‘HSE University Is the Best Choice’
Emiliano Espinosa is from Rosario, an Argentinian city near the Paraná River—not far from Buenos Aires. He first came to Russia 8 years ago, in 2012, for a high school exchange year—he went to a Russian school in Krasnodar and lived with a Russian family. Now, after completing his Bachelor’s at RUDN Moscow, