The essence of the development of the students research competence in the process of learning a foreign language is to acquire knowledge, skills and work methods allowing students to take the position of a researcher capable both to carry out and present the results of the research in the international language that contributes to unlocking their full intellectual potential in the future professional activity. The methodological basis for solving this problem has become the modular competence-forming, research and integrative approaches. According to these approaches the article discusses the nature and the content of the principles of selection and structuring the syllabus of foreign language teaching aimed at creating the students research competence: the principle of integration, the principle of poly-logic cognition, a problematic principle, the principle of concentrism and the principle of mediation activities by means of learning a foreign language. The article submissions present both theoretical and practical value for the teachers of “Foreign Language course” as well as for the future teachers.