Employment Prospects in the Russian Arctic: Expectations of Students at Arctic Universities

The article examines the employment prospects in the Arctic from the perspective of university students in the Arctic. Russian students are a crucial resource of human and intellectual capital for Russia. However, there is a noticeable outflow of young people from the Arctic zone of the Russian Federation. Why is the youth leaving the Arctic? What can be done to ensure that university graduates stay to live and work in the Arctic? Objective: to study the opinions of youth students on the prospects of employment in the Arctic. Tasks: to review literature on the topic, analyze the objective situation in the labor market in the Arctic zone of the Russian Federation, and analyze students' professional expectations and plans. Subject of research: the opinions of student youth on employment prospects in the Arctic. Hypothesis: Life aspirations and value orientations are among the key factors shaping the employment and career plans of university students in the Arctic. The empirical base of the research consists of the analysis of a comparative questionnaire survey "Living the Arctic," conducted in 2017–2019 (N-441) and in 2024 (N-441) among students of the North-Eastern Federal University (Yakutsk), the Northern (Arctic) Federal University (Arkhangelsk), and the Murmansk Arctic University (Murmansk). Scientific novelty: for the first time, the opinions of student youth on employment prospects in the Arctic zone of the Russian Federation have been studied. Monitoring established that the percentage of students in the Murmansk region who intend to stay in the Arctic increased by 15%, and by 7% in the Arkhangelsk region, as "there are conditions for a career in their specialty." The hypothesis was confirmed: employment prospects in the Arctic are determining factors in shaping students' life orientations and values. The main problem in the employment of university graduates is not the lack of job vacancies but the specific nature of offers from enterprises. Professional aspirations and personal realization are among the key value orientations and life goals of youth, so it is necessary to improve the interaction between professional educational organizations and the labor market in Arctic regions.