Studying abroad in Russia?

Sol Bayn: I'm sure Russia is a wonderful place for the natives there, but if yourfrom the US (depending on what part in particular) i think you willcome to terms and realize what a serious decision your planning onmaking. You would have to take student loans to pay for flights/school/board/food/gas/etc... which becomes pricey. Try calling local colleges to see if they offer such programs. If not, youwill eventually have to start branching out to other colleges, until youfind a program that suites your needs. good luck though....Show more

Mohamed Szollosi: There's a program for foreign students to study Russian at Novgorod State University (http://www.novsu.ru/english/).http://www.novsu.ru/english/admission/

Frank Gazaway: It's difficult to find a meaningful study abroad program as most are simply small trips which last a few weeks. Wait until you are in college. Almost every college offers their students the ability to study abroad and Russia is an option at m! ost. Study Abroad options at my university ranged from 6 weeks (summer) to a full year with the average being one semester. Study abroad is also increasingly common now.

Jackson Esmiol: First, when you study that broad, make sure she's smart enough in order for you to actually learn Russian.

Katheryn Skrobacki: Your goal of studying in Russia is really incredible and so interesting and I highly encourage you to pursue this. I have not done any of the high school study abroad programs but I can offer information on college study abroad. When I wanted to go to Russia, I had looked into doing study abroad through colleges and they told me that if I waned to do it, I would have to study 2 years of college Russian and then after it, I could go to Russia and receive college credit for it. If I were just to go there, I would have to pay anywhere from $20k to $30k and for me, that was too much money. I decided to check Russian university websites which actually encou! rage foreign students to study there. If you are interested in! spending a year there, you could go ahead and do a university preparation course which will prepare you for entering into a Russian university. Usually what you do is you decided which faculty or department you are interested in and when your Russian language is at a high enough level, they will begin adding courses related to your future study department. I did Russian philology and so I did my regular weekly courses and then after a certain amount time, I began taking extra grammar courses and courses on literature so that I could have entered into a Russian university in the philology department. This for me was a really great experience because it allowed me to learn Russian, plus allowed me to experience Russian culture and I was able to learn so much about living in Russia.If you go through the universities, you can live in the student dormitory (общежитие) which is really not comprable to American dormitories so it would be better for you to either live ! with a host family which will afford you a lot of practice, or you can live on your own. I, at first, lived with a family which was really nice and then evetually I lived on my own which allowed me a lot of freedom to do whatever I wanted. I have lived in the student dormitory but for me, it really wasn't the best situation and so I encourage you not to do it.The university preparation programs are really great because usually the minimum amount of hours you will do is like 24 hours (6 academic hours a day) and that can be for 5 days a week, though some programs go 6 days a week. You are in a setting where you can meet other foreign students, you are studying together so you have a support group, and the university should engage in cultural activities to help the students learn about Russia. Whe I studied the first time, the teachers took us to local museums and art galleries, puppet shows, concerts and also there was an international club that was set-up to help the fo! reign students make friends so it was a good situation. You only menti! oned that you wanted to go there to learn the language, so if you went over, you can earn a few dollars teaching English classes, but really for you, you will want to "forget" English and just speak Russian. If you continue to speak English, you will never really learn Russian and it is great when you are able to talk with all of the Russians, in Russian, and are able to be undertsood. If you are interested in going, go to some university websites (you can check like Wikipedia under "list of Russian universities") and in there, switch the page to English and find, usually called, The Center for International Education. Some good university sites are:Moscow State University http://www.cie.ru/eng/index.phpPetrozavodsk State University http://schools.karelia.ru/Novosibirsk State Universityhttp://ciep.fija.nsu.ru/There is one company I know of who does set-up tours but they are more expensive than just contacting the school directly. The cons are that the price is more expe! nsive, but the pros are that with the company, they guarantee everything so that if you have a problem, they can resolve it more easily. http://www.sras.org/But for me, I contacted the universities directly and felt that it better for me to go directly to the schools. The SRAS company might be able to help you if you want to do a Russian student exchange program. Good luck!...Show more

Eli Trapeni: I realize it is a serious decision...I understand.My aunt (from Russia) suggest this,She says that it will work out.So do not give me your doubts.

Miguel Koczela: I'm actually going to Russia myself through the school's foreign exchange program. Talk to your school's guidance counselor. They usually have connections and great advice when it comes to such things.

Ermelinda Stalnaker: Read Alejandro's response carefully as it's excellent. I have a daughter attending Moscow State Univerisity now, and I also have studied there. I'd recommend www.sras.org as does! he.