The article analyzes the modern system of providing the Russian Arctic with highly qualified personnel, its key features and problems. The author notes that, on the one hand, the largest educational training network has been created in the Russian Federation, compared to other Arctic countries, and on the other hand, a number of serious difficulties have arisen in this area, which led to the lack of a balanced system for providing the Russian Arctic with highly qualified personnel, their outflow to other regions of the Russian Federation and, ultimately, a shortage of personnel in the region. Particular attention is paid to the role of St. Petersburg in the formation of a personnel reserve for the Russian Arctic. The author comes to the conclusion that today the solution of the problem of training qualified personnel has become one of the most important tasks of the state policy of Russia in the Arctic.