Trajectory of professional competence increment of a future teacher through scientific research activities

The purpose of the study is to conceptualize and theoretically substantiate a trajectory for the growth of professional competence of a student at a pedagogical university, in which research activity acts not as an accompanying factor, but as a system-forming one. Research methods and organization. The study of the process of professional competence growth in students during research activity was conducted at the South Ural State Humanitarian Pedagogical University from September 2024 to February 2026. The study involved respondents aged 21 to 23 years with 1–3 years of professional experience. The criterion for inclusion in the sample was the absence of experience in independent research work. The following methods were used: analysis of psychological-pedagogical literature and regulatory documents, synthesis of pedagogical experience, modeling; pedagogical experiment, participant observation of student activity in the process of solving professional tasks, questionnaires, testing, analysis of products of educational research activity, expert assessment method; and methods of mathematical statistics. Research results and conclusions. An author's model, the "Research Work Trajectory," is proposed. Qualitative states of competence at each stage are differentiated: from the "naive researcher" to the "teacher who produces pedagogical knowledge." It has been proven that the key mechanism for the transition between levels is the resolution of the contradiction between the educational nature of research activity and its professional meaning. The article is addressed to developers of the Basic Professional Educational Programs (BPEP) in pedagogical fields and to researchers in the field of professional education.