Student Bruce Plowshay: ‘More Americans should come to Russia’

Every year many students from around the world come to South Ural State University. Iraq, Iran, Bangladesh, Egypt, Sri Lanka, to mention just a few countries from the list.

This year, we expect more than 700 students from 52 countries; those are the enrolees who applied for studies in various levels of education: Bachelor’s, Master’s, postgraduate, Specialist programmes, and programmes of the Faculty of Pre-University Education. Many students come as part of the international exchange programmes.

A student of the Faculty of Pre-University Education of South Ural State University Bruce Plowshay, who came to Chelyabinsk from Tampa, Florida, USA, late in August, shares on why he made his choice in favour of South Ural State University.

“More Americans should come to Russia. I chose SUSU because it offers quality education, and its Campus is really beautiful, I think that it’s among the most beautiful ones in Russia. Besides, I have a lot of Russian friends back in the USA, who recommended me to go study in Russia. My mentor, Doctor of Medical Sciences from Rostov, prepped me for this trip by giving me advice on how I should behave in this country. For the next 10 months to come, I’ll be learning Russian at the Faculty of Pre-University Education. Back at home, I obtained my degree of a Bachelor of Philosophy at Berea College, Kentucky. Once I complete my training at the Faculty of Pre-University Education, I’d like to apply for Russian government scholarship to study in a Master’s programme.”

Tutor Yulia Cherkasova helped welcome Bruce and make his adaptation easier:

“I’ve just started working as a tutor this year, and already was given a task to help welcome a native speaker from America, as I’m studying at a foreign languages faculty. This is a great opportunity to practice my English, and also a chance to meet new people, learn about the specifics of the culture of a different country, and help the student get settled in our city. At first, it was difficult to communicate, but now, day after day, it’s becoming easier for us to understand each other, and we’re becoming to enjoy our communication.”

According to Bruce, one of the most interesting moments has become his meeting with other international students from Sri Lanka, Africa and the Middle East countries, who live in the same dormitory with him; and also meeting tutor Yulia, who helped him navigate through the peculiar registration procedures and gave him a tour around the university. There is a common opinion that the main difficulties, which international students face are the language barrier and socialization. All these problems are being successfully solved by the SUSU team of tutors, who are always ready to help.

Now, Bruce is acclimatizing and getting used to student life. He decided to start learning more about Russia through gastronomic tourism:

“I’ve got to try real Russian food, and I especially liked soups! I tasted fast food, and can say that it’s better in Russia than in the United States. I tasted desserts in the coffee house near SUSU – those looked very elegant; and I liked the waiting service, too. I’ll try go to some more places within the next few days. I’m still adapting to my Russian life, but I’m happy to be here!”

Read more about how the SUSU tutors help international students adapt in one of our previous posts.

Elena Potoroko, photo by the author
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