Iskander at the desk
Young people have rediscovered all the advantages that a diploma of a military university and officer stars give in life. Therefore, in the military registration and enlistment offices, whole queues of guys and girls wishing to become cadets of the army or naval schools. What entrance tests do they pass, what kind of education they get, what technique do they master? These and other questions were answered in an exclusive interview to a Rossiyskaya Gazeta correspondent by Major General Yevgeny Kuchinsky, Head of the Military Education Directorate of the Defense Ministry.
Evgeny Vladimirovich, in recent years, applicants have literally attacked military universities. The effect of "delayed action" affects when, after the forced downtime, schools and academies resumed the recruitment of cadets and students? Or is the officer service again in value?
Evgeny Kuchinsky: We resumed full-time enrollment in military schools three years ago. And the interest of young people in the officer’s career is really great. I think there are several factors. First of all, the work carried out by the Ministry of Defense on the popularization of military service, including through widespread media coverage of tank biathlon, aviadarts and other types of army competitions.
Not the last role is played by social and material incentives. Young officers now receive decent money, they have a guarantee in getting an apartment.
In addition, with the adoption of the new law on education, graduates of our universities are awarded diplomas in specialties that are equally in demand both in the Armed Forces and in civilian life. Whatever happens to the officer, with such “crusts” he will not remain without work. Moreover, the dismissed soldier has the right to undergo professional retraining in his chosen specialty.
According to the Bologna system, military universities now graduate not just lieutenants, but bachelors with masters?
Evgeny Kuchinsky: We do not prepare bachelors. According to the specialty programs, we train future tactical officers. The master course is designed for graduates of the operational-tactical specialists, and for the graduate students of the Academy of the General Staff - the operational-strategic level.
Simply put, in military schools cadets master the program of specialty. Such graduates occupy junior officer positions - platoon commander, battery, and also company or battalion level. You think to grow further, come to the profile academy - magistracy. This already opens the way to the post of commander of a regiment or brigade, deputy commander of a division. Well, and mark as commanders, dream of big stars, - then you can't do without the Academy of the General Staff.
I want to emphasize the main thing: under the new law, the same educational standards of education are now being implemented in military higher educational institutions as in civilian higher educational institutions.
Nevertheless, the competition for admission to the schools of the Ministry of Defense is often higher.
Evgeny Kuchinsky: It is actually growing from year to year. This summer the competition ranged from 3 to 6 people per seat. Most candidates turned out to be in command universities of the Ground Forces - almost six people per seat. In the Ryazan Airborne Troops School - 5,3. At the Military Medical Academy - 4,6. In the Military Institute of Physical Education - more than four. Traditionally, the Military Academy of Material and Technical Support and its branches in Volsk, Penza and Omsk enjoyed great demand from our applicants. As well as the Military University, where humanitarian officers are trained.
But a kind of record set nine military high schools, which are allowed to take girls. Among them, the competition reached 12 people in place. And in the Military Medical Academy in general exceeded two dozen students for one cadet position. And this is despite the fact that far from all the applicants were admitted to the entrance tests.
What do you have in mind? Do not the way to military schools open the results of the unified state exam?
Evgeny Kuchinsky: The score on the exam, of course, is decisive. But, besides him, the state of health of the candidates is taken into account, many have to be “screened out” as unsuitable for military service under the contract. There is also the so-called professional selection - it is carried out with the help of testing applicants for special computer programs.
Finally, not all guys take tests for physical training. To guarantee victory in the competitive selection for physical training, you need to run three kilometers in 12,45 minutes, defeat a hundred meters in 13,7 seconds and pull up on the 12 crossbar. The standards for C grade, of course, are lower - tightening 4 times, overcoming three kilometers to 14,56 minutes, and 100 meters to 14,4 seconds. However, this level of physical fitness reduces competitiveness when entering a military school.
Why do schools, institutes, and universities operate in your system? Are these universities not the same level?
Evgeny Kuchinsky: We have only one institute - physical education in St. Petersburg. Military University - also in the singular. Our other universities are colleges and academies.
The point is not in the name, especially since under the new law all universities - both the Ministry of Defense and civilian - are educational institutions of higher education. This abolished the former gradation of educational institutions by type and status.
The Ministry of Defense has kept the traditional, historically established names of universities. After all, for example, the Academy of the General Staff was also called in pre-revolutionary Russia. And military schools and academies received their names in the Soviet era.
If we talk about the Military University and the Military Institute of Physical Culture, then for their achievements in recent years, many in Russia and abroad, they are known precisely by these names. Therefore, nothing in the name of these universities did not change. The institute remained an institution, and the university - a university.
But what about the branches of military academies, because they were not in the old days?
Evgeny Kuchinsky: Where it was required to return independence to the school, this was done. Now these institutions of higher education in the Ministry of Defense 26. Branches remained only at the Military Academy of Material and Technical Support, in the Naval, Military Air and General Military Academies, as well as the Military Academy of the Strategic Missile Forces. This is due to the university curriculum integrated under this organizational structure.
Here it is necessary to understand an important detail. Independent status is primarily necessary for military schools that carry out personnel orders of a particular type or type of military.
