Natalia Rozenfeld Explores De-standardized School-to-Work Trajectories in Russia at the ECSR Annual Conference

Natalia Rozenfeld, a Junior Research Fellow and Doctoral Student at the HSE Institute of Education's Centre for Vocational Education and Skills Development, presented her research at the 2026 Annual Conference of the European Consortium for Sociological Research (ECSR), which was held at Trinity College Dublin. Taking place on 15–17 June, the conference focused on how social institutions shape inequality in education, employment, and other areas of life, bringing together researchers who study the ways societies respond to growing uncertainty and structural change.

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Held under the theme “Inequality by Design? Social Divides in an Age of Uncertainty”, ECSR 2026 addressed the question of how social institutions and public policies contribute to the reproduction or reduction of inequalities in education, employment, and other key areas of life. The conference highlighted new theoretical and empirical approaches to understanding how technological, environmental and social transformations are reshaping individual opportunities and life trajectories, creating new forms of uncertainty and social division.  

The event took place at Trinity College Dublin, Ireland’s leading university and one of Europe’s top-ranked research institutions. Founded in 1592, it is renowned for its long-standing traditions in education, research, and innovation. Keynote speakers included Prof. Valentina Di Stasio from the European University Institute, whose work focuses on labour market inequalities and discrimination, and Prof. Moris Triventi from the University of Milan, a leading scholar in social stratification, educational inequalities, and quantitative research methods.

During the conference, Natalia Rozenfeld presented her paper “De-standardized school-to-work trajectories in modern Russia: cohort analysis and the role of institutional shifts”. Her research examined how school-to-work trajectories have changed across different birth cohorts (1986–1998), exploring the institutional reforms and broader social transformations associated with these changes. As Natalia noted, the presentation sparked interest among participants: 

The Russian educational system, as well as the dataset (RLMS,) were really interesting for the audience. Research focus and design similar to other researchers made it possible to compare our results internationally.”

The conference featured a strong programme of contributions from leading researchers, with sessions covering a wide range of topics related to education, skills, and labour market transitions. Natalia mostly took part in sessions including 'Education, Skills, and Labour Market Transitions', 'Tracking, Sorting, and Educational Systems', and 'Educational Transitions and Student Trajectories'. She highlighted the keynote lecture by Prof. Moris Triventi as one of the most impressive presentations of the conference. He offered a valuable framework for conducting research in the social sciences and for further developing the field.

This conference”, added Natalia, “inspired me to share insights with colleagues and foster quantitative research with a variety of available data on the educational sphere that, I hope, will help to create more practical implications for the welfare of the society”.