Educational establishments of Krasnodar krai and its center the city of Krasnodar for more than 50 years is a base for preparation of personnel for foreign countries. First foreign students (the citizens of Cuba) arrived to the krai (city of Slavyansk-on-Kuban) for studying of professions of mechanic of agriculture by the program “Cuba-Kuban” as far back as sixties of last century. Since then the krai and Krasnodar become, side by side with capitals and multi-million-strong cities, the center of preparation of foreign students [1]. This to the great extent was promoted by climatic and geo-graphical situation of region.
The krai is situated at the south-west part of Northern Caucasus, at the north-east the krai borders upon the Rostov Region, at the east upon the Stavropol krai, at the south upon Abkhazia. The territory of krai is washed by the Azov and Black sea. Krasnodar krai is the most southern re-gion of Russia. In the krai there live more than five million people, besides near 53% live in cities, and 47% in the countryside. Climate at the biggest part of territory is moderately continental, at the Black sea cost the climate is subtropical. The average temperature of January at the plain is minus 3-5 degrees, of July – plus 22-24 degrees. Annual number of precipitation varies from 350 mm to 2500 mm. Climate at the krai is one of the most favourable for life in Russia for habitation and ac-tivity of human. Krasnodar krai is the warmest region of Russia, the average duration of time, when at the daytime at the territory of krai there is observed sunny weather, is 2300 hours a year.
Transport complex guarantees the realization of foreign-policy and economical interests of Russia at the zone of Black sea cost and Mediterranean economic collaboration. Sea ports of krai guarantee the direct access through the Azov and Black seas to the international trade route. Across the territory of the krai there go important railway and automobile routes of federal meaning. Air transport of Krasnodar krai is represented by four airports, two of them are international (Krasno-dar, Sochi).
The special place at the national economy complex is held by the establishments of science and culture, including institutions of higher education of krai, big educationally-scientific estab-lishments, which carry out preparation of specialists practically at the all spheres of knowledge. At the krai there work 12 state establishments of higher education. Besides, in Kuban there were opened branches of leading HEIs of country such as Russian economic academy named after Ple-hanov (in Krasnodar), Moscow state university of commerce (in Krasnodar), Moscow state univer-sity of the friendship of nations (in Sochi).
All these factors became the reason of popularity of the city among the foreign citizens as the place of getting professional education.
In consideration of that fact that existing till 1991 year the scheme of intake and teaching of foreign citizens has broken up, and to replace the state system there appeared market mechanisms, with the aim of widening of export of educational services by the educational establishments of krai [3] there appeared a necessity to study the influence of this process to the forming of contingent of foreign students at the educational establishments of the city of Krasnodar.
As initial position for studying the questions of forming the contingent of foreign students of the city there served 1991 yea, the last year, in which the intake and outtake of students were car-ried out by the rules that were settled by the Ministry of higher and middle special education of USSR. The research was completed in December of 2009 year.
For the comfort of tracking of results as the startpoints there were chosen markers with the interval of two calendar years between them (that means every third year). All used static facts were got by the results to the December of corresponding year, that means till the beginning of winter examinational session, when the forming of the number of students is over, and the moving of con-tingent, which is connected with the appearance of academic problems of student, is still minimal.
In all during the 19 years in the city there were taught foreign citizens from 128 countries, the average annual number of foreign students in the educational establishments of city during this period was near 1400 persons. In the table 1 there are given facts by the quantity of foreign stu-dents, which were taught at the educational establishments of city.
Table 1
THE NUMBER OF FOREIGN STUDENTS AT THE EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTIONS OF CITY OF KRASNODAR (1991 – 2009 years)
|
REGIONS (groups of countries) |
The quantity of foreign students (persons) |
||||||
|
1991 |
1994 |
1997 |
2000 |
2003 |
2006 |
2009 |
|
|
Republics of former USSR |
0 |
0 |
31 |
309 |
153 |
254 |
476 |
|
European countries |
2 |
16 |
70 |
106 |
82 |
65 |
63 |
|
The countries of North, Center and South America |
125 |
73 |
39 |
18 |
26 |
20 |
21 |
|
African countries (except North Africa) |
770 |
338 |
130 |
101 |
161 |
337 |
245 |
|
Countries of North Africa |
56 |
97 |
74 |
21 |
2 |
10 |
8 |
|
The countries of South, Center, and South-East Asia |
412 |
429 |
628 |
509 |
461 |
526 |
212 |
|
Countries of Middle East |
342 |
486 |
403 |
266 |
331 |
421 |
300 |
|
Other Countries |
2 |
26 |
7 |
10 |
10 |
8 |
19 |
|
In all by the year |
1709 |
1465 |
1382 |
1340 |
1226 |
1641 |
1344 |
The analysis of given facts allows to conclude, that after stop of functioning of existed at the former USSR system of intake and education of foreign students at the expense of country budget, their quantity in the city has constantly decreased, with the some increase in 2006 year, which was changed by the decrease in 2009.
