The problem of the integrity of the new Russian system of scientific attestation (by the example of the requirements for a dissertation)

A key component of the Russian system of scientific attestation is a dissertation for a degree ^[9]. The requirements for such texts determine the criteria by which the qualification level of applicants is assessed. Under the conditions of the monopoly of the Higher Attestation Commission (HAC) to control the conduct of the relevant procedures for many years, the formal rules were the same for all participants ^[3]. The exceptions were informal expectations presented in specific dissertation councils. After the reduction of monopoly control, the situation has changed. The norm on compliance with the conditions for awarding academic degrees is still present in regulatory legal acts ^[32], however, to what extent it is implemented in reality remains an open question. Over the recent decade, the certification system has undergone a number of changes, which resulted in the emergence of several fairly autonomous groups of actors with their own internal rules ^[14]. Among other things, the form of presentation of the dissertation has undergone changes ^[35]. In this context, the question of whether this system can be considered integral and capable of ensuring equal rights to all participants becomes particularly relevant? It seems appropriate to consider this issue on the example of requirements for dissertations.

The mentioned problems attract wide interest of various specialists in the field of regulatory regulation, public administration and trends in education, since it directly affects the prospects of scientific, technological and socio-economic development. It is worth noting the publications of Bugaev K.V. ^[1], Gabov A.V. ^[4], Romanovskaya O.V. ^[37], Stasevich A.V. ^[13], Sharov V.I. ^[42] and other authors focusing their attention on the peculiarities of the transformation of the profile of Russian legislation. Such researchers as Kem B.M. ^[45], Tauginene L. ^[53], Fischer B. ^[38], Shin J. ^[52], Shumakova I.A. ^[43] and their colleagues comprehensively consider the Russian and world experience of awarding academic degrees. And finally, in the works of Devyatkin D. ^[5], Mason S. ^[47], Osipova P.N. ^[12], Pulyak L. ^[50], Rigby J. ^[51], and other specialists, various expectations for modern dissertations for academic degrees are revealed and analyzed. A systematic approach will be used as a methodological framework in this study. The main methods will be tools for data collection, processing and interpretation, methods of working with documents, formal legal method, typing and modeling.

The source base will be made up of normative legal acts, local normative acts of organizations conducting procedures for awarding academic degrees, as well as materials of dissertation defenses. Since the key issue is related to determining the integrity of the scientific certification system, it is necessary to outline the circle of its main participants. The most significant actors are still the Ministry of Education and Science of Russia and the Higher Attestation Commission, which control a significant part of the system. The second group includes educational and scientific organizations that have received the right to independently conduct scientific certification ^[27]. No less important is the third group, the discussion of which is almost absent in the profile discussions. We are talking about spiritual educational organizations that are granted the right to award theological degrees recognized as equal to other academic degrees at the level of federal state educational standards ^[40]. Such degrees are taken into account when conducting state licensing procedures for organizations ^[29] and accreditation of educational programs ^[30]. In fact, this group is included in the general certification system, but in the legal sense, its status has been in a state of clarification for many years. All of the above provides a sufficient theoretical and empirical basis for finding answers to the questions posed.

1. Presentation of the dissertation in the form of a manuscript

In world practice, a dissertation for a degree is presented mainly in the form of a separate integral scientific work. Most often, applicants must prepare an independent research text of the established volume, on the basis of which the defense is conducted ^[47]. In post-Soviet and a number of other states, in addition to the manuscript, it is often required to demonstrate a selection of publications in peer-reviewed scientific publications that differ in content from the main work, but reflect its key provisions ^[32]. PhD dissertations in their scope are the closest to professional doctoral degrees awarded in most Western universities ^[2]. The requirements for doctoral dissertations are closer to the standards of the Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) level and higher doctoral degrees (habilitation) in states with a two-stage model of scientific certification ^[43]. At the same time, at the level of international treaties, Russian candidates of sciences are equated with PhD holders ^[36]. In order to understand how the existing certification system correlates with world practices and how integral it is within itself, it is necessary to consistently consider the requirements of the subsystems that exist in it, formed by the above-mentioned groups of organizations.

