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The Warsaw University of Life Sciences, founded in 1816, is the largest and most prestigious agricultural university in Poland and one of the best in Europe. The University itself is a modern innovative educational institution, impressing with its scientific base and material and technical support. The University campus covers an area of 70 hectares in the southern part of Warsaw and is truly the pride of the University. It has everything for an effective training and a comfortable living: spacious lecture halls, well-equipped laboratories, a computerized library with the main archive, veterinary clinics, modern experimental stations and farms for practical training in the field of agribusiness, horticulture and forestry, student dormitories, numerous sports facilities, etc.
Over the course of longstanding cooperation, students of Omsk SAU regularly do exchange studies at the Warsaw University of Life Sciences and tend to remain very impressed with studying abroad, which is remembered not only due to a different approach to the educational process and the experience of constant communication in a foreign language, but also to incredible travels.
This year, Irina's academic mobility coincided with the introduction of the self-isolation regime and the transition to distance learning due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Irina is going to return to Omsk soon, and she told us how the epidemiological situation in the world affected the learning process at the European University.
«Unfortunately, I didn’t manage to arrive in time for the orientation week due to the long waiting for a visa, so things turned out a bit harder for me if compared to other Erasmus + students. During the first, introductory week administrative issues are usually resolved: documents and credit cards for scholarships are prepared, check-in at dormitories is carried out, campus tours and leisure activities for all exchange students are conducted in order to get acquainted with the University and with each other.
I attended introductory lectures on all selected courses, after which I was very impressed by the openness and friendliness of the lecturers. However, almost immediately after that, the self-isolation regime was introduced in Poland, and we continued studying in a distance format. Many students from European countries returned home, but I decided to stay, as I put too much effort into the scholarship competition and wasn’t ready to end the long-awaited international mobility so quickly.
The online learning process, of course, isn’t very convenient, I would like to attend classes for real, but now everywhere is the same. Learning is difficult, but very interesting. The language barrier, which at first was a real concern for me, became less every week, now I don’t feel such a problem. While coming across scientific terminology, I use the dictionary; apart from this, everything is perfectly understandable.
The courses that I have studied here correlate with the field of my training at Omsk SAU, “Ecology and Environmental Engineering,” therefore I cope with any task easily. Within the framework of the subject “Environmental Information System”, I worked with an international GIS programme, while earlier I was only familiar with the Russian one. In the classes on environmental monitoring we studied lakes in detail, their eutrophication, made diagrams and calculations. Unfortunately, due to the quarantine, it wasn’t possible to take samples in the lakes.
During self-isolation, there was no opportunity to go anywhere, so in our free time, we cooked various national dishes, played Uno, did puzzles, watched films in English and rode bicycles a lot (while it was still allowed). After the weakening of the quarantine regime, I managed to visit 3 cities in Poland (Wroclaw, Zakopane and Poznan). Zakopane is located in the mountains, and it is unrealistically beautiful. For several hours we climbed to a height of 1,500 meters, literally clinging to the ice with our hands. It was very hard, but very fun. I will never forget this experience for sure.
I didn’t regret for a second that I decided to stay in Warsaw and didn’t interrupt my mobility. All this time I was surrounded by people who helped me forget that the quarantine exists at all. All the students are very friendly and educated, speak four foreign languages. I know for sure that the Erasmus + programme is more than just studying abroad. I not only became acquainted with the European educational system and improved my English language skills, but also made friends with people from all over the world.
I would like to thank the International Relations Department for the coordinated work and cooperation with universities from other countries, for such an amazing opportunity that you give students. It is impossible not to say a special thanks to the programme coordinator Nadezhda Romanova, who is very passionate about her work, always in touch with students and ready to help 24/7. Thank you very much!»
The International Relations Department wishes Irina successful exams in Warsaw and a good way back home. We are waiting for everyone who wants to discover European education in the International Relations Department (Office 403, Institutskaya Ploshchad 1, phone 65-10-72, email: omgau.int@mail.ru) and at the Linguistic Center (Office 428, Institutskaya Ploshchad 1, phone 65-10-72) of Omsk SAU.