Say, what was the point that the Ryazan Airborne School was a branch of the Combined Arms Academy. It issued officers not for all troops, but for airborne units. It is clear that when the revision of the university structure of the Ministry of Defense began, the landing school gained independence one of the first.
I want to emphasize that the proposals for the restructuring of our universities were prepared very carefully, with detailed analysis and in-depth discussion. They were considered by the Security Council, the Minister of Defense reported these proposals to the Supreme Commander. And only after that the new structure of universities was approved by the government of the Russian Federation.
As a result, today we have 14 academies with 8 branches, the Military University, 10 higher military schools and the Military Institute of Physical Culture in the military education system.
No transfer of schools in the branches of academies, or vice versa is no longer planned. Optimization of the network of military schools has been completed.
Another "structural" question. Why are military educational and scientific centers kept in this system? And with incomprehensible names. For example, "Military Training and Scientific Center of the Navy" Naval Academy named after Admiral of the Fleet of the Soviet Union N.G. Kuznetsova "?
Evgeny Kuchinsky: The concept of "military educational and scientific center" has not so much a staff-organizational, but an applied meaning. When they were created, it was about the formation of organizations capable of simultaneously engaging in the preparation, training of officer officers for the Armed Forces and research work. Hence, the decision to merge into such centers the specific academies with branches, specialized military research institutes and other scientific organizations of the Ministry of Defense. We have three types of the Armed Forces - the Ground Forces, the Aerospace Forces and the Navy - and the same number of military training and scientific centers.
Not long ago, it was under them that scientific companies began to form. Let me remind you that the first such unit appeared in Voronezh, where the NE Air Academy is located. Zhukovsky and Yu.A. Gagarin.
As for the name - does it matter! The main thing is the organization created on the basis of the Academy, what specialists it produces, what scientific developments in the interests of the army.
There is a decision of the Minister of Defense to equip all military schools and academies with modern combat equipment. Will you deliver Iskander missile systems and nuclear submarines of the Borey project there?
Evgeny Kuchinsky: The system of mastering by cadets and students of new technology has been worked out for decades. I see no problems here. When there is such an opportunity, we carry out training, including on a real product. But of course, nobody will deliver submarines to naval schools. But their separate compartments and rooms with instrument panels are easily mounted in classrooms, in universities they do it.
In addition, almost all types of modern weapons and equipment have developed special training complexes. They maximally imitate the operation of systems and mechanisms tank, aircraft, missile system, etc. The use of simulators allows you to cover large groups of people with your studies and save equipment and weapons. And their practical development continues during military internships and naval practices.
By the way, according to the decision of the Minister of Defense, cadets and students of military higher educational institutions began to more actively involve in exercises and maneuvers with live firing and missile launches. They will also participate in the testing of a new arsenal.
Speaking in general, the practical development of the military profession in universities is now devoted to 80 percent of study time.
Recently, the commander of the Airborne Forces, Vladimir Shamanov, ordered that the cadets of the Ryazan airborne school speak only English on Wednesdays. Not planning to extend the "language" initiative to other military schools?
Evgeny Kuchinsky: Interpreters are also trained at the Ryazan School, so the decision of the commander is fully justified. In addition, airborne officers may be involved in peacekeeping operations, the participants of which traditionally communicate in English.
If we talk about our other universities, within the framework of the additional educational program, they are organizing studies in the specialty "translator in the field of professional communication" there. And for the coordination of language training and the development of new methods of teaching foreign language, a special linguistic center has been formed at the Military University.
By the way, it is there that methodological recommendations are being developed, according to which not only cadets and students are taught, but also Suvorov students, Nakhimovites, cadets, students of the Ministry of Defense boarding school. Girls in this sense, the most advanced - master three foreign languages at once. Suvorovtsy, Nakhimovtsy and Cadets - at least two: the main (English, French or German) and additional. It is usually a rarer foreign language for our universities, for example, Chinese.
Now almost every school has a cadet class, and in a large city - a cadet school. Which of them belong to the Ministry of Defense?
Evgeny Kuchinsky: This is a fairly wide network - 22 pre-university educational institutions with special names: 7 presidential cadet corps, 9 Suvorov and one Nakhimov military schools, 5 cadet corps and one military music school.
Some of them also have a "species" affiliation. For example, the command of the Airborne Forces is supervised by the Ulyanovsk SVU and the Omsk Cadet Corps. Airborne troops are stationed in these two cities, so this “attachment” looks logical. In the same way, the Aerospace Forces patronize the Stavropol Presidential Cadet School, which also focuses on flight training for children.
I want to note that, in contrast to the practice of the Soviet era, studying at the Suvorov School or the military cadet corps does not give a graduate the right to out-of-competition admission to a military university. Currently, there is only a preferential right for admission to a university for a certain category of adolescents, in particular, orphans, children of deceased servicemen and some others. The bulk of the guys enters military schools on a general basis. But the cadets, Suvorov and Nakhimov students are given such educational and physical training that, as a rule, everyone who dreams of cadet shoulder straps receives them.
The new kadetki at the Ministry of Defense will appear?
Evgeny Kuchinsky: Next year we plan to open a presidential cadet school in Petrozavodsk, and next - the same school in Monino near Moscow.
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