Under the direct control of the Higher Attestation Commission, the most numerous subsystem operates, which is a direct successor to the previously existing rules and practices. The main normative acts here are two provisions on the award of an academic degree – for ordinary ^[32] and special dissertation councils ^[28]. The former work with the absolute majority of dissertations, and the latter – with those that contain information constituting a state secret. In both cases, substantive and structural requirements are imposed on dissertations, but no normative scope is introduced. There is no such regulation in the relevant National Standard ^[10]. Nevertheless, most often a candidate's dissertation takes from 150 to 200 pages, and a doctoral dissertation takes over 250 pages ^[41]. More serious attention is paid to the fact that the first dissertation should reflect the solution of a scientific problem, and the second – an even more significant research problem. The actual control in these matters is carried out at the level of informal expectations of a particular dissertation council and its controlling expert council of the Higher Attestation Commission. If desired, the organization on the basis of which the protection is carried out can record additional requests in the form of a local regulatory act ^[32].

In the second subsystem, formed by organizations that independently award academic degrees, regulatory regulation is more specific. In most local regulations, the requirements for the content of candidate's and doctoral dissertations largely coincide with those indicated earlier ^[17]. The volume requirements are either absent or present in an exact form. So, for example, in the HSE Dissertation Council on Philology, the following minimums are set: 140,000 printed characters (about 70 pages) and 280.000 characters (about 140 pages), respectively ^[6]. The figures in the Computer Science Council are as follows: 120-150 and 250-300 pages ^[7]. At the same time, all articles attached to dissertations should be published in journals indexed in the Scopus and Web of Science databases ^[18]. In other universities, for example at the RUDN, the lower threshold is set at 150 and 250 pages for social sciences and humanities, as well as 100 and 200 pages for other sciences ^[20]. In general, a serious increase in the expected volume is not observed in either educational or scientific organizations.

At the level of spiritual educational organizations, the conditions differ depending on the confessional affiliation. As in the previous case, the substantive requirements are equivalent to the norms of the Higher Attestation Commission, provided that they focus on theological issues and confessional topics ^[32]. The differences start at the level of the recommended text volume. In the ROC, the preferred indicators are 450,000 characters of the author's text with footnotes (approximately 225 pages) for a PhD thesis and 600,000 characters (approximately 300 pages) for a doctoral thesis ^[24]. Protestants at the Higher School of Theology (VSHT) strict ranges have been established with the right to go beyond them by no more than 10%, by analogy with the practice of leading Western universities ^[8]. At the first stage, for works of applied orientation, it is permissible to write from 50,000 to 60,000 words of the main text (about 320-400 pages), for theoretical orientation – from 70,000 to 80,000 words (about 460-540 pages). The second stage has a limit of 90,000 to 100,000 words (600-680 pages) ^[16]. In Russian Muslim educational organizations, the requirements for the volume of dissertations are not established ^[23].

In general, in all three subsystems, the requirements for the content, structure and volume of the dissertation look quite comparable. Everywhere, applicants are required to conduct serious research work, and then describe it in the form of a long sequential text. The smallest indicators in terms of the number of pages are set by the HSE, which is compensated by the rather difficult work of publishing articles in leading peer-reviewed publications ^[18]. The VSHT requires the largest texts, focusing its standards on the widespread world practice in the field of scientific certification ^[16]. In other educational and scientific organizations, quantitative indicators are as close as possible to each other. It is worth noting that in many universities of the second and third subsystems, a dissertation can be replaced by a peer-reviewed monograph of the same volume ^[20]. This applies mainly to doctoral dissertations ^[18], but in SHT this option is also available at the first stage ^[16]. In other words, when submitting a dissertation in the form of an independent text, the Russian certification system under consideration looks quite integral, although it allows a certain degree of freedom in certain scientific specialties.

2. Presentation of the dissertation in the form of a scientific report

In the world's leading universities, along with the above-mentioned version of the presentation of a dissertation for a degree, there is another one. We are talking about the protection of a selection of publications, in Russian realities most often called "in the form of a scientific report" ^[32]. This form is provided as an alternative for practicing researchers and teachers who are actively engaged in scientific activities, but are not ready to devote enough time to writing a large text. The educational trajectories PhD by Publication ^[46], PhD by Portfolio ^[48] and PhD under Special Regulations ^[49] are gaining increasing popularity worldwide due to their practical orientation and significant labor savings. At the same time, universities set additional conditions for admission to such options in order to preserve the protection of a specially written integral text as the main path for scientific certification ^[51]. In Russia, such an opportunity disappeared and appeared in different periods, which is why this practice has not become widespread enough. The transformation of the certification system has led to the appearance of additional options for applicants, which should be considered in all subsystems.

