Indian Look at Life and Studies at Higher School of Economics-Nizhny Novgorod

Anza Thasneem and Shipra Singh are exchange students from Indian Institute of Management Raipur, a partner university of HSE-Nizhny Novgorod.

Anza is a 2nd-year Master’s program student from Kerala, the southern state of India, pursuing a degree in Management, majoring in Marketing and Human Resource. Shipra is from Uttarakhand, located at the foothills of the Himalayas.  She is also a 2nd year Master’s Management program student majoring in Marketing and Strategy at Indian Institute of Management Raipur. They have come to Nizhny Novgorod for three months to study Brand Management and Marketing of Innovations at Management department.

International Students’ Club Leader Zhanna Shabanova has interviewed Anza and Shipra. As many HSE-NN students she is interested to know what impressions Russia, our city, and HSE-NN facilities produce on our students.

The Indian students have told her that Russia with its varied and rich history has always fascinated them. For that reason they could not miss an opportunity to study in the biggest and coldest country of the world. To be a part of one of the best universities in Russia would help Indian young women to gauge the managerial and cultural aspects. And Nizhny Novgorod, one of the most important trade centers of the country, will help them understand the business world and Russian market scenario.

Anza and Shipra would like to meet new people, learn and experience the Russian culture. They would like to explore different places in Russia like Moscow, Saint Petersburg, Kazan, Sochi, Vladivostok, lake Baikal and legendary route of the Trans-Siberian Railway. The Indian students are interested to witness how the Russian market is preparing for the upcoming FIFA’18.

According to the students’ opinion, market scenarios are quite different in India and Russia. The academic curricula in both countries are designed to cater to the market needs. In India, management course is taught with the help of Harvard Business & Ivy School cases, classroom lectures, live projects, corporate interactions, simulation games, home assignments, internships etc., which is pretty much similar to the teaching methodology in Russia.

From the past two weeks, Anza and Shipra have met and interacted with a lot of people including their classmates. They have visited a few malls, cafes, and clubs in Nizhny Novgorod. MILO Club impressed them a lot. The girls are keen on dancing, and spent a great night there. They are planning to explore other places in upcoming months and present their homeland India to HSE-NN International Students’ Club members.

Zhanna has asked what are the students’ impressions of Russia, Nizhny Novgorod, and HSE-NN and has got an answer: “A country with the vast treasure of diversity, history and unlimited possibilities… Nizhny Novgorod - calm and peaceful city… HSE, Oh: We are extremely proud and happy to study at HSE-Nizhny Novgorod, which is one of the best colleges in Russia. Being a part of the HSE family, we’ll get enough opportunities to experience the true flavor of Russian Culture.