Іntercultural competence as a necessary component of the professional competence of a modern specialist

The growing openness of state economies, increasing the free movement of people, capital and goods between countries necessitates the acquisition of intercultural competence by graduates of higher education institutions. The purpose of the article is to reveal the essence of the concept of intercultural competence as part of the professional training of a modern specialist and to analyze such basic concepts of the research as «culture», «competence», «intercultural competence». The methodology of the study is a system of methodological principles (objectivity, complexity), approaches (culturological, axiological) and appropriate methods (analysis, synthesis, interpretation and generalization). Based on the analysis of scientific sources, it is proved that the term "intercultural competence" should be interpreted as a way to respond in situations of intercultural interaction. Particular attention is paid to the components of intercultural competence of the modern specialist, which include: knowledge (foreign partner language, culture of the country, possible barriers to intercultural interaction, ways to prevent and overcome them); ability (to build their own behavior in accordance with the norms of another culture in situations of intercultural communication); willingness and desire of the individual to come into contact with representatives of the world; personal qualities (tolerance, empathy, sociability, tolerance, tact). The conclusions state that effective business intercultural communication is unlikely in the absence of participants intercultural competence and modern specialists should have intercultural competence to be competitive in the international labor market.