The format of the scientific report was returned to the dissertation councils under the jurisdiction of the Higher Attestation Commission in 2021 ^[31]. Only a doctoral dissertation can be presented in this form. Articles must be published no earlier than 10 years before the moment of protection. Only publications made in journals included in the 1st, 2nd and 3rd quartile of the international databases Scopus and Web of Science are taken into account. At least 50 papers are required for social sciences and humanities, and at least 30 for the rest (not taking into account 3 quartiles) ^[32]. Quantitatively, these indicators are as close as possible to the qualification requirements for the academic title of professor ^[26], but they exceed them in terms of complexity ^[31]. You should pay attention to another option for optimizing the time in the first subsystem. Paragraph 36 of the Regulations on the award of an academic degree states that if 2 opponents and the commission of the dissertation Council, when considering a candidate's dissertation, recognize it as meeting higher requirements, the same text can be submitted for the award of a doctoral degree ^[32].

In the second subsystem, the ability to protect a selection of publications is present in several variants. Most organizations, for example, Sechenov University, allow such protection only at the doctoral level. It also requires 50 articles, but there are only 15 publications in journals indexed in international databases, of which only 3 are in quartiles 1 and 2, and the rest of the works are in publications from the list recommended by the university ^[21]. Some educational and scientific organizations are following the path of reduction and, say, at MGIMO, only 18 articles are required for a doctoral dissertation, including 10 in the journals Scopus and Web of Science, and only 5 in quartiles 1 and 2, and without co–authorship - only 5 publications ^[15]. The exception is the HSE, which accepts from 3 to 5 articles for the defense of PhD theses ^[18], depending on the specialty, and only 1 in the upper quartiles ^[39]. At the doctoral level, the number of articles ranges from 10 to 15, of which 5 are in the first or second quartile ^[18].

A scientific report as a form of presentation of a dissertation is not provided for either in Orthodox ^[24] or Muslim ^[23] spiritual educational organizations. Among Protestants, this practice is present, for example, in the SHT. At the first stage, from 3 to 10 publications in leading publications can be provided for applied works, from 5 to 10 for theoretical ones. For the second stage, the range covers values from 7 to 15 papers ^[16]. In all cases, more than half of the texts should be written and published without co-authors, unlike the two preceding subsystems, where sole authorship is required mainly for about a third of the works ^[18]. Just like at the HSE, in addition to articles, chapters of books, scientific reports, monographs and textbooks can be provided at the HSE. At the same time, one monograph of 15,000 words or more can replace no more than 3 articles. Dissertation councils have the right of substantive examination of publications and their exclusion in case of non-compliance with the established requirements of the educational organization, especially in case of attempts to manipulate the rules ^[16].

The comparative analysis shows that in all three subsystems, the option of protecting a scientific report is becoming more and more accessible. Since a dissertation is essentially a final qualifying work ^[32], educational and scientific organizations can roughly estimate the labor required to complete it and redirect their main efforts from writing long texts to preparing and publishing capacious articles in leading journals ^[35]. The amount of text decreases, but the overall complexity remains at a comparable level, which provides applicants with more options for passing scientific certification ^[46]. Additional conditions, however, can sometimes be redundant, as many experts point out, speaking, for example, about the rules of the first subsystem ^[14]. Instead of 10-15 articles in journals from a wide list of HAC accompanying the thesis manuscript, applicants should publish 50 papers in the upper quartiles of the narrower Scopus and Web of Science lists, where the waiting period in the queue is usually much longer ^[32]. In other cases, the introduction of a second protection trajectory really expands the set of possibilities, which increases the attractiveness of the certification system.

3. Dissertation presentation languages

The issue of dissertation presentation languages deserves special attention. Since we are talking about the Russian system of scientific certification, the role of the main language here is played by the Russian language ^[40]. However, it is not the only option, because special reservations may be made for some situations ^[32]. The list of cases in which an applicant is allowed to use a foreign language as the main one, in general, pretty much coincides with the world's leading practice ^[43]. These include the writing of a work by a foreign citizen, the implementation of joint international educational programs of postgraduate or doctoral studies, the language specifics of the subject under study, as well as other circumstances that may be considered significant ^[18]. This question is answered differently in different subsystems, so it seems advisable to check whether the comparability of existing approaches is maintained when applying to dissertation councils created on the basis of certain scientific and educational organizations. The introduction of multilingualism of protections is important for strengthening international partnership, but it should not negatively affect the quality of certification and the preservation of the integrity of the entire system.

