«Russia gives me an incredible experience!»

Year by year the Russian New University (RosNOU) welcomes new students from different countries, such as Cuba, Sri Lanka, Latvia, Montenegro, Turkey, Algeria, Pakistan, Egypt, Vietnam, Kazakhstan, Brazil, Turkmenistan, Bangladesh, Serbia, and others. The E-NOTE Student Media Center decided to talk to foreign students and find out how they feel in the Russian-speaking environment and whether it is difficult for them to study at a Russian university.

It is not difficult for me to communicate with my classmates and teachers, since I came to Russia with knowledge of the Russian language. Russian is a very difficult language, and I had to work hard to learn it. I suppose it would be very difficult for me to get used to life here if I didn't understand anything in Russian. Of course, I still have a lot to learn.

In RosNOU, I am a bachelor’s student in Tourism. My favorite subject is the geography of tourist centers. I love to travel. I even managed to live for two years in India and some other countries. For me, studying in such a specialty is a real pleasure.

When moving to Russia, of course, it was not without complications. The first issue was visa arrangement. Primarily I had to get an invitation from the university, and then go with it to the embassy so that I can get a visa. I think many people do not like this "bustle" with documents.

The second issue was personal items. You can bring your own clothes from home, but they are only suitable for summer. Therefore, you need to buy clothes for all the other seasons. Do not forget about household goods - it is not reasonable to bring rags, buckets, and mops from Egypt.

The third issue is meeting new people. It took a while to adapt to life in Russia, and at first, it was difficult to communicate with others and get used to a new place.

The most important difference I faced when moving is the climate. Summer in Russia is like winter in Egypt. In Russia, the weather is very unpredictable and not always pleasant: it is mostly cloudy and windy. But I really liked the south of Russia, especially in Sochi, I will go there more than once.

Arriving in Moscow, at first, you wonder why everyone is always in a hurry, and then you realize - life and work do not stay still. Moscow is developing, and you can feel it: there is comfortable transport, beautiful architecture. The living conditions are very good.

There are a lot of good people in Russia. At first, it was difficult to get used to the fact that Russians do not smile and seemed to be a little sad. But in fact, they are very understanding, sympathetic, and kind people. I lived in the RosNOU dormitory for a while, and I found a lot of friends who can always come to the rescue.

After graduating from the university, I plan to go back to Egypt, because that is my home. There is eternal summer, the sea, and, of course, my family. Russia gives me an incredible experience, and life here will remain one of the best memories!

I want to work in my profession, as the tourism sector will always be relevant. You can start your personal career in this area from the very beginning and constantly improve your skills. I am glad that I will be able to go on business trips to different countries, communicate with native speakers of other languages. Of course, there is still the opportunity to enjoy discounted last-minute tour offers. It's cool when you can work at your own pleasure!

Moscow is different from my homeland in many ways: time zone, climate, people, and pace of life. At first, it was difficult to get used to the Moscow pace, as everyone here is always in a hurry. This is understandable: the city is constantly developing. To achieve something in Moscow, it is necessary to keep moving. The most important thing is that I have never felt like a stranger in Russia. The people here are kind and friendly. If you need help, they will help.

Studying at RosNOU is interesting. I get systematic knowledge, starting from the very basics of the discipline and ending with serious in-depth lectures and practical classes. At first, it was difficult for me to join the new community. Pretty soon everyone got used to each other and forgot that they were strangers to each other before. Communication with teachers was established immediately because the teachers at RosNOU find an individual approach to each student.

I plan to change my citizenship and stay in Russia. I am studying at the Faculty of Applied Computer Science and plan to develop my knowledge and skills further in the field of IT, and in the future, I see myself as a billionaire.

Assimilating in Russia was not a problem for me, since I grew up in a Russian environment. My whole family is Russian, only my father is a Turkmen. All the difficulties during the move were related to the paperwork. If you want to come to Russia for studies, first, you need to get an invitation from the university, then come to the embassy with this invitation and apply for a visa. And, of course, immediately you face household issues because you cannot bring a lot of things from far away, you had to buy everything, settle in.

