Methods of forming soft skills in applicants for professional pre-higher education

The growing demands on land management specialists in the context of land reform and martial law in Ukraine have highlighted the need to develop soft skills for the effective performance of interdisciplinary tasks. The aim of the study was to develop methods for integrating critical thinking, communication, cooperation and adaptability into land management disciplines in order to increase the competitiveness of graduates. Methods of analysis of educational and professional programmes, a five-point scale survey, pilot implementation and statistical analysis were used. The analysis of 15 programmes revealed limited integration of soft skills (15-20% of teaching time), resulting in their low level: critical thinking – 2.9 points, communication – 3.0, cooperation – 2.7, adaptability – 2.5. The proposed three-level model of methods included analysis of land conflict cases to develop critical thinking, role-playing activities for communication with stakeholders, and project-based learning with geoinformation simulations for cooperation and adaptability. A pilot implementation with 60 students in 2025 showed an increase in skills: critical thinking – up to 3.6 points (24%), communication – up to 3.8 (27%), cooperation – up to 3.5 (30%), adaptability – up to 3.3 (32%), confirmed statistically (t-criterion 4.2-5.8, p < 0.05; correlation 0.68, p < 0.01). It was found that the application of a system of methods in the educational process allows for the integration of skills in 30-40% of teaching time, adapting to the interdisciplinary requirements of land management. The results correlated with international studies that emphasised the importance of active learning. The practical value lies in the creation of recommendations for improving educational programmes that contribute to a 30-40% increase in graduate employability and the implementation of land reform