Anna Bystrova

Anna Bystrova

Current job: Personal assistant of Sergey Karaganov, Dean of the Faculty of World Economy and International Affairs of the National Research University Higher School of Economics (NRU HSE)
Prior education: Specialist degree in Law (The Department of International and Constitutional Law), National Research Tomsk State University (Tomsk, Russia) 
Professional areas of interest: International Law, International Relations
Languages proficient in: Russian, English, German, basic Spanish
Hobbies: Ice skating in winter and travelling in summer
Someone you admire: People who I face on a daily basis and get inspired by; these are our Dean, Sergey Karaganov; the head of HSE MIB program, I.G. Kratko; my colleagues

 

Anna, you graduated with a specialist degree in law and afterwards were successfully employed at the Public Prosecution Office in Tomsk. Today you are working as a personal assistant to our dean and simultaneously studying at the HSE Master of International Business program. That’s quite a career shift! Could you share with us the motives behind such a drastic career change? 

To be honest, I still aspire to work in the field of international law. I was a real fan of my undergraduate degree in law and enjoyed applying my knowledge at the Law Institute where I did legal consultation and afterwards at the Public Prosecution Office. However, I realized that in addition to my legal background I required other skills and experiences if I wanted to develop my career internationally. At that point I left to Germany where I started preparing for my master’s degree and improve language knowledge. By coincidence, I met a professor there who recommended me to apply to the HSE MIB program that was already known in the Berlin academia circles.

Anna, while working for our dean you certainly face quite challenging tasks and occasionally very hectic times. How do you manage to combine such work with your master’s studies? 

Oh, I truly enjoy working for our dean, Sergey Karaganov. He is a very inspiring leader and I use every possibility to learn from his treasure of knowledge. Besides, he is actively engaged in the international relations field and often asks to prepare relevant analytical materials for him. Skills which I am obtaining at the MIB program definitely help me to produce such reports. Moreover, I always feel constantly motivated for my professional development.

Anna, almost a year of studies at HSE MIB is over. How do you find this experience so far?

Overwhelming, I would say! It’s not a classical master’s degree similar to higher educational programs offered by other universities in Russia. HSE MIB program has a unique combination of theoretical and practical knowledge with a special focus on hands-on experience. Our professors – practitioners constantly challenge us to apply various strategies and models in real life examples. At times it feels like swimming in the vast ocean of unknown and challenging tasks! Yet, this is a fantastic experience that mobilizes our efforts and helps us in developing new strengths and capabilities.

Anna, what would you wish to MIB program and its curators?

HSE Master of International Business program is a real miracle in Russia! I wish all the best to the program’s director I. G. Kratko and hope she will keep up her enthusiasm and persistence for further development. I also wish new promising partners and many years of success to HSE MIB!