Life in Russia is different in its scale: everything is developing at a huge pace, with huge steps. There are many opportunities here, both career and life in general. My country is small, and the city I come from is also small.

The first time I came to Moscow not to study. It was a tourist trip back in 2015. I immediately fell in love with this city. As it is sung in the fans' stands: "CSKA (Moscow football club) and the city of Moscow are more valuable for us than money!".

At RosNOU, it is very easy for me to communicate with my classmates and teachers. I have never had any problems and conflicts, and I hope it will remain as it is. My favorite subject is the basics of journalism. It is taught by the teacher Alexander Latkin. He is very cool!

Of course, I want to stay in Russia. I try not to stand still and keep moving. My major is "Advertising and Public Relations", and already in the first year of studies, I managed to pursue the profession.

Life in Russia differs widely from life in Algeria in many ways. Each country has its own cultural customs, and I respect them.

The studies at RosNOU are going well, and I am very comfortable with my classmates. I am studying "Tourism", and all the subjects are interesting for me. In addition, we have very kind teachers. The only difficulty I encountered when moving is the language. But even so, I quickly felt like I belonged in Russia. Now I feel at home here, even better than in my homeland.

Time will tell whether I will leave after graduation, as Russia has also become my homeland for me, so the choice of where to live is very difficult. In the future, I would like to work in my specialty, open my own business and work with two countries: Algeria and Russia.

Training at RosNOU is not easy. Nevertheless, I managed to pass exams in the last three sessions. Communication with classmates and teachers develops comfortably, conflict situations do not arise, because I quite easily find a common language with new people.

My favorite subjects are related to work with texts, for example, the basics of journalism, and work with media texts, which we had in our first year. I really like to write news articles, edit or write some reviews — in general, any work related to copywriting.

I have been to Russia a lot of times, so when moving there were no difficulties. The most difficult was to get from Domodedovo Airport to the student dormitory. Assimilating in Russia was also quite easy, because I myself am Russian by nationality, and my entire environment at home consisted of Russian-speaking people.

Speaking globally, life in Russia is practically no different from life in most of the CIS countries, except for some nuances in the legislation. Of course, my hometown of Ust-Kamenogorsk (it is almost like an average city in Russia) and the metropolis of Moscow with a huge population and developed infrastructure are very different. At first, it was difficult to get used to the subway, noisy trains, huge throngs of people, crowded stations. But still, after a while, I adapted.

I want to work by profession, I decided to study "Advertising and Public Relations" for a reason. I did this because I want to invent and create interesting, original, and peculiar ads. Of course, I hope that I will have very good career prospects. After university, I do not plan to return to my homeland: either I will stay in Russia, or I will try to find an opportunity to move to Europe to build my life there.

RosNOU teachers are very polite and attentive to us, and my classmates always help me when I have questions. Most of all, I like to study foreign languages and economics. Teachers of the Foundation Studies Department (Russian as a Foreign Language) at RosNOU actively and interestingly conduct classes. They tell us about historical events, facts, Russian cinema, and even give us guided tours. Therefore, it becomes even more interesting for us, foreigners, to immerse ourselves in the Russian language and Russian culture.

Life in Russia is characterized by its climate and pace. But I was ready for it. Before moving, I studied Russian history, read books to learn about the culture of this country. When I moved, the biggest challenge was the language. Because of this, I could not immediately make friends with classmates. Student life was boring without communication and friendship. In addition, there were no more difficulties, as the university helped us to apply for a visa, registration, and provided a room in a student dormitory.

I think I managed to assimilate in Russia, although not immediately. In the dormitory, Russians and foreigners live in different rooms. Because of this, in my opinion, it is harder to get used to life in Russia. It would be great if our university had more international projects and volunteer events.

I want to become a successful entrepreneur. I'm not sure yet that I will work in my specialty because plans can change at any time. I am currently engaged in international economics and the stock exchange. I am interested in this, but I do not rule out that I will work in tourism. Most likely, I will go to work in Turkey. There are a lot of Russian tourists there, so it is very important for me to learn Russian.

Now my favorite subject at RosNOU is logic, which is very interesting. In general, all the teachers at the university help me to understand the topics and their subjects.

