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Course with employment: "Profession Methodologist from scratch to PRO»
Learn more«Fakultetus»
The main idea of the project is to create an effective solution that solves specific problems and meets the needs of the target audience. We strive to develop innovative products and services that will improve the quality of life of users. An important aspect is the use of modern technologies and approaches, which ensures high performance and reliability. Our team focuses on continuous improvement and adaptation to changing market conditions in order to remain competitive and offer relevant solutions. As a result, the project aims to achieve sustainable growth and long-term success in its field.
The career center management system is an effective solution for optimizing employment and professional development processes. This system helps centralize information about vacancies, resumes, and applicants, significantly simplifying the work of employment specialists. Using such a system allows you to automate processes, improve customer service, and enhance interactions between employers and job seekers. The system's built-in analytics and reporting tools help track career center performance and make necessary improvements. Implementing a career center management system facilitates faster and more effective employment, which is essential in today's labor market.
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Links play an important role on the internet, providing navigation between pages and improving the user experience. They can be internal, linking different pages of a single website, or external, directing to resources on other domains. Proper use of links helps optimize a website for search engines, increasing its visibility and ranking. It's important to consider anchor text, which should be informative and relevant to the content of the page the link leads to. Effective links not only help with SEO but also increase user trust in the resource, which in turn can lead to increased conversions and improved overall website performance.
Every year, it becomes increasingly clear that there is a significant gap between university educational programs and the actual needs of employers. Government agencies are aware of this problem: last July, the Minister of Education and Science instructed university rectors to monitor the employment of graduates. However, this call did not produce the expected results. The need to adapt the educational system to the modern labor market remains urgent, and universities must more actively collaborate with businesses to provide graduates with in-demand skills and knowledge.
Universities have career centers, but they, like the industry as a whole, are also experiencing difficulties adapting to modern conditions. An unexpected impetus for transformation in this system came from a service developed by a RANEPA student. This project demonstrated new approaches and solutions that improve interactions between students and employers, which in turn positively impacts graduate employment and career growth.
The Fakultetus project has become known among many Russian universities thanks to its multifunctional online platform. It effectively simplifies the graduate employment process and facilitates interactions between universities and employers. The Fakultetus platform collects and analyzes student data, enabling it to generate informed recommendations for collaboration with various organizations. Furthermore, the service offers support to universities in managing their social media pages. In total, the platform offers over 150 functions, making it an indispensable tool for universities, students, and employers.
Sergey Vishchipanov, founder and CEO of Fakultetus, shared his thoughts with Skillbox Media. In the interview, he discussed current trends in education and the importance of modern technologies in learning. Sergey noted that the effective use of online formats significantly expands access to high-quality educational resources. He also emphasized that Fakultetus strives to develop innovative approaches to education in order to meet the demands of the modern labor market and the needs of students.
- how he came up with the prototype of Fakultetus during an academic assignment when he was a student;
- how he wanted to create a student employment service for Canadian universities, but ended up helping Russian ones;
- how Fakultetus evolved from a tool for holding job fairs into a methodology that changes the internal work of universities;
- why Fakultetus has haters in career centers and why the project's founder sometimes prefers to remain silent at regional universities that he is a Skolkovo resident;
- how the Ministry of Education and Science found out about the platform and why the founder is against imposing it on universities;
- how the completely free project survives.
How Fakultetus Came to Be: A Chain of Accidents
The founder of Fakultetus is a key figure who played an important role in the creation and development of the educational platform. He inspired the team to implement innovative teaching methods and is actively involved in shaping the curriculum. Thanks to his vision and leadership, Fakultetus has become a renowned resource for students seeking knowledge and professional growth. The founder continues to work to improve the quality of education and expand opportunities for students, making Fakultetus an attractive choice for anyone seeking a high-quality education.
While studying at the Faculty of National Security at RANEPA, my friends and I initiated the "Interactive City" project, dedicated to the digitalization of housing and utilities in Moscow buildings. Although I had no experience in IT at the time, I have always been passionate about innovation and invention. This project became my starting point in mastering the development of digital platforms and drawing attention to the modernization of urban infrastructure through technology.
At university, I learned about the career center and decided to create a platform for holding a job fair. Thus, the first version of "Fakultetus" was born. Since its launch in 2017, it has functioned as the event's internal communications system. At that time, I focused on developing my own IT business related to medicine and security, targeting the US market.
