ITMO Hype - Students of the HSZG as guests at the ITMO University in St. Petersburg.
Polar bears in the streets and vodka for breakfast? Students from the Faculty of Natural and Environmental Sciences and the Department of Electrical Engineering were able to see for themselves last week in St. Petersburg what is true about these and other stereotypes about Russia and its people. The students had accepted an invitation from the Saint Petersburg National Research University of Information Technologies, Mechanics and Optics (ITMO for short) and spent five days in this beautiful city as part of an International Students' Week.
The excursion focused on the Russian language and an immersion in Russian culture, with everything that goes with it: learning the Cyrillic alphabet, guided tours of ITMO facilities and laboratories, a city tour and various visits to historic buildings such as the Hermitage and the Church of the Resurrection. Inspired by the hospitality of their Russian hosts, the students explored the city together with their buddies Sascha, Anna and Veronika after the lessons.
While the students were cramming Russian vocabulary (or not), a representative of the International Office (IO) of the HSZG also took part in the International Partner Days, to which ITMO University had invited its partner universities. In addition to an exchange of experiences with the International Office team on mobility programs such as Erasmus+, the focus was on getting to know ITMO as a scientific institution. Impressive young scientists guided the participants through their laboratories and explained the various research projects. In addition, a Students' Fair offered all ITMO students the opportunity to find out about the HSCG's study program, among other things. It became clear that the demand for English-language study programs in particular is also increasing among the Russian student body.
Helpful information was also exchanged with the International Office of the Saint Petersburg State University of Economics (UNECON), another St. Petersburg partner university of the HSZG in the field of economics, during an on-site visit and a future intensification of exchange opportunities was suggested. An appointment at the branch office of the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) on various funding opportunities rounded off the St. Petersburg program for the IO of the HSZG.
The conclusion of the ITMO week for all those involved: an all-round success! The farewell to the German students by their Russian buddies was particularly warm: Do svidaniya in Zittau? And for all those who are now curious: The Students' Week at ITMO will take place again next year J!
A big thank you goes to Prof. Jana Brauweiler, who, together with Prof. Olga Sergienko from ITMO, initiated the double-degree program in the Master's degree course "Integrated Management" and made this trip possible in the first place.
Do svidaniya in Zittau?
The trip was funded by the " Eastern Partnerships" project of the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) and the Erasmus+ program of the European Union.