Purpose is to characterize the self-educational competence of the individual as a key one in the modern educational space and to reveal the essence and distinguish the structural components of the self-educational competence of school students. Methodology. The study used the terminological analysis – provides the development of the concepts of competence approach, competence, self-educational competence; a general scientific method that facilitated the analysis and systematization of scientific and methodological literature (regarding study of the concept of the competence approach and approaches to determining the self-educational competence of an individual), comparison (studying the components of self-educational competence); comparative method – was the basis for comparing the interpretation of the essence of the self-education of students. Results. In the course of the study, such concepts as "competence approach", "competence", "self-educational competence" were analyzed as key. Approaches to the interpretation of self-educational competence of schoolchildren (activity, personal and integrative) are highlighted and summarized. Views on the understanding of the structure of self-educational competence of schoolchildren are systematized and compared. A refined definition of the self-educational competence of schoolchildren based on the integrative approach is proposed. The conducted analysis of psychological and pedagogical research provides grounds for delineating the components of self-educational competence of schoolchildren are considered. Conclusions. The self-educational competence of a student of a general secondary education institution is understood as the personality’s integrated quality, which is determined in a certain way by systematized knowledge, self-educational abilities, and skills; focus on life-long learning, motives, and aspiration for self-educational activities; formed self-control skills and reflection, self-evaluation of educational activities. The components of the structure of the school student’s self-educational competence are: motivational-value, substantive-procedural, and control-reflective.