PROJECT MANAGEMENT COMPETENCE OF AGRICULTURAL HIGHER EDUCATION STUDENTS IN THE CONTEXT OF LABOUR MARKET REQUIREMENTS

Abstract

Abstract. The article substantiates that project management competence of agricultural higher education students constitutes an independent construct rather than an industry-neutral variant of a generic project manager model. The aim of the study is to substantiate the structure of this competence and to identify the gap between labour-market requirements and the actual level of its formation among graduates of Ukrainian agricultural higher education institutions. The study combines theoretical analysis and generalization of pedagogical and economic literature, analysis of normative documents (the higher education standard in specialty 073 "Management", the Strategy for Higher Education Development in Ukraine for 2021–2031), comparative analysis of empirical data from two independent international employer surveys (NACE and the QS Global Employer Survey), and structural-functional modelling. A three-component competence model is proposed (cognitive, activity-based, and personal-value components), each filled with agriculture-specific content reflecting the seasonal determinism of production, dependence on uncontrollable natural factors, multi-stakeholder character, and wartime and post-war security risks. Comparison of NACE (USA) and QS (Europe) data revealed a systematic gap between the importance and actual formation of communication, teamwork and leadership among graduates, with the scale of the gap determined by the maturity of the educational environment rather than by the nature of the competence itself. It is shown that none of the established project management methodologies (classical process-based, agile, results-based) can be mechanically transferred to the agricultural educational context as a self-sufficient course framework; a hybrid, block-based curriculum design oriented toward closing identified competence deficits proves more productive. The relevance of authentic assessment forms (business plan defence before real stakeholders, participation in grant applications) as the principal, rather than auxiliary, tool of assessment is substantiated. Further research prospects concern empirical verification of the model on a representative sample of Ukrainian graduates and methodological support for training specialists for post-war reconstruction projects.