Russia surprised me with its changeable weather, especially in spring and summer. I can't get used to the Moscow pace yet, I still need time.

My family moved to Russia quite a long time ago. Here I graduated from high school, and only when applying to the university, I encountered some peculiarities of the status of a foreign citizen. It is quite difficult for a person who has never dealt with bureaucratic issues to understand the system of collecting the necessary documents in various bodies. Paperwork is the main difficulty.

I'm from a small town where the infrastructure is very poorly developed and not much happens. In Moscow, you can immediately see how busy life is here, how large the flow of people and transport is. It is almost impossible to get bored in Moscow. I have so many friends here that the weekend for meetings with them is scheduled for a month in advance. The frenzied pace of the capital was not difficult to get used to. On the contrary, I quickly realized: this is what I need, I like it. I like this pace of life. I like the workload of the day.

After the second year of studies at RosNOU, I transferred from full-time to part-time study in order to combine my studies with work.

While studying at the university, I lived in the RosNOU dormitory, took part in conferences, round tables, and attended numerous events aimed at creative and scientific topics. Since I did not experience any language barriers, there were no problems related to communication. I quickly got to know new people at the university and in the dormitory, and found friends, including my best friend, with whom we have been close friends for more than three years.

Among the favorite subjects are "Fundamentals of Labor Organization", "Fundamentals of Personnel Policy", "Personnel Marketing", "Psychology". My interest in the subject has always appeared thanks to the teachers and their presentation of the material. It was very interesting to study with Mr. Pisengolts and Ms. Mokhova.

I do not plan to go back home and build a career there, because I do not see myself there. I like to live in Russia, in Moscow. I plan to work by profession, I like what I study. If I can't find myself in Russia, I will look for my place in other countries. It is good that the chosen profession allows you not to stay still.

I am very comfortable studying at RosNOU. My favorite subject is management because it is easy for me. When I moved, there were difficulties with the language, but I managed to overcome them. It was also difficult for me to get used to the cold Moscow weather.

My native country – Bangladesh – is completely different from Russia, there is nothing similar in these two cultures. In Russia, I really like the New Year holiday, and the fact that Victory Day is celebrated here. In the future, I would like to build a career here in Russia.

In RosNOU, you can find a common language with almost everyone. Most of my classmates are wonderful people. I am very comfortable and happy to communicate and study with them. The teachers here are also amazing and, of course, demanding.

I am happy to communicate in Russian. But I don't really feel like I belong here, because I'm a guest here. Russia is distinguished by its culture, mentality, and laws. Among the Russian traditions, I like Maslenitsa and Russian weddings – these are nice customs.

I quickly got used to life in Moscow. A couple of days after the move, I was able to freely navigate and move around the city, every day I visited various sights of Moscow. I am also used to cold weather; it is hot in my homeland.

I am unlikely to work by profession, as I have other interests. But the experience and knowledge that I get at the moment will definitely come in handy.

I moved to Russia when I was six years old. My father then worked in the KGB, got Russian citizenship, and we moved. As a child, I didn't notice any difficulties. I think I've been assimilated in Russia for a long time. Moreover, when I return to my homeland, I am already perceived as a completely different person, as if from another world.

Russia differs from Tajikistan in three aspects: traditions, language, and religion. It was quite difficult to get used to the Moscow pace. Before that, I lived in a small city with a population of about 70,000 people, so when I first got into the Moscow metro, I had a panic attack. But I got used to it quickly enough – a month was enough for me.

My training at RosNOU is going well. There have been no incidents or instances of poor training. I don't communicate with everyone, just about seven people — those with whom I feel comfortable. But I really like the study group in general.

The most favorite subjects are those that are taught with passion. I'm sanguine, so I work when I'm interested. If the teacher makes my eyes light up, I am very captivated. And sometimes on the contrary: if I like the subject, then the teacher is interesting to me.

When I graduate from RosNOU, I will stay in Russia. I plan to build a great career. The first reason is that I like this field. And second, because I'm good at it. I always told myself that I would become a cool programmer. And my profession is quite in demand.

The material was prepared by the E-NOTE Student Media Center together with the interns of the Media Center: Ekaterina Korevo, Marina Lavrova and Maria Pershikova.