Project-based learning according to the Polytechnic model became part of the educational practice of the Russian-Armenian University

The Russian-Armenian University hosted a festival of projects for the course «Fundamentals of Project Activity» — the final event of the third cycle of the course, which RAU implements jointly with Peter the Great St. Petersburg Polytechnic University. Students defended projects, participated in master classes, received feedback from experts and presented solutions for real clients. For the joint project of SPbPU and RAU, the festival became confirmation of the main result of three years of work: Polytechnic’s educational technology has taken root in the partner university and reached a new level.

After a successful pilot launch, the FPA course is being introduced as a compulsory component into the main programs «Economics», «Tourism», «Commercial Business», «Hotel Business» and «Management», and for a number of other programs it is offered as an elective. By the new 2026 cycle, the team of mentors was expanded: 16 new RAU teachers underwent training at SPbPU, a regulation on the implementation of the course was approved, and a own logo for the FPA at RAU was developed. During the year, representatives of SPbPU worked with colleagues in Yerevan several times, helping to adapt the methodology and build a sustainable model of project-based learning.

In 2026, about 175 students from more than 30 teams became participants in the course

For us, it is fundamentally important that we are not talking about copying the course, but about transferring educational technology to a new environment. The FPA methodology was created at Polytechnic as a tool for students to work with real-world tasks, and at RAU it has received its own development. Today we can say that the course has not just been implemented, but has become part of the university’s educational practice, noted Anton Ambrazhey, Senior Researcher at the International Academic Centre of Competences «Technologies of Intelligent Enterprise» of the Advanced Engineering School «Digital Engineering» of SPbPU.

In addition to Anton Ambrazhey, the festival was attended by Inna Seledtsova, Senior Lecturer at the Higher School of Project Activities and Innovations in Industry; Artur Kireev, Acting Director of the Higher School of Technological Entrepreneurship; and Pavel Kozlovsky, Chief Project Engineer at the Higher School of Technological Entrepreneurship. Polytechnic experts served on the jury, conducted master classes and discussed the further development of the course with RAU mentors.

A distinctive feature of the third cycle was the full involvement of Armenian industry. Along with RAU departments, the clients of the projects were ROQ Capital, Freedom Broker Armenia, the Wellmed medical network, Flocktory and other organisations. The subject matter of the works became more technology-oriented: students presented solutions in the fields of FinTech, tourism, ecology, healthcare, marketing, career services and the development of the university environment. Several teams obtained results with high commercialisation potential.

The festival ended with the defence of the best projects and an awards ceremony. First place was taken by the team of the project «Updating the guidebook for students», second place — by the project «Development and presentation of some local acts of RAU», third place — by the project «Development of a test system for the detection of viral infections in fish». Nine projects were recommended for further development in the acceleration program, which demonstrates the course’s transition from academic project work to the creation of solutions capable of evolving into entrepreneurial initiatives.

Following the festival, not only student teams and RAU mentors were recognised. Polytechnic experts — Anton Ambrazhey, Artur Kireev, Pavel Kozlovsky and Inna Seledtsova — received letters of gratitude from the Rector of the Russian-Armenian University, Edward Sandoyan, for their active contribution to the development of project-based learning at the university.

The FPA Project Festival showed that the Russian-Armenian University is forming its own ecosystem of project activities, technological entrepreneurship and work with industrial partners. Polytechnic’s educational development has become the foundation for a new level of practice-oriented training for RAU students.