Individual freedom in the context of professional education

Introduction. The article analyzes an individual’s opportunities to exercise their freedom within vocational education, specifically their personal desires, interests, and needs. The problem of defining the essence of the philosophical category of freedom has been relevant since antiquity, therefore, the philosophical understanding of freedom is multifaceted, and its content largely depends on the level of development of society, the influence of moral and ethical beliefs, their dependence on religious beliefs characteristic of a particular society at a certain stage of its development, the level of development of industrial relations in society and many other factors. The category of freedom also applies to understanding the essence and content of relations in the field of vocational education, since it characterizes the sources of volitional action of an individual who is faced with choosing the direction of his future professional activity, or with the need to receive professional education in the context of professional retraining, which is caused by the need to adapt to new socio-economic realities. Purpose setting. Based on the analysis of ideas about freedom in the history of philosophy, to identify the features of its manifestation in the field of professional education, including the dependence on external factors on the possibility of its implementation. The relevance of the issue under consideration is related to the formation of new conditions for obtaining professional education, in which, on the one hand, a person receives broader opportunities to realize his natural abilities and achieve individually significant goals, but, on the other hand, realizing freedom of choice in obtaining a profession, an individual cannot be sure that these acquired professional knowledge and skills will ensure He has an indefinite period of access to material and social benefits., which society can provide him with if he participates in socially useful work, which is caused by changing working conditions within the framework of new technological structures that create the foundations of the digital economy. As a result of the conducted research, the author comes to the conclusion that in the modern world, against the background of increasing access to professional knowledge, a person is faced with the need to incur such expenses for vocational education, which often makes a choice not in favor of realizing their natural inclinations and goals, but in favor of the direction that will allow them to receive professional education on a «budget basis». At its core, it can be considered as a personal conflict of interests, which can only be resolved by changes in the social policy of the state. Methodology and methods of the study. The study relies on classical source analysis methods and philosophical analysis of texts accumulated over centuries of studying the phenomenon of freedom. This approach allowed us to trace the evolution of views on professional self-determination. Through the prism of philosophical categories, the author analyzes the choice of specialty as a social action that determines an individual’s future status and opportunities in society. Results. This article analyzes an individual’s professional choices within the philosophical framework of individual freedom. The work reveals the potential for conflict in the interaction between the individual and the state, as the professional interests of individuals often conflict with the pragmatic needs of the state. Conclusion. The author concludes that professional education in the modern world, despite the apparent accessibility of professional knowledge, is subject to numerous restrictions that hinder the individual’s freedom to choose their future career. As a result, a kind of «personal» conflict of interest arises between the individual and the state, which can only be resolved through changes in state  policy.

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