Translartion. Region: Russians Fedetion –
Source: State University Higher School of Economics – State University Higher School of Economics –
Pavel Voloshchuk has been developing and researching educational products for 14 years. Since August 2024, he has headed two master’s programs at the HSE Faculty of Computer Science:Research and Entrepreneurship in AI” And “Master of Science in Data Science” Pavel Voloshchuk spoke about his career path, time management and the specifics of academic leadership in an interview.
— Tell us about your background.
— I have two main interests. The first is teaching adults. For the last 14 years, I have been creating educational products: first in consulting and corporations (the Sochi-2014 organizing committee, Russian Railways, Sber), and for the last five years at HSE. The second interest is product research and product management, especially in the area of customer research and working with product hypotheses. This year, AST publishing house released my textbook, “Shake the Client: How to Create Products Inspired by Real People.”
Thus, I have a managerial, product background.
— What are your scientific interests?
— I’m interested in how people learn, especially in face-to-face programs that are delivered online. How user behavior and their perception of product value change. How we can easily assess the value of a product before investing in expensive design and development stages.
— How did you get into HSE?
— I worked at SberUniversity, a division that trains Sber executives and develops external educational programs for partner companies. At a certain point, I was offered to transfer to the Higher School of Economics.
— What are your responsibilities?
— I am responsible for two master’s programs.
“Research and Entrepreneurship in Artificial Intelligence” is a classic full-time program with 30 students. It is designed for those who want to dedicate themselves to scientific work in the field of DS – to become an employee of a corporate or university laboratory, a founder or a member of a team of a technology startup.
The Master of Science in Data Science is a large online program, currently enrolling around 450 students. The online master’s degree is suitable for those who have no technical experience and are looking to learn the Data Scientist profession from scratch.
These programs differ in everything from the format of study (face-to-face vs. online) to the requirements for admission (having technical experience and a desire for scientific work vs. lack of technical knowledge and mastering the profession from scratch).
In addition, I collaborate with colleagues from Center for Continuous Education of the Faculty of Computer Science, where we are developing several new projects in the field of additional professional education.
I also, of course, teach product research and mentor seminars in my master’s programs.
— How does your working day go?
— My working day can vary greatly depending on the season.
During the admissions campaign, I conduct consultations with applicants and prepare for the new academic year. In May and June, I participate in examination committees and accept defenses from students.
At the same time, a typical day always includes meetings – with the program team, teachers and colleagues from different departments of the HSE – communication with students, preparation of materials and much more, which ends with evening classes.
The role of an academic director is not about a fixed schedule. The program is not just a set of tasks, but people: students, teachers, university staff, the market and the situation. This means that every day you have a variety of tasks to ensure the effective operation of the program.
— How do you manage to combine academic leadership of two such different master’s programs?
“It’s difficult, and without a team it would not have been possible to cope with such a workload.”
We are implementing the program “Research and Entrepreneurship in AI” together with our partner – MTS, the guys are very helpful. And we also have an amazing manager of the training office – Ilona Yakovleva.
If we talk about the Master of Data Science program, there is also a huge amount of work. Several factors help: previous experience in online education, the project team and the amazing involvement of teachers, with whom we are friends and solve all the problems together. For such a large program, connections with the industry are important. For example, in the 2024/25 academic year, through joint efforts, we found academic supervisors for 190 students in two weeks.
— Are there any special features in managing an online master’s degree program?
— There are many, I will give a couple of examples. First of all, it is a much larger volume of communication with students and teachers. Due to the format, they cannot simply ask questions at a meeting, it is a little more difficult for them to remain involved. Therefore, we have special curators who work with students’ questions. Special attention is also paid to community management, so that students have the opportunity to get to know those with whom they study and expand their circle of social and professional connections.
— What are the prospects for your educational programs?
— In 2024, we launched the first intake for the AI Research and Entrepreneurship program. On the one hand, it is difficult to be the first, on the other hand, students receive maximum attention from partners and the program team. Now we are actively preparing for the start of a new admissions campaign, analyzing feedback and preparing the program design for the next academic year. In addition, the internship season is approaching, colleagues from MTS are preparing to accept our students who have applied for an internship.
For the Master of Data Science program, 2025 is a very important year — we are completely redesigning the program: it has become Russian-language, classes are synchronous. That is, students will be able to attend online classes, and the studies will be as similar as possible to the full-time program. This is an important transition that will improve the quality of training in the program and maintain the maximum relevance of the competencies that students receive.
— What do you do in your free time?
— Tennis. I also like quizzes. This fall we picked up a kitten, named her Amber, and now our family leisure time is treating the cat. She is almost healthy, we will soon choose another hobby.
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