Transformation of education as a condition for increasing the economic efficiency of the national economy and achieving sustainable long-term growth with a changing structure of labor demand

<jats:p>The article reveals the transformation of the education system as a fundamental factor in increasing the economic efficiency of the national economy and ensuring sustainable long-term growth in the context of profound structural shifts in the labor market caused by digitalization, automation of routine processes, and the transition to new technological paradigms. The article analyzes the interrelated trends of employment polarization, with an expansion of the segment of highly qualified positions that require advanced cognitive, creative, socio-emotional, and interdisciplinary competencies, while the demand for routine cognitive and basic manual skills has sharply decreased, accelerating the obsolescence of professional knowledge and creating an imperative for lifelong learning. The paper reveals the essence of the qualification gap between the structure of training and the dynamics of economic needs, which generates significant losses in gross output, and demonstrates that the volume of investment in education alone does not guarantee high returns without accompanying institutional reforms, diversification of funding sources, increased flexibility of educational programs, and their close integration with the real sector. By comparing international indicators for countries with different development models — from East Asian and German dual systems to post-Soviet traditional systems — the study identifies patterns of the impact of expenditure structure, program adaptability index, level of private business participation, and parameters of educational trajectories (practical orientation, digital saturation, and interdisciplinarity) on labor productivity, GDP growth rates, employment rates of graduates, and economic wage premiums. It is emphasized that effective adaptation requires the advance formation of predictive mechanisms, the revision of institutional interactions between the government, educational institutions, and employers, and the development of a continuous education system to minimize structural unemployment and realize the potential of human capital in the context of accelerating technological changes. The presented analysis allows us to establish the main content of the work, determine its relevance for research on the relationship between human capital, innovative systems, and long-term economic growth, and make an informed decision about the need to refer to the full text of the article.</jats:p>