Over the 75 years of its history South Ural State University has worked its way from Chelyabinsk Mechanical Engineering Institute to a modern Smart-university of digital transformations. From an institute consisting of only two faculties it turned into a national research university and a leading scientific and educational centre. Establishment of economics research-and-development schools of the university is an important phase in its development.
Scientific Interests of the Regional Economics School
The origins of the South Ural State University scientific school and research studies in regional economics date back to 2005. A research team of scientists formed at the university who focused on the problems of regional economics.
“In modern economic science regional economics has long been singled out as an independent and important field of knowledge. And our university is the heart of the economical and social infrastructure of the Chelyabinsk Region ensuring the development of diversified economy and growth of the quality of life of our region’s population. No wonder that the research in regional economics has undergone steady development at South Ural State University,” shares Director of the SUSU School of Economics and Management Irina Saveleva.
Photo: Irina Saveleva
Despite the historically different periods of theses research studies and inclusions into applied developments related to regional economics, the scientific community of the SUSU regional economics researchers is presently a team of professionals. Thus, Doctor of Sciences (Economics) and Director of the School of Economics and Management Irina Saveleva is conducting applied research in strategic development of regions; Doctor of Sciences (Economics), Professor and Vice-Rector of SUSU Andrei Shmidt is performing analytical and expert work on sustainable development of the regional economics; the scientific interests of Doctor of Sciences (Economics), Professor Valentina Antoniuk heading the Department of Economics Theory, Regional Economics, and State and Municipal Management lie within the development of the mechanisms of state regulation of the territory economics; the main works by Doctor of Sciences (Economics), Professor Irina Danilova deal with the instability of economic space; Doctor of Sciences (Economics), Professor Anzhela Karpushkina is studying the problems of institutional regulation of regional labour markets; and Doctor of Sciences (Economics), Professor Irina Dovbii is interested in the issues on the fulfilment of the regional industrial policy of the region.
Training Postgraduates and Doctoral Students
The Department of Economics Theory, Regional Economics, and State and Municipal Management together with the Thesis Council in speciality 08.00.05 Economics and Management of National Economy (regional economics, labour economics) have become an integration factor for combining theoretical research, and educational activity, including on training postgraduate and doctoral students in the field of regional economics. This made possible the significant moving forward in the system-based solving of applied issues of regions’ development. 10 candidates of sciences employed at SUSU are holders of a degree in regional economics, and the performed regional research studies resulted publishing of 9 monographies.
“Currently the main fields of theoretical scientific works in regional economics may be roughly categorised under the following research trends: Foresight Analysis of Social and Economical Development of Regions; Spatial Development and Infrastructure Changes in Regional Economics; and Response of Regional Social and Economical Systems to Changes on Macroeconomical and Institutional Conditions,” notes Irina Saveleva.
The programme on Foresight Analysis of Social and Economical Development of Regions is being supervised by Doctor of Sciences (Economics), Professor Irina Saveleva. Also the work under this programme is being successfully fulfilled by: Candidate of Sciences (Economics) Ilya Tsalo (business environment of the global market and dynamics of regions); Candidate of Sciences (Economics) Nikolai Belyaev; postgraduate Irina Kilina (innovative development of regions and promotion of scientific-engineering developments); Candidate of Sciences (Economics) Antonina Ukhova (strategy of regional markets); and others.
The scientific programme on Sustainable Development and Infrastructure Changes in Regional Economics is being developed under supervision of Doctor of Sciences (Economics), Professor Andrei Shmidt and Doctor of Sciences (Economics), Professor Valentina Antoniuk; also the staff of the School of Economics and Management are working on it, including Candidate of Sciences (Economics) Elmira Vansovich (regional structural policy), Candidate of Sciences (Economics) Elena Kornienko and postgraduate Daria Kremer (agglomeration development of regions), and regional infrastructure restrictions by Candidate of Sciences (Economics) Anara Telyubaeva, and others.
Doctor of Sciences (Economics), Professor Irina Danilova, and Doctor of Sciences (Economics) Anzhela Karpushkina are supervising the programme on Response of Regional Social and Economical Systems to Changes on Macroeconomical and Institutional Conditions. The same topic is the field of scientific research for Candidates of Sciences (Economics) Aleksandr Rezepin and Anastasiia Lapo (stabilisation policy of regions), Candidates of Sciences (Economics) Taya Amirova and degree-seeking applicant Svetlana Voronina (spatial and industrial changes in the Russian labour market). In June of 2018 Olga Bogdanova successfully defended her candidate thesis on the Influence of External Institutional Shocks on Economical Development of Regions.
Photo: SUSU Laboratory of Accounting and Analysis
Research on Regional Economics in the Age of Digitalisation
The modern phase of the development of state and municipal management aims at elaboration of strategic mechanisms of maintaining social and economical sustainability, what is defined by a cyclic character of the market processes, problems of globalisation, publicity, digitalisation, and high level of economic uncertainty. The elaboration of the mechanisms of sustainability, and assessment of the regulating influence of the state institutes are becoming relevant not only in terms of scientific research, but also for the current management solutions in the sector of state management.
“The regional economics researchers of the SUSU School of Economics and Management are participating in the development of the medium-term and long-term Strategies of social and economical development of the municipalities of the Chelyabinsk Region (Chelyabinsk, Miass, and Korkino and Kartaly Municipalities),” stresses Irina Saveleva. “They are also working on the fundamental fields of activity of the authorities, such as Concept of Industrial Policy of the City of Chelyabinsk; Programme on Expansion of Housing Affordability in the Chelyabinsk Region; as well as they are elaborating regional policy with regard to monofunctional cities (Asha in the Chelyabinsk Region, and Trekhgorny closed administrative territory). No so long ago the team of the School of Economics and Management took part in development of the project on the Strategy of Social and Economical Development of the Chelyabinsk Region till the Year of 2035.”
Within the frameworks of the project on the Strategy of Social and Economical Development of the Chelyabinsk Region till the Year of 2035 the SUSU team analysed the current state of the Chelyabinsk Region, of the prospects and trends of its development. The complex analysis and diagnostics of the development of the Chelyabinsk Region performed as compared to the regions of the similar sector (metallurgy) group, such as Krasnoyarsk Territory, Lipetsk and Vologda regions allowed to reveal both the leading aspects of our region, for instance in part of higher education, innovative research, and the lag-behind factors, namely in development of clusters, innovative activity of enterprises, including in small and medium-sized businesses, what helped come up with the goals and the mechanism of improving the competitiveness of the Chelyabinsk Region for the period till 2035. The strategy was approved by the federal authorities.
The professors of the SUSU School of Economics and Management Irina Saveleva, Andrei Shmidt, Valentina Antoniuk, Irina Danilova, and Anzhela Karpushkina, whose professional interests are related to regional economics, are the experts in the legislative and executive authorities. The combination of science and practice is key to professionalism and quality higher education, characteristic of the teachers of the SUSU School of Economics and Management.