(no subject)

[embers.livejournal.com]

I was wondering if anyone here has participated in a Study Abroad program in Russia? I'm looking for a semester-long, college-level program. Ideally, I would like to be in St. Petersburg or Nizhniy Novgorod. I have family in the latter, but I'm not sure if they even have any programs yet for international students. Anyway, I'm doing some research online, but I have no idea of the reputation of these various institutions & I was looking for some first-hand advice.

(Crossposted to linguaphiles)

Comments

[ilya1.livejournal.com]

I have no personal knowledge, but according to my college's Slavic languages department, the ACTR/ACCELS programs have the best reputation. I was actually under the impression that they had a program in Nizhnii Novgorod, but judging from their website I seem to have been wrong about this.

[staring-frog.livejournal.com]

http://www.lunn.sci-nnov.ru/en/
This is Nizhny Novgorod Linguistic Universuty site.

[fox-c.livejournal.com]

Does the college/university you currently attend have a program? If that fails, you could always ask your Russian teacher for referrals. The American Council of Teacher's of Russian also has a well respected set of study abroad programs.

[korolyeva525.livejournal.com]

I went with AIFS, and was very pleased. I stayed in St. Petersburg.

The tuition includes room and board at the university there - the doorms are very spacious and clean, and the food in the refectory ranges from decent to very good, depending on the day. The dorms are very near the metro station, in a safe section of town... I don't think I can say enough about how convenient, safe, and nice my experience was.

There are small kiosks very near the university where you can buy food, and a market is a short walk away. You can also take the metro downtown to shopping and restaurants.

The professors at the university are friendly. You will have a RA who periodically plans trips for the group - such as to Peterhof and other places where it is harder to arrange transportation.

It is not the cheapest study-abroad option, but it certainly is pretty convenient. And for me, that made everything so much nicer.

Please, if you have any other questions, you may e-mail me at Korolyeva525@hotmail.com, and I will share with you whatever else you may like to know.

[oatmealia.livejournal.com]

Do you have any experience with scholarships and the AIFS (St. Petersburg) program?

If not, was raising the money simply a question of saving up?

I don't mean to be too personal. Please ignore me if I am.

[korolyeva525.livejournal.com]

Was not too personal - sorry for the delay in responding - just got busy with holiday and some relationship crap.

Okay, back to your question. My university paid for most of my tuition in St. Petersburg on the condition that I studied 2 years of Russian upon my return. So I was mostly responsible for my personal expenses (which I saved like hell for). They provide food (most meals, but you'll want to go out to eat too!) and housing and airfare, which is so convenient.

From what I understand, if you can show a sincere desire to study and a severe financial need, they offer good scholarships to those who apply early. And because it is a study-abroad, you may also be able to secure student loans to cover your expenses.

Is that helpful? Please let me know if I can answer any other questions for you. I had a terribly wonderful experience, and I am more than willing to share of my experiences with others.