Nikita Zommer, a graduate of Linguistics and Intercultural Communication Department is entering the Beijing Language and Cultural University with a degree in translation, Russian and Chinese. Last year, Nikita won an internship at the Confucius Institute but because of COVID restrictions, he decided to postpone it until this year.
Zommer talked about his path to the scholarship,
I thought about getting an internship at a foreign university during my first year when I was choosing a language. At that time, of course, I had no thoughts about entering a foreign Master's program. However, I knew that if it would be in any country, it would be China. I would like to express my deep gratitude to the Confucius Institute of NSU, none of this would have been possible without its wonderful teachers and well-coordinated system of relations with Chinese universities.
Elina Kalinina, a graduate of Oriental Studies, has entered the Renmin University of China, one of the most prestigious Chinese universities. At Novosibirsk State University, she studied Korean and studied Chinese at the Confucius Institute. However, she believes it was her NSU Oriental Studies education that helped her pass an interview to enter a Master's program at a foreign university.
Kalinina explained,
Oriental Studies is a complex science and at NSU we applied a comprehensive approach. Now each of us must choose a focus for our specialization and I chose the Chinese economy. I had a special relationship with the NSU Confucius Institute. All of my teachers were native speakers and each lesson was a pleasure. I was often exhausted after classes and did not want to do anything at all but I happily attended all my classes. In classes, we chatted in Chinese, discussed our lives and difficulties, and then laughed together while learning new grammar and words.
Olesya Mashutova, another graduate of the NSU Oriental Studies program, will specialize in international relations at the Shanghai University of Foreign Languages. Olesya is a Sinologist and previously received an International Chinese Language Teacher Scholarship for a year-long online language internship at Xinjiang University.
Mashutova provided more details,
At the end of my third year, I received a scholarship fr om the Confucius Institute and entered Xinjiang State University. There, I practiced spoken Chinese and studied the history, literature, and culture of China for a year. I want to further improve my knowledge of the Chinese language because four years of learning the language is not enough. I think that a foreign language is best studied in the country wh ere it is spoken, so I decided to enter a foreign university. I really like that at the Confucius Institute students have the opportunity to communicate with native speakers and to attend classes taught by Chinese teachers. I think this is a very good practice.
According to Yulia Azarenko, Director of the NSU Confucius Institute Scientific, Educational and Cultural Center, two graduates of our partner university also received scholarships from the NSU Confucius Institute. “Over their years of study, all of these students have proven to be diligent students, studied in Chinese language courses, participated in language competitions and other events dedicated to Chinese culture,” said Azarenko.
