November 27, 2025 a panel discussion on "Creating a Network of Modern Campuses: Results of a Pilot Project to Develop Product Programmes" was held as part of the V Young Scientists Congress. This event united representatives of government authorities, scientific community, and higher education experts. Elena Konstantinova, an analyst from the Moscow Institute of Physics and Technology, and Dmitriy Rozhin, First Deputy Chairman of the Government of the Arkhangelsk Region acted as the moderators.
Among the discussion participants were: Andrey Omelchuk, Deputy Minister of Science and Higher Education of the Russian Federation; Irina Manuylova, Deputy Governor of the Novosibirsk Region; Viacheslav Alenkov, Deputy Chairman of the Government of the Sakhalin Region; Aleksey Rayder, Deputy Governor of the Tyumen Region; Dmitriy Samoylov, Deputy Chairman of the Government of the Perm Territory; and Aleksandr Danish, Director of the Group Communication Centre of the Presidential Academy of National Economy and Public Administration.
The Chelyabinsk Region at this discussion was represented by the Minister of Education and Science Vitaly Litke. In his speech, he shared on our region's experience on forming an in-demand in the market product portfolio in the context of creating a world-class inter-university campus being constructed as part of the "Youth and Children" national project.
The Minister noted the significance of the path covered:
"In the course of strategic sessions, in disputes and contradictions, the truth was being born and the community of professionals was being formed — it is worth a lot. We would like to specifically thank Andrey Omelchuk and his colleagues for teaching us the technology and for their support through all the stages of the project implementation."
Vitaly Litke provided a detailed description of using the Stage-Gate methodology to manage the development of product programmes. This approach had allowed to bring structure to the process of creating educational and scientific products oriented at the market demands. Out of more than 120 initial ideas, 83 products had been selected for implementation and had undergone a multi-step expert review.
"Our delegation comprising the leading researchers of our university took part in the scientific program and presented our developments. At the booth of Mega Grants of the Ministry of Education and Science of Russia, Anna Paterova, Senior Research Fellow of the SUSU Quantum Engineering of Light Laboratory, presented a "Practicum on Radiation Polarization Measurement" exhibit, which tells about the physical foundations of light polarization and the various types of polarization. The event program also included the panel discussion on "Creating a Network of Modern Campuses: Results of a Pilot Project to Develop Product Programmes", where representatives of the campuses network from different regions of Russia shared their best practices on implementation of the projects on development of educational infrastructure and creation of modern spaces," said SUSU Rector Alexander Wagner.
Leading universities from the Chelyabinsk Region had participated in the programmes development: South Ural State University, Chelyabinsk State University, Magnitogorsk State Technical University, South Ural State Medical University, South Ural State Agrarian University, International Institute of Design and Service, and South Ural State Humanitarian Pedagogical University. In addition, more than 50 industrial partners had been engaged in the collaboration.
Eight product programmes were approved, which are aimed at developing the priority fields in the region, including the transport-and-logistics systems, industrial robotization, digital maturity of industry, technological entrepreneurship, materials science and physics of materials, eco-biotechnologies, health protection, and medical technologies, as well as youth programmes.
By 2036, it is planned to attract more than 2.4 thousand students, including 38% international students, train additional qualifications to 100% of graduates, achieve the volume of products' commercialization equalling more than 1.5 billion roubles, and increase the funding of research and development works up to 664 million roubles. As a result of the survey held among the project teams' participants, 78.2% of the team members confirmed that they began to work more as "product teams", rather than "scientific groups".
In conclusion, the Minister stressed that the campus creation had become a point of concentration of talents and competences, what facilitates the technological development of not only the Chelyabinsk Region, but of the whole of Russia as well.
Among the forum's organizers are the Roscongress Foundation, Minister of Science and Higher Education of the Russian Federation, and the Coordination Council for Youth Affairs in Science and Education under the Russian Presidential Council for Science and Education. "Natsionalnye prioritety" ("National Priorities") Autonomous Non-Commercial Organization acts as the operator of the Decade of Science and Technology.