And with it, there makes oneself conspicuous the essential increase of students from the countries of former USSR (countries of CIS), which reached comparative maximum in 2000 year, then, after the decrease, essentially grew to the 2009 year, when citizens of these countries become the leading group that was represented among the students.
Stably high was a specific weight of citizens of countries of Middle East (mostly of Syria, Lebanon, Palestine, Jordan) and countries of South, Central and South-East Asia (India, Vietnam, Afghanistan), what we have already observed earlier [2].
Traditionally high was a part of citizens of Africa, which were taught at the HEIs of city till the 1991 year [1], what is obvious from the facts of table 1, which characterize 1991year, but by the finishing of training of this category of students, their part decreased and to the 2000 year they were less than 10% from the all-city quantity of foreign students. Starting from the 2006 year, their part is essentially increases, mainly at the expense of intake of citizens of Nigeria and Cameroon.
Part of students from the European countries (Greece) after the peak of 2000 decreases and last years it is at the stably low level.
Citizens of countries of North Africa, North, Central and South America after the 2000 year are more rarely taught at the educational establishments of city.
In common, more than 50% of foreign students that were taught in Krasnodar are citizens of: India, Vietnam, Lebanon, Syria, Jordan, Afghanistan and Palestine. Another 15% of students are representatives of Greece, Nigeria, Abkhazia, Sudan, Kazakhstan and Morocco. Only one per-son from the number of citizens of such countries as Gambia, Namibia, Serbia, Bosnia, New Zeland and Finland was trained in the city of Krasnodar during the whole researched period.
Are on interest the facts about number of countries, citizens of which were taught at Kras-nodar educational establishments since 1991 till 2009 years (table 2).
Table 2
THE NUMBER OF COUNTRIES, CITIZENS OF WHICH WERE TAUGHT IN THE CITY (1991-2009)
|
YEAR |
1991 |
1994 |
1997 |
2000 |
2003 |
2006 |
2009 |
|
Number of countries |
80 |
80 |
56 |
61 |
57 |
74 |
79 |
As we see from the facts of table, the contingent of foreign students of city in years that in-genuously followed the stopping of traditional for USSR scheme of education at the expense of country means of host country (when Russia assumed liabilities of USSR of teaching earlier intake foreign citizens), at the period of full absence of country order to the preparation of personnel for foreign countries (1995-2000 years) and after the restoration of country order to the teaching of for-eign students at the expense of means of federal budget of Russian Federation was rather various and even at the years of full absence of state intake was represented by more than 50 countries (as compared with 80 countries at the period of primary education at the expense of means of host country). To the 2009 year the number of countries, citizens of which were taught in city, practi-cally returned to the level of the beginning of our research, although the process of forming of con-tingent has already been regulated by market mechanisms.
Is on interest such fact that (diagram 1) side by side with education in the state educational establishments of higher professional education (state HEIs), foreign students were also taught in the educational establishments of middle professional education (colleges and technical secondary schools) (from 10 to 18% of all students) and, starting from 200 year at the private educational es-tablishments of higher professional education ( from 1,5 to 3,6%) at different years. Relatively low part of students of private HEIs is connected with the problems of accreditation of these educational institutions (and with the possibility to receive after the studying the diploma of state standard) on the one hand, and rather small, as compared with traditional state educational establishments, the number of specialities, by which in these HEIs ones can pass out the education [4].
Diagram 1. The distribution of foreign students by the educational institutions
Thereby, during last 19 years there didn’t occur spontaneous renewal of contingent of foreign students of the city, for its renewal to the initial (to the 1991 year) level at the educational establishments of territory there are necessary purposeful activities, which are realized at the frames of market attitudes, in combination with country support of export of educational services. Climate and geographical and economic possibilities of krai are the factor, which facilitates the solving of this problem.