Education beyond the classroom: how university events form personality
Abstract. Modern conditions of higher education development demonstrate a gradual departure from the traditional understanding of university activities as an exclusively academic process. The university has long ceased to be only an institution for knowledge transfer and mastering professions. Today it acts as a multifunctional social and cultural center that forms students’ value systems, ideological guidelines and personal qualities. In this context, educational work that goes beyond the classroom is of particular importance. University events such as scientific conferences, student government, cultural projects, sports and creative activities become the basis for the formation of a personality not only as a harmoniously developed individual, but above all as a modern specialist capable of realizing themselves in professional and public life.
The aim of the article is to analyze the educational potential of university events, consider their role in the formation of the personality of a future specialist and identify the mechanisms of influence of the extracurricular environment on the professional identity of young people. The methodological basis of the study is a systemic, cultural and personality-oriented approach, which allow us to consider education as a holistic process integrating educational, social and cultural functions. The article confirms the idea that university events perform the functions of forming professionally significant competencies and value systems, ensure socialization, develop leadership skills, critical thinking and the ability to work in a team. Particular attention is paid to the relationship between extracurricular activities and the formation of soft skills that are in demand in the modern labor market. The author comes to the conclusion about the need to institutionalize educational work as the most important part of the university strategy. Prospects for further research are related to the empirical study of the influence of specific forms of activity on the development of competencies and sustainable personal qualities of students.