditions of a developed IT infrastructure.

The introduction of "digital fields" has led to an increase in the demand for IT specialists in the Arctic oil and gas sector. With the help of an expert survey, it was revealed that in the future, the most popular professions, along with "drillers" and specialists in transport, will be IT specialists who ensure the functioning of "digital fields".

Leading universities that train specialists for modern oil and gas projects in the Arctic are Gubkin Russian State University of Oil and Gas, Saint Petersburg Mining University, Peter the Great Saint Petersburg Polytechnic University, Lomonosov Northern (Arctic) Federal University, and Murmansk State Technical University.

At the same time, it should be noted that not all leading Russian universities are included in international educational projects and organizations, and there is skepticism about the internationalization of education. In addition, there is a catch-up nature of Arctic education in Russia and the lag of the education system from the general trends in the training of Arctic personnel, and the low competitiveness of Russian universities at the world level. Probably, the processes of cooperation, primarily in the field of oil and gas projects, are constrained by the continuing tense relations between the largest states of the Arctic region.

**Author Contributions:** Conceptualization, E.S. and D.M.; methodology, D.M.; validation, S.G. and A.N.; formal analysis, E.S.; resources, R.-E.K.; writing—original draft preparation, E.S. and D.M.; writing—review and editing, S.G. and A.N.; visualization, R.-E.K.; project administration, E.S. All authors have read and agreed to the published version of the manuscript.

**Funding:** This research received no external funding.

**Conflicts of Interest:** The authors declare no conflict of interest.
