Increasing the Competitiveness of Universities and Research Institutions and Their Impact on the Regional Economy Development

In this article, the authors examined the relationship between the development of regional and national economies and the level of competitiveness of local scientific and educational institutions and specialists on the example of some regions of the Volga Federal District, namely: the Republic of Mari El, the Republic of Tatarstan, and the Nizhny Novgorod Region. The following research methods were applied: scientific generalization, general scientific methods of logical and comparative analysis, systematization of data, and identification of cause-effect relationships. The analysis showed that in recent years the number of universities has significantly decreased. However, in contrast, there is an increase in scientific organizations involved in innovative developments, as well as an increase in the number of advanced technologies used. Also, the analysis revealed an imbalance in the funding of research: most of the funds belong to the state, while in other countries financing from the business sector predominates. These data allow us to talk about the lack of interaction between business and educational institutions, as well as the fact that it is necessary to change the approach to education in higher educational institutions. The revealed dependencies can be used to justify some recommendations: the need to reduce government interference in the development of scientific and educational institutions; attracting the business sector to participate in innovative developments; increase the scientific activity of students in higher education institutions by involving them in research and further publication in world scientific journals