‘The Lockdown Was a Good Thing for My Studies: I Had More Time to Prepare for Exams’
The summer final exam session at HSE University (as well theses defences) was conducted completely online. The HSE News Service talked to international students about what they thought of the new knowledge assessment technologies and how they would like to take exams in future.
The summer final exam session at HSE University (as well theses defences) was conducted completely online. The HSE News Service talked to international students about what they thought of the new knowledge assessment technologies and how they would like to take exams in future.
Sardor Sadykov, first-year master’s student, Faculty of Economic Sciences
I study in the master’s programme ‘Applied Economics’. I spent the lockdown in Moscow: I didn’t want to put my family at risk, and furthermore, the health care here is better than in Uzbekistan, where I’m from.
What I find distance learning lacking in is the university atmosphere, which is what motivated me to study, as well as face-to-face interaction with my classmates. On the other hand, when you study online, you have a lot of time for other things. The exams were also administered online: we had five exams, and each was conducted in a different format. Two of them I remember the most: ‘Philosophy and Methodology of Science’, and ‘Statistical Analysis Methods’. The first exam was conducted as a test (I passed it on my second attempt), and the second was organized in an interesting way. For that one, we defended a project in statistical analysis methods as a team, and it was a fun experience.
Though I successfully passed the online exams, I still like a traditional format more. I think, it is more effective: when you sit in a classroom, nothing distracts you from the subject.
Daria Patsalyuk, first-year master’s student, Faculty of Communications, Media and Design
I came to Moscow from Nur-Sultan, the capital of Kazakhstan; I’m a student in the programme ‘Transmedia Production in Digital Industries’ and I work. I stayed in Russia for the lockdown for several reasons. First, despite the fact that our office switched to working from home rather early, I feel more comfortable working from Moscow due to the time difference between Russia and Kazakhstan. Second, it is still unclear when the borders will be re-opened, and how soon I would be able to come back to Moscow. Third, I believe, we should try to avoid travel right now: airports and airplanes mean big crowds.
For me, distance learning is convenient, because it saves time. You don’t spend the precious hours on gathering your things, commuting and pushing your way through crowds on the public transport. After all, with concentration and motivation, you can learn the material just as well as you do in face-to-face lectures. And even online practical training in certain courses seems to be more effective. In terms of the disadvantages of distance learning, it’s sometimes difficult to focus on the studies. There is the temptation to become distracted by various activities at home. Also, you sometimes lose your sense of time online, and that’s why classes often go over the time limit.
A feature of my faculty is its focus on project activities. This extends into how they do exams as well. During this examination period, we didn’t have any oral exams: in most of our classes, we defended our projects, while other classes had written exams.
I managed to do well on all my exams. And honestly, I didn’t feel a big difference between doing our project defences online versus offline
The format is the same: we present the project, and then answer some questions from the teachers. We’ve had only one written exam so far: Debates in English. It was administered on Zoom; the teacher recorded the screen, and we watched the debates and wrote an essay on them. This exam had only one disadvantage for me: many students were turning the sound on and asking our teacher questions, without realizing that they were distracting the others.
The lockdown was a good thing for my studies: I had more time to prepare for exams. We worked in small teams on each project, kept in touch with each other, discussed our ideas together, divvied up tasks, and then defended our projects together.
Vladislav Vakarenko, third-year student, Faculty of Communications, Media and Design
I’m from Tiraspol, Moldova, but I’m spending the lockdown in Russia. I like the comfortable conditions at the Dubki dorm that were arranged for us for the time of the pandemic. No strangers were allowed in the dorm; everyone who arrived was quarantined, but all the necessary services continued operating. I felt absolutely comfortable and safe at the dorm. In my home country, I have parents and other older family members, so I couldn’t put their health at risk, and the general situation in the country is not so favourable. That’s why I decided to stay in Moscow.
Speaking about the new learning format, I’m not excited about it. For me, most of the university life is discussing various projects (not only study-related) with my classmates, friends and other students, as well as all kinds of meetings and lectures (at HSE University and other organizations). This all used to sum up to one big educational process, but it’s hard to maintain all this networking online.
In terms of the exams, I passed them successfully. We took exams for our third- and fourth-module classes in various forms: oral, written, tests, and project defences. Almost all of them were administered on Zoom, and I must admit that the assessment process was not much different from that in previous years. We are already used to defending projects, and turning on screen sharing online is simple. The only thing that was lacking was my classmates’ reaction. Before, many would ask questions in classes, but today, everyone sits with their mics and cameras turned off, without any emotion, preparing their projects or brewing their tea. In these terms, I prefer offline project defences and exams, since you get a live reaction from people, and you can see people’s facial expressions, which helps me take a broader look at my work.