In November 2019, my work took me to Canada. My partners' office was located across from York University, renowned for its beautiful campus. I often strolled around the university grounds and one day stumbled upon the local career center. Intrigued, I decided to go inside and learn more about the opportunities it offered.
I was told about the Handshake platform, a digital solution used by American universities to connect with employers. Interestingly, Mark Zuckerberg has invested in this platform. I also learned that a similar system was being developed in Canada. This led me to believe that we already have a similar platform, created in 2017 for RANEPA. Although it was originally developed for different purposes, its functionality is similar to Handshake, as career centers need an effective communication platform.
Two weeks later, I returned to Russia and decided to develop a project for the Canadian market, with a strong launch in the spring. However, quarantine began and the borders closed, forcing me to put my international projects on hold. By that time, I had already begun formalizing my project and received Skolkovo residency status. My main company became a resident in 2018, so applying for residency with the Fakultetus project was a logical step. Skolkovo offers significant benefits and creates an excellent ecosystem for supporting residents through its communications. For example, thanks to the center, I was able to establish connections with the ASI, which served as an important step for the further development of the project.
During the lockdown, Russian universities faced serious difficulties: events such as career days and meetings with employers were canceled. In isolation, Zoom became the only tool for organizing webinars, but they were unable to provide comprehensive support, such as CVs, job postings, applications, and interaction monitoring. When university representatives began looking for solutions to these problems, they discovered information about my project, which offers effective tools for adapting to the new conditions.
I was the only one working in this area. At this time, I had free time, as the pandemic put my international projects at my main job on hold. I decided to take the opportunity to complete work on Fakultetus while simultaneously addressing the pressing needs of universities. My colleagues from my main company's team helped me with this.
Most universities do not have effective career support methods. Our approach significantly expands these capabilities: we don't simply create a job posting website; we build a comprehensive system for interacting with employers. This includes establishing close communication and active engagement with students from their first year and for many years after graduation. This approach facilitates deeper and more thoughtful career development for students, providing them with access to relevant vacancies and opportunities for professional growth.
Why the project has inspired career centers to change
All universities participating in the "Fakultetus" project found us independently, without any advertising campaign. Initially, individual universities approached us in February and March 2020, seeking a platform for a career fair. Over time, word of mouth took hold, and from March 2020 to June 2021, 162 universities joined us. We still don't have presentation materials or other descriptions of the platform for potential users. Universities recognized the need for urgent and high-quality student employment support and found us on their own.
When the first partner universities appeared, I was convinced that the education market situation was significantly better than it actually was. I didn't understand the full picture. At the beginning of our work, we avoided a number of major implementations to avoid interfering with various government systems. Nevertheless, "Fakultetus" ultimately became a unified solution for career issues. This experience allowed us to better understand the needs of students and universities and tailor our services for maximum effectiveness.
The university has a list of tasks related to managing student employment risks, analyzing their interests, and attracting new employers. Connection to the platform occurs in several stages: first, you need to submit an application, then complete a series of interactive actions, such as transferring a file with the faculty structure. After this, a briefing is conducted, and automated support begins. During the course of work, prompts are generated daily based on the collected data and translated into specific tasks. This allows for more effective management of student employment and improved interactions with employers.
The university's primary objective is to create an effective internal communication environment. Without this environment, collaboration with companies becomes impractical and does not yield the expected results. The university's career center must be able to interact with each student, collect information about them, and then provide offers from partner organizations. This emphasizes the need to transform the university's internal processes to improve interactions and enhance the quality of career services.
The university should begin these changes by actively using social media. It is important to create general career groups on VKontakte and Telegram, as well as specialized channels focused on various areas and fields of activity. Career pages, channels, bots, and other digital tools must be developed. Email newsletters should also be considered. Currently, over 180 career centers have partially outsourced management of these channels to us, opening up new opportunities for effective engagement.
At Fakultetus, we automate social media management using multiple resources. Our system creates a publication schedule, develops a content plan, publishes posts, and provides reports to track effectiveness. In the near future, we plan to strengthen our social media channels by drawing on our extensive library of career reference content. We understand that not all students are interested in general pages. They are drawn to specialized profiles, such as "careers for lawyers," which allows us to more accurately address their interests and needs.
