The Third Mission of the University? University Model as an Element of the Society Development Project

The university often becomes the object of philosophical reflection not only as a scientific and educational structure, but also as one of the influential social institutions. In the twentieth century, Max Weber, Karl Jaspers, Jose Ortega y Gasset, Pierre Bourdieu devoted their works to this aspect of the university phenomenon. Today, the discussion of problems related to the understanding of the proper social role of the university in society is becoming particularly relevant against the background of the civilizational dynamics, capturing the modern society. Relevant topics are now in the focus of philosophical and socio-humanitarian research, both abroad and in Russia. A red thread through the modern philosophical research of the university is the question of how the classical models of the university are transformed in the new social reality, which model of the implementation of socio-cultural functions is most adequate to the current stage of the development of Russian civilization? At the same time, another question seems to be open and deprived of attention: to what extent is it typical for a university to direct social development, and not passively follow social demands? The purpose of this article is to find an answer to this question in the course of reviewing classical texts that constitute the most famous models of the university in a relevant perspective. The analysis carried out in the article, according to the author, convincingly shows that the university, as a specific scientific and educational structure, fulfills a very specific, inherent mission of developing society. The only question is, in what direction a particular university is developing society, and how should it act to promote development, and not follow changes or even contribute to social collapse?