University of Comfort and Quality of Education for Foreign Citizens

Of course, every educational institution in our country has previously created all the necessary conditions for the opportunity to be open to the global market of educational services. Today, the educational potential of our country is multiplying through the use of modern approaches, expanding the package of export-oriented educational services and other tools. Euphrosyne Polotskaya State University of Polotsk takes a responsible approach to the implementation of this concept and has a rich positive experience of working with international students.

Polotsk University primarily seeks to establish contacts with potential partner countries in its international activities and improve the quality of educational services and conditions of stay in the country for foreign citizens. Thanks to this, our university creates a favorable environment for international communication between students and teachers.

Gradual integration is expected for foreign citizens, including acquaintance with foreign and Belarusian students, material and spiritual culture, as well as language acquisition for necessary communication outside the university. For this purpose, the staff of Polotsk University prepares programmes of cultural, social and sports events for international students. There is the Russian language school where students have the opportunity to study in groups or individually. Our university also implements a programme of summer schools. Participation in these schools provides an opportunity to spend part of the summer holidays and vacations with benefit, and successfully combine acquisition of useful knowledge and skills with entertainment and recreation.

Liu Zeyu, graduate of the Master's degree in Physical Education in 2022: ‘Teachers have always tried to cooperate with us in English using multimedia tools for more accurate translation and easiness of assimilation of the subjects. Students of other courses and our teachers invited us to joint cultural and sports events, which made it faster and easier to get acquainted with a new culture.’

Huang Pengxi, graduate of Economics and Management in 2020: ‘For me, the most important aspect of student life is making friends from different stratum of society. At the university, I met students from all over the world, with different cultures, ideas and lifestyles. The exchange of opinions and communication with these friends allowed me to better understand the diverse cultures of the world and broaden my horizons. We learned from each other, helped each other and spent an unforgettable time together. These friendships not only helped me feel warmth and care in a foreign country, but also gave me valuable resources for my future development. Therefore, I am deeply grateful to the university for giving me this precious friendship.’

The comfortable stay of foreign students during their education creates the necessary conditions for inclusion in the educational process. The Faculty of Humanities pays great attention to cultural differences and issues of cultural interaction, since culture determines our attitude to the past, the content of literary works, and also determines value orientations. Priority issues are also of considerable importance in the context of studying the economic sphere. Thus, foreign students often consider issues of entrepreneurship and economic activity through the prism of areas relevant to their country and the search for profitable points of contact between the economy of their country and the state where their studies take place, which is especially valuable both in the context of the educational process and in the future work of a young specialist.

Dostonjon Isroilov, uate of the specialty Finance and Credit, joint Faculty of PSU-TIF 2023: ‘The university is not only the place where I received my education, but also a unique educational institution where education is carried out using modern principles and methods. Fascinating classes were held there, which allowed a deeper understanding of the subjects and applying the knowledge in practice. The teachers were exceptionally competent and always ready to help the students. The university also gave me the opportunity to participate in a variety of projects and research, which made my learning experience even more valuable and interesting.’

Gradual inclusion in education and student life encourages foreign students to take independent initiatives. The Chinese Language and Culture Centre operates at Polotsk University, the purpose of which is to promote the popularization of the Chinese language and culture in our country, as well as to deepen friendship and mutual understanding between the nations of the Republic of Belarus and the People's Republic of China. Students from China actively participated in the work of the Center, thanks to which classes in Chinese culture and language are implemented for all segments of the population. Pupils of Gymnasium No. 1 named after F. Skaryna are studying Chinese with interest. As part of the implementation of the gymnasium-university cooperation roadmap and the work of the first specialized 5th grade of integrated education with in-depth study of information technology and economic disciplines, as well as students of Gymnasium No. 2 in Polotsk.

University pays great attention to the student creative activities. For students from different counties it is an opportunity for cultural communication through representation of cultural symbols, such as dancing and singing in traditional clothes, etc. That’s why numerous cultural events are held at the university. Open Festival of Creativity of Foreign Students ‘Friendship of Nations’ is one of such events.

Comfortable environment is also about living conditions for students. Polotsk University has 7 dormitories, or 7 spots of comfort for living and different activities. In many cases it is dormitories where informal and friendly events are held.

Yang Huipeng, graduate of the Master's degree in Physical Education in 2022: ‘Teachers and students at the university are very friendly. They organized many events to help open up. Everyone was sympathetic to our language barrier and enjoyed communicating with us. It was very comfortable to live during my studies. I was surprised by the incredible variety in nutrition at affordable prices. The living conditions in the dormitories were at a high level!’

Euphrosyne Polotskaya State University of Polotsk promotes formation of positive images of the region and the government in education as well as in labor. It is a common question whether foreign student can work in the Republic of Belarus. At the moment the answer to this question is exactly positive. On July 1, 2023, the Law of the Republic of Belarus ‘On External Labor Migration’ entered into force. According to this law, those who can work without a special permit:

• Foreign students who receive higher education in the Republic of Belarus regardless of the specialty. But the duration of working time could not be more than 20 hours per week.
• Foreign citizens who have received higher education in the Republic of Belarus and are employed in their specialty or (and) assigned qualifications within one year after graduation from an educational institution. For the second and subsequent years, the employer must issue a special permit for official employment.

Euphrosyne Polotskaya State University of Polotsk students have positive experience of such job placement.

Dinara Khojamyradova, a graduate of the Faculty of Information Technologies of Polotsk University: ‘Now I work as a software engineer in the production and technical department of the unitary enterprise for the provision of services Naftan-Spetstrans. I am very proud that I graduated from the Faculty of Information Technologies with honors in the specialty ‘Information Technology Software’. After all, thanks to the knowledge I gained, I was almost immediately able to understand the specifics of my work. I want to continue my studies at PSU by enrolling a master's degree programme.’

Huang Pengxi, graduate of the specialty ‘Economics and Management’ in 2020: ‘Now I hold the position of Director of Investment Management in the department of Investment and Development at the state-owned company in China Chongqing Water Environment Holdings Group LTD. I am grateful to the university in many ways. University knowledge and skills are important for work and life. First of all, university knowledge is the foundation for the formation of professionalism. Through studying at the university, we gain systematic knowledge in a specific field, which is the basis for our work, research and innovation. At work, people with professionalism often adapt to work faster, increase their efficiency, and are more likely to succeed in their careers.’