The Government Regulations on awarding academic degrees state that dissertations must be submitted and defended in Russian. Several exceptions can be made to this rule ^[32]. First, if necessary, the defense can be synchronously translated into a foreign language so that foreign–speaking participants can freely participate in it ^[33]. Secondly, if an educational organization has provided such an opportunity in its local regulations, foreign citizens can write their texts in a language accessible to them. At the same time, a full Russian-language translation of the work is still necessary ^[41]. And finally, the third exception, which is not directly fixed, but is a consequence of existing norms, provides a chance to publish articles in different languages as part of a scientific report. In this variant, however, all foreign-language fragments will most likely also have to be accompanied by a Russian-language translation ^[31]. The requirement of transparency of protections is a priority for the Higher Attestation Commission, including for this reason, these restrictions are introduced, since not all experts are sufficiently proficient in all the variety of languages that exist in the modern world ^[44].

In organizations that independently award academic degrees, the situation varies. Some, for example, RANEPA, follow the specified practice of the monopoly of the Russian language and allow foreign-language texts only complete with Russian-language translations. The improvement lies in the fact that this opportunity appears not only among foreigners, but also among Russians ^[25]. Others, for example, St. Petersburg State University, introduce a mandatory requirement to provide the text of the dissertation in two languages at once – Russian and English, without any exceptions ^[11]. Still others, for example, the Joint Institute for Nuclear Research, give applicants the free choice to write the text exclusively in Russian or in English ^[19]. The fourth, including the HSE, offer a more complex model. When defending a selection of publications, only two languages are allowed – Russian or English. When writing a separate integral work, this list can be supplemented with German and French if the dissertation was prepared within the framework of a two-degree program ^[18]. The main guideline in this subsystem is to ensure that the text is understandable for all members of the dissertation council.

The rules of the ROC do not introduce special language requirements for dissertations ^[24], but in fact the vast majority of them are presented in Russian, even when foreign citizens act as applicants ^[34]. The Protestants in the profile requirements of the SHT indicate that the text can be written in any of the languages, subject to two conditions. First, the applicant should get preliminary approval for such an option from the SHT. Secondly, all members of the dissertation council should be fluent in this language in order to be able to give a qualified assessment of the work done. When defending publications, the rule applies according to which the explanatory note (review) attached to them must be performed in Russian, as well as in the languages of the publications themselves ^[16]. In Muslim spiritual educational organizations, for example, at Dagestan Islamic University, dissertations are accepted in Russian or Arabic ^[22]. The latter is introduced to enable the involvement of the world's leading scientists on the relevant topic, most of whom are sufficiently proficient in Arabic ^[23].

In other words, the language policy implemented in the existing subsystems looks quite unified. As a general rule, the primacy of the Russian language operates everywhere, however, the more self-defense is carried out, the higher the degree of freedoms and opportunities for applicants ^[37]. The inclusion of English as the only sufficient or duplicate Russian-language text orients the entire system of scientific certification to international integration and strengthening of global partnership ^[35]. The achievements of researchers published in English-language publications can receive a much larger response, because they are the most accessible to the general world community. The same applies to the publication of dissertations ^[47]. In addition, this solution makes it possible to involve leading specialists from different universities of the world in the evaluation of dissertations. Approximately similar considerations are guided by those who introduce the Arabic language for protection on Islamic topics ^[22]. At the same time, some authors may consider this practice as a weakening of the internal national debate ^[1]. The answer to their concerns can be the variability maintained throughout the entire Russian certification system.

Conclusion

Summing up the comparative study, it can be noted that the system of scientific certification under consideration still remains integral. Indeed, there is an active growth in the diversity of rules and practices, covering mainly procedural aspects of protection. Despite this, the content requirements for applicants and their dissertations remain comparable. In some educational and scientific organizations, stricter standards are set for awarding academic degrees, but the guaranteed minimum level of quality of training remains common to all. It should also be noted that the leading actors of the system are focused on strengthening integration into the international scientific space. Actions in this direction can be traced both at the substantive and formal level. The consequence of this is, among other things, a constant increase in the participation of highly qualified specialists from the world's leading universities in the Russian defense of candidate and doctoral dissertations. In general, all applicants for academic degrees are provided with approximately equal rights when defending in most dissertation councils. Advantages and additional opportunities are related more to prestige issues, rather than to legal support.

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