France Becomes Nearer

Students of Astrakhan State University have covered training programs at French universities over the last year.

Good international links of ASU and a good knowledge of foreign languages make it possible for our students to cover training programs outside their home country. A number of our students has had an excellent opportunity to study at French universities.

Dilyara Zakaryaeva, a master course student of our Biological Department, has won the international contest in Ecology arranged by the Institut de France and coordinated by the United Nations. Her training in Paris in July 2015 has been her prize. Dilyara has taken part in seminars and in master classes related to issues of ecology and civil liability. Students from 30 countries have participated in those events: France, Germany, Spain, Italy, Romania, Brazil, Mexico, South Africa, Algiers, Morocco, China, etc. The Institut de France has covered all the expenses related to the participants’ accommodation and training.

Maria Biryukova, a 2nd-year-student of our Chemical Department, has won a grant of the French Government to cover a three-week language training program in the prestigious language center “CIEL” in Brest. She was not our first student at this center: some students of our Chemical and Biological Department studied there earlier. The program of Maria’s training has included an intense language course of French and a cultural program. To participate in the entrance competition to join this training program, it was necessary to submit a certificate of current progress at the alma mater, a certificate of proficiency in the French language, a CV, a motivational dossier, and a letter of recommendation by the Dean.

Marina Ligay, an undergraduate student of our Department of Foreign Languages, has recently returned from France, where she taught Russian at two lyceums during an academic year. Marina won a contest for a teaching assistant in 2014-2015; the French Ministry of Education arranges that contest on an annual basis. According to Marina, her life in France has given her profound pedagogical experience. She met many interesting people; she traveled in France and in Italy. As for the upcoming academic year, two other young people from our Department of Foreign Languages will go there – Maria Yafasova and Maksim Yakovlev.

Since Astrakhan State University signed an academic mobility agreement with Artois University (Arras, France), Elena Chalykova, a master course student of our Chemical Department, will go to Arras to cover a term there. From September to December 2015, she will study professional module disciplines as per the syllabus; she will take exams at the French university. Last year, in summer 2014, Elena (together with her Astrakhan peers) completed a language training program at the University of Perpignan. Elena advises those who wish to get education in the EU to pay more attention to improvement of their language skills and to make all the documents ready in advance, as a document package to study abroad requires very careful preparation.

Since January 2016, four other students of our Biological and Chemical Departments are to cover inclusive training programs in France thanks to the ERASMUS+ international program.

Russian original information source: A.A. Salkhenova (the Chair of Romanic Philology of ASU)

Russian original photo source: our students trained in France