Steps towards the development of research skills at YSU

The Academic Writing Center was opened on October 3, 2022 as one of the means to involve YSU students and young researchers in the international scientific community. The center offers a number of services aimed at increasing the efficiency of research activities, developing research abilities and skills in writing scientific texts. Being an educational platform, the center is also a unique professional environment for the implementation of joint projects, scientific cooperation and communication. Thanks to the center, four post-graduate students have already improved their scientific research, including doctoral theses and scientific articles. Among other functions, the center has also started the process of providing individual consultations to YSU students, post-graduate students, applicants, young researchers, scientific researchers and faculty members since October 2023.

Armen Sargsyan, Director of the Doctoral Center, presenting their work, noted that they currently have eight consultants, who are professors from the YSU Faculties of International Relations, Biology, Sociology, European Languages and Communication, as well as from the Institute of Physics with extensive experience in editing articles, and publishing scientific works in Armenian and foreign journals.

Thanks to the consultation received at the Academic Writing Center, a researcher adapts his/her scientific articles to the requirements of international scientific journals.

"During the consultation, the outline of the research, the structure, compliance with international standards and other issues are discussed, necessary works are performed. In this case, the probability of publication of the article in international scientific periodicals is greater," said Armen Sargsyan and emphasized that the researcher, by publishing the article in a high-impact scientific journal, contributes to the development of open science policy and becomes known to wider scientific circles.

The Director of the Doctoral Education Center emphasized that a consultant may provide methodological support to specialists in various fields. "The consultant does not replace the scientific supervisor, but simply provides additional professional and methodological support to the applicant.

At present, interdisciplinary research is encouraged, and in this case, based on interdisciplinary thematic features, listening to the point of view of another specialist is in benefit of the researcher while performing the research work. The institute of experts of the center is also aimed at this function.

YSU postgraduate student Arusyak Shirinyan is one of the researchers who took advantage of the opportunities offered by the Center for Academic Writing and completed her research in consultation with the center's specialists.

"I study the perception of time in Armenian medieval philosophy, the topic is very interesting and quite complex. "The concept formation of my research was not completed, and there was a need for additional advice on the structure of the introduction," said A. Shirinyan and added that she discussed both the structure of the dissertation text and the methodology with the consultant, completing the work.

The postgraduate student also discussed the structure of her another scientific article with the consultant, receiving comprehensive consultation. "As a result of regular meetings with the consultant, I received the necessary professional support. In order to make my research available to a wider scientific community, my consultant also presented information about publishing my articles in journals included in the Scopus international scientific database. This is also a good opportunity to establish international cooperation."

Highly appreciating the professional help of her academic supervisor, the postgraduate student emphasized that the opportunity provided by the Academic Writing Center is quite effective in terms of gaining additional knowledge.

To receive a consultation at the Academic Writing Center, you need to register in advance in the "consultation" subsection of the "Academic Writing Center" section of the YSU website, where the consultants and their working hours are presented. The discussion is organized both in the presence of the applicant and in online format. Consultation is free and is provided in oral and written versions.

It should be noted that the Academic Writing Center operating as part of the Doctoral Education Center carries out its activities with the consistent support of the YSU Vice-Rector for Academic Affairs. Within the framework of its functions, the center also organizes lectures for YSU students, post-graduate students, applicants, young researchers. Since the day of its establishment, the professors of YSU, as well as foreign universities, such as Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich, Friedrich Schiller University Jena, Technical University of Dortmund, Soongsil University of Korea have held more than a dozen lectures related to the academic field.

The Academic Writing Center, involving the best foreign specialists, aims to continue the policy of strengthening international scientific ties, contributing to the development of the university's research direction.