A single university should have at least thirty communication channels. Social media plays a key role not only in disseminating information about vacancies but also in conducting mass career guidance, allowing users to accumulate digital traces of their career interests. Effective social media management becomes impossible without process automation.
Communication on social media is only part of our work. The Career Center also manages the accounting system of recruiting partners, their offers, talent pools, and other aspects. We offer a clear algorithm for effective interaction with employers. We recommend specific organizations willing to collaborate, using both our existing database and new contacts. As a result, each university creates its own unique employer ecosystem with automatic updating of offers, bookmarks, subscriptions, and talent pools. This allows students and graduates to find relevant vacancies and build a successful career.
We do not have strict regulations for interaction; only user agreements are in effect. In rare cases, we formalize cooperation in writing if required by the educational institution. Overall, the process follows the usual format of working with free digital platforms. Over the course of our project's existence, we have established ourselves as a competent and reliable partner. Employment is a key goal of higher education. However, a number of risks can prevent students or graduates from finding work. Some are unsure of their chosen profession, while others face the problem of a narrow specialization that doesn't meet the labor market requirements in their region. Universities should minimize these risks by providing students with clear information about in-demand market segments and specific companies where they can apply their knowledge and skills. It is especially helpful if these organizations are partners of the educational institution, as referrals are the best option. A university provides excellent opportunities for networking and networking, which can significantly increase the chances of successful employment.
Cooperation between universities and employers is often carried out with great difficulties, and the number of places for educational internships and partners is decreasing every year. As a result, education is becoming less practice-oriented. To change this situation, universities need to focus on meeting the specific needs of employers and adapt their curricula to these requirements. Effective student employability requires significantly more than simply holding career fairs. It's crucial to establish sustainable partnerships with businesses and integrate practical learning elements into the curriculum to prepare students for the realities of the labor market. To improve universities' reputations, a service that connects them with employers is essential. Fakultetus offers just such a service. It's not just a platform with job openings; we also help graduates find placements. However, fully restoring Soviet practices in a market economy is impossible, so we've adapted them to modern realities. Our goal is to create an effective bridge between educational institutions and employers, facilitating student employability and enhancing the image of universities.
We are developing an innovative model for interaction between universities and employers, providing educational institutions with a targeted list of organizations willing to hire graduates. We identify the specific features of each specialization, integrate specific employers into the university's digital ecosystem, and assist them in recruiting. As a result, we reduce the risk of unemployment among graduates, increase the number of organizations partnering with universities, and help students understand the significance of their education and future career opportunities.
Today, I realize that if Fakultetus had been launched in 2017, it could have significantly changed the landscape of higher education. However, at that time, we did not have the necessary resources and expertise to successfully implement such ideas. The creation of Fakultetus was made possible thanks to the experience and knowledge we have accumulated over the years. Now we are ready to make a positive difference in the educational process and help students achieve their goals.
Students actively use the Fakultetus platform to find potential employers and subscribe to their updates. They submit responses and register for events, which contributes to their career development. We carefully research students' requests and analyze their digital footprint to determine which companies and sectors interest young professionals. We also track how much time each user spends reading various ads, which helps us optimize content and improve user interaction.
Data analysis allows us to optimize the distribution of vacancies among students, as well as suggest the most suitable employers and establish effective communication channels. This process is automated and implemented using a self-learning model based on artificial intelligence. We strive to make the job search for students more efficient and convenient, using modern technologies to achieve better results.
The Fakultetus website has a mechanism that helps students find a job at the right time. To achieve this goal, we've created numerous resources, including current job openings and lectures from employers. But how can we be sure this content will be of interest to students? The answer lies in analytics: the system predicts user needs based on the preferences of their classmates and other similar users. This allows us to offer the most relevant content and improve students' chances of successful employment.
We recently integrated the HeadHunter system into Fakultetus, allowing students to create resumes, view, and apply for job openings without leaving their university's digital careers platform. This integration is designed to ensure students feel supported by their institution during the employment process. We strive to create a comfortable job search environment by improving interactions between students and employers.
