Factors Determining the Choice of Elective Courses by First-year HSE Students

The present paper is devoted to studying of the elective courses choosing process. Nowadays Russian educational system becomes more and more flexible, students form the individual educational tracks by choosing elective courses. Although the selection process of elective courses by first-year students, adjusting to university life and academic rules, still seems to be unclear in Russia. The aim of the research is to determine factors, defining the choice of elective disciplines by HSE first-year students. The purpose of the research is achieving by the combination of repertory grid technique, borrowed from psychology and open-ended question method. The research can be primary significant for educational office workers and lecturers. Educational managers, lecturers and professors may use the findings for better understanding of first-year students’ preferences, criteria of choosing and interests in academic world. Factors of elective courses choosing may help them as an additional tool in establishing curriculums for successful and effective study programs. The present research contributes to the development of practical works concerning elective courses by providing the deeper analysis of elective courses selection process by students in Russian educational system.