FORMATION OF THE COMMUNICATION STRATEGY FOR HIGHER EDUCATION

The aim of the work was to study the theoretical and practical aspects of marketing in the sphere of educational services. Marketing, like any science, does not stand on the spot. New approaches and tools are constantly emerging when marketing communications are used. In addition, marketing communications play a significant role in the competitive struggle of the enterprise, giving it the opportunity to take its place both in the market and in the subconscious of consumers. Therefore, most Ukrainian institutions of higher education actively use marketing tools to maintain market positions and development. However, the problem is to reorient the system of management of the educational institution to the principles of marketing. The market of educational services is today a powerful and extensive economic environment, where the relations between its participants are realized in the sphere of creation of a significant element of national wealth — knowledge, skills, personal intellectual and professional characteristics of citizens — the human capital of the country. The article considers the essence and main tendencies of development of the market of educational services of Ukraine. The Russian market of educational services can be characterized as a market of almost homogeneous products, although it has a relatively large number of higher educational institutions, which offer similar, but not identical products. In addition, this market has signs of certain deformations due to direct interference of the state through the instruments of state regulation of the activity of higher educational institutions and the mechanism of state order. The main aspects of the influence of communications on the marketing activity of the higher educational institution were studied, due to the need to understand the dynamics of the market of educational services in Ukraine. The work gives an overview of the current state of students' attitudes toward the higher academic institution on the example of the Ukrainian State University of Railway Transport. Ways to increase efficiency of marketing communications, realization of which, will give answer to many questions connected with increase of efficiency of activity of higher educational institution due to use of PR-technologies for creation of positive image of university are proposed.