Fakultetus offers a wide range of features, including a fully integrated event management module based on the Timepad model. This allows for efficient participant tracking and event organization. We also offer a Google Forms-like tool called "facultyforms," which simplifies data collection and feedback. Our service for employers is simple and easy to use. If you need to find employees, simply register, follow the educational institutions you're interested in, view resumes, or receive responses from candidates. You can also save resumes to build a talent pool. Our service also offers additional features, such as built-in test cases, which can be used to evaluate external candidates. This allows companies to effectively manage the recruitment process and improve the quality of hiring.
The project managed to attract 25 thousand organizations, from 46% of which had not previously collaborated with universities. This opens up new opportunities for students, providing more internship opportunities and access to experienced mentors and experts in the educational process. Partnerships with these organizations facilitate not only employee searches but also the development of educational initiatives.
How Skolkovo and the Ministry of Education and Science helped develop the project
The development of the Fakultetus platform occurred naturally. Initially, users turned to it primarily for organizing online career events. Over time, this function became just one of many, and its importance diminished. Fakultetus has evolved from a practical tool into a full-fledged methodology facilitating the transformation of processes in educational institutions. Now, the platform offers a wide range of solutions for optimizing internal university processes, making it an indispensable tool in the education sector.
We proposed that the conservative field of career support at universities, which lacks clear regulations and metrics, completely change its approach. However, the lack of defined performance indicators complicates this task. It is important to develop new methods and tools that will help universities improve their career support for students and graduates.
Universities are developing a new framework for work based on the accumulation of student and employer profiles, as well as various data. However, career centers are failing to adapt to these changes. Often, they fail to recognize the importance of transformation and continue to use outdated websites with resume writing instructions, which may contain language that has been outdated for two decades. At the same time, students and employers clearly recognize the need to update the career support system at universities. Our conversations with them revealed numerous shortcomings that hinder the effective integration of new approaches into career support. Career centers need to be actively modernized to better meet the demands of the modern labor market and the needs of students.
Relatively new career centers demonstrate more effective approaches to organizing their work, while older centers face significant challenges in restructuring processes and implementing modern methods. Critics have emerged among us who continue to use outdated methods, such as sending out Excel spreadsheets with job openings, believing this to be the most optimal way to help students find work. However, it is important to understand that modern career centers must adapt to the new realities of the labor market and offer more relevant and effective solutions.
Our residency in Skolkovo can sometimes be a source of problems. The project received this status in March 2020 immediately after its launch, which brought two significant benefits: access to grants and tax incentives. Furthermore, Skolkovo's closed ecosystem opens up opportunities for networking and collaboration: there are always people willing to help. However, there is also a negative stereotype about Skolkovo, perceived as a strange place with many dubious stories. In reality, it is an excellent platform where many inventors are working on important innovations. Unfortunately, this false image sometimes hinders the development of projects and the attraction of new participants.
When interacting with regional universities, Fakultetus faces mistrust. Many perceive us as Skolkovo "grant-eaters" with their own interests. This creates certain communication difficulties. Sometimes it is more practical not to mention our residency status to avoid a negative reaction.
Fakultetus has received significant support from the Ministry of Education and Science, as we are one of the few organizations demonstrating tangible results in our field. This is an advantage we effectively use in negotiations with universities to identify problematic aspects of their work and convince them of the need to transform their processes. Our goal is not only to identify problems but also to offer effective solutions that contribute to improving educational standards and enhancing the quality of education.
In March 2020, the Ministry of Education and Science learned about our platform when we held virtual job fairs for universities using Fakultetus. We then contacted the head of the Ministry of Education and Science department via Facebook and arranged a meeting with ministry representatives to present our platform's capabilities in more detail. As a result, we were offered the opportunity to integrate into the Digital Education and Career Guidance System (DEGCS).
In October 2020, our next meeting took place, where we organized a roundtable discussion with career centers and ministry representatives. By this time, we had already created the largest chat for career center managers, which had become an important operational communication channel, including its use by the Ministry of Education and Science. At the meeting, we discussed our practice and demonstrated how it is successfully replicated independently, without external intervention.
We collected a large amount of data, demonstrated significant results, and created the largest community of career center managers. In response, the Ministry began using our developments for its analytics and providing us with information support. This collaboration allows us to improve the quality of career centers and enhance the effectiveness of their interactions with job seekers and employers.