What helped me prepare for exams during the lockdown, were online calls and joint videoconferences, which are essential for many of the projects. Such direct communication with my classmates was a true life-saver, when I was ready to give up. Their joint support and positive energy helped me achieve my goals.
In the future, I wouldn’t like distance learning to replace traditional learning. However, I don’t object having several online courses in my curriculum.
We had had online lectures before, and this is convenient: you can listen to the whole course at once, stop at certain topics, check yourself, rewind, clarify, write down, and google
That’s why I would prefer for many lectures to be delivered online, but in terms of the workshops that require inclusive work, it’s a ‘no’. Students need live contact, they need to come to certain conclusions together. We should work not only on the material, but on our team communication as well.
See also:
HSE University Launches Its Own Independent English Exam
The exam has been developed by the HSE School of Foreign Languages in compliance with all relevant international standards. On May 13, the Independent English Language Examination Centre opened in the HSE University building on Staraya Basmannaya Ulitsa, and the first students took the exam on May 16. In the future, the opportunity to take an independent assessment at the Centre is expected to be available not only to HSE students, but also to students from other universities, schoolteachers, and corporate clients.
Returning to the Classroom: How ICEF Handled the Challenges of Online Learning and What Has Changed
On March 29, HSE is fully transitioning to in-person instruction. However, since March 1 some departments, including ICEF, have been conducting seminars on campus while holding lecture courses online. Oleg Zamkov, Academic Supervisor of the ICEF Bachelor’s programme, spoke about how ICEF survived the rapid transition to online exams, what LSE professors have to say about the effectiveness of the online exams, and what digital innovations that were implemented during the remote period will be used moving forward.
‘Philosophy Isn’t Taught in School. You Have to Gain the Knowledge and Systematize It Yourself’
Amiran Karatsev won the 2020 HSE Global Scholarship Competition (GSC) in Tajikistan in subjects that are not usually taught in high school: philosophy and psychology. Amiran spoke to HSE News Service about the advantages of participating in person, why some of the Competition tasks have no correct answer, and how to not only effectively prepare for it, but have fun while doing it. Let’s prepare for the 2021 GSC together with 2020 winners!
Two Additional HSE – Moscow Programmes Receive International ZEvA Accreditation
The Central Agency for Evaluation and Accreditation (ZEvA) determined that the HSE Bachelor’s programme in ‘Sociology’ and the HSE Master’s programme in ‘Comparative Social Research’ meet international educational quality standards. Both programmes have been accredited unconditionally for six years.
HSE Student Joins Extended Ranks of the Worldskills Russia National Team
Nikita Pershukov, a 4th-year bachelor’s student studying Information Science and Computation Technology at the HSE Tikhonov Moscow Institute of Electronics and Mathematics (MIEM HSE), has placed among the Russian national team’s expanded membership for the WorldSkills Russia competition in the ‘Network and System Administration’ category. In an interview with the HSE New Service, Nikita talked about the team selection process and what lies ahead for him and his fellow teammates.
‘More Competition Gives You Greater Incentive to Prove to Yourself that You Are a Worthy Competitor’
Arina Smirnova (Kyrgyzstan) knows like no other what it is like to start all over again and achieve her goals in spite of everything. Arina won the HSE Global Scholarship Competition (GSC) for the first time in 2017 and then outperformed herself three years later. Arina spoke with HSE News Service about how to choose a competition subject that’s right for you, how to prepare for moving to another country and, most importantly, how to not lose faith in yourself. Let’s get ready for GSC 2021 with the winners of 2020!
Top Managers of Leading Russian and International Companies Deliver Lectures and Master Classes at the HSE Graduate School of Business
Sixteen top managers of leading Russian and international companies gave online guest lectures and master classes at the HSE Graduate School of Business. CEOs and department heads spoke to students of all Bachelor’s and Master’s programmes of GSB.
When the Borders Are Closed, Study ‘Abroad’ in a Double Degree Programme
This year, alternatives to studying abroad are as relevant as never before. HSE University annually launches new joint programmes with world’s biggest universities. One of HSE’s oldest and most recognized double degree programmes is the ICEF bachelor’s programme, in which students can earn a degree not only from HSE University, but from the University of London as well. Below, we talk about the advantages of such a degree, career opportunities after graduation, and the programme prerequisites.
Students in the HSE Faculty of Economic Sciences Switch to Project-based Learning
In the new academic year, first-year students in the HSE Faculty of Economic Sciences will have the opportunity to work alongside senior students on joint projects that are both practice and research-oriented.
International Students Talk Living in Saint Petersburg and Studying at HSE
Many international students study at HSE University St. Petersburg's English-taught programmes. They come to Russia from different corners of the world for different reasons: to learn the Russian language, to live in a new place, or to immerse themselves in an intercultural environment. Several undergraduate students shared their impressions of studying at the university, interacting with classmates and lecturers, and living in St. Petersburg.