Education as a factor of life success in the representation of Russians

In the article, based on the materials of surveys conducted within the framework of the International Program for Social Research, an attempt was made to identify the place of education in the hierarchy of life success factors in the assessments of Russians. The author states that in the public mind, getting a good education is one of the main ways to succeed in life, only slightly inferior in importance to hard work. At the same time, there is a stereotypical perception of education as a success factor, especially its high levels. The conducted comparative analysis showed that Russians' ideas about the role of education do not significantly stand out against the general background. The considered structure of frequently mentioned factors is typical for most other states. Three models (generalized groups) based on multivariate analysis of life success factors were identified. The model “education-work”, based on one's own efforts (getting a good education, hard work) and the education of parents, is considered in detail. It is noted that in Russia the model of “connection-bribes” is relatively strongly expressed, including ways to achieve success in life, based on informal practices of interaction. It is shown that the assessment of the importance of education as a condition for achieving success in Russia, unlike other countries participating in the program, is not associated either with the subjective status and self-assessment of belonging to a social stratum, or with such components of an integrative social status as the level of education and income level of the respondents. The author concludes that education in Russia does not provide preferences to the extent that they are provided in a number of other countries participating in the program.