We opposed the Ministry's insistent recommendations for universities to collaborate with Fakultetus. We were comfortable working with universities whose leadership consciously decided to transform. Experience has shown that forcing cooperation is ineffective, as in such cases, the process occurs without genuine interest. We have approximately 40 examples of universities failing to understand the benefits of collaboration, and as a result, the interaction quickly ceased.
Sometimes, collaboration with the Ministry of Education and Science stimulates universities to take more proactive action. At the end of July 2021, the issue of digitalizing student career support became a key issue on the Ministry of Education and Science's agenda, leading to a doubling of the number of universities on our platform in just one month. The Ministry of Education and Science's support serves as an important benchmark, confirming our credibility in the eyes of the educational community. This creates an atmosphere of trust for universities that are not afraid to work with us, as we are regularly mentioned in significant news.
In our system 403 universities joined, 240 of which did so in August and September at the Ministry's recommendation. This situation came as a surprise to us, as the universities that had previously approached us were already aware of their needs and eager to implement innovations. Now, however, new users must be explained everything from scratch: what our system is, what it's for, and what we're working on together. It is important to emphasize that our resource is not bureaucratic, but on the contrary, is flexible and ready for changes and improvements.
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Career centers at universities must evolve to better meet the needs of students and the demands of the labor market. It is important for them to begin actively engaging with employers, creating partnerships that will allow students to access practical internships and vacancies. This collaboration will help universities better understand the current skills and competencies required by employers.
Furthermore, career centers should implement modern training and consulting methods, including online courses, webinars, and workshops. These formats will allow students to develop the necessary skills and receive up-to-date information about career opportunities. It is also important to provide access to career resources, such as job databases and resume creation platforms.
It is necessary to focus on an individual approach to each student, taking into account their interests and goals. Psychological support and professional counseling will help students make more informed career choices. It is important that career centers not only inform about vacancies but also help develop the personal and professional qualities necessary for successful employment.
Ultimately, university career centers should become active participants in preparing students for the working world, providing them with the necessary knowledge and connections to successfully launch their careers.
Why "Fakultetus" is an act of civic activism and how it exists
"Fakultetus" is entirely funded out of my own pocket. Initially, I used funds from my main job, but now I am focused exclusively on developing "Fakultetus." The platform requires significant investment during the development stage, but we have managed to effectively optimize costs. Our mission is so important, so I see no point in introducing paid features on the site.
There are two significant drawbacks to this approach. Firstly, when you independently fund a project that can be described as "technological civic activism," it can be difficult to understand certain situations. Secondly, a free product has its drawbacks. This is due not only to sustainability issues but also to user attitudes. Users often perceive free solutions as less valuable, which can negatively impact their engagement and usage.
Fakultetus encourages universities to transform, step out of their comfort zones, and abandon outdated career center formats that have evolved over the past decade. The need for significant change is clear, but without financial incentive, many choose to forgo such services rather than overcome their habits and strive for improved results.
The issue of project profitability is quite complex. It is important to consider that the educational system is the primary stakeholder. A transition to a public-private partnership format is possible in the future. Furthermore, Fakultetus creates a communications ecosystem into which various external services and products can be integrated, providing them with new capabilities. This also opens up additional avenues for monetization.
Currently, there are no paid features for employers or students. The platform primarily serves as a digital environment for universities, and we cannot restrict access to interactions between universities and employers. We have a clear understanding of our development direction and strategy. We recognize the potential risks, but we prefer not to share the details of our plans to avoid overloading the platform.
I am a millennial who strives to make a difference in the world. I understand the financial aspects of Fakultetus and see its prospects, which gives me confidence in the future.
Graduate employment is a problem that worsens annually, and its negative consequences affect various areas of life, including the economy. I propose effective solutions to improve this situation, based on extensive data and research, as well as the support of experts in the field. I am confident that I can make significant changes to the education system to make it more responsive to labor market demands. This is not only an ambitious goal, but also an important step toward creating a positive social impact, which I am already seeing.
We are at the initial stage of transforming higher education, having reached the second level of ten. Change in such a conservative field as higher education takes time. However, at the pace we have gained, first without administrative support and then with it, we will be able to see noticeable changes by the end of 2021-2022. Next year, the higher education system will undergo significant changes.
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