Scenarios and Strategies of Adaptation of Students from Villages and Small Towns in the Megalopolis

The work consists of an introduction, three chapters and a conclusion. In the introduction, the relevance of the topic is substantiated, goals, objectives, research questions and research methodology are formulated. The first chapter, "Urban Adaptation Studies: Contexts and Analytical Metaphors," examines theoretical approaches to studying the adaptation of students from small towns and villages in a megalopolis, including concepts of social space, integration, anchoring, and life course. The second chapter, "Research Methodology," reveals the principles of narrative and thematic analysis, describes the sample and empirical basis, and discusses the limitations of the study. The third chapter, "Empirical Data Analysis," is devoted to reconstructing student adaptation scenarios and strategies isolated from expert narratives, as well as comparing them. Keywords: student adaptation, educational migration, small towns, megapolis, narrative analysis, scenarios, strategies, St. Petersburg, Kazan. Brief description of the work. Research topic: Scenarios and strategies for the adaptation of students from small towns and villages in a megalopolis. The purpose of the study: To study the scenarios and adaptation strategies of students who moved from small settlements to St. Petersburg and Kazan through the analysis of their narratives and expert interviews. The subject of the research is subjective scenarios of students' adaptation and institutional strategies presented in expert narratives. The object of the study: Students from small towns and rural areas studying in St. Petersburg and Kazan, as well as experts working with this group. Nature of the work: Qualitative sociological research. Research methods: Theoretical: analysis of sociological and interdisciplinary literature; Empirical: narrative analysis of biographical interviews, thematic analysis of expert interviews, comparative data analysis. The findings of the study can be used to develop support programs for migrant students, as well as in comparative studies of adaptation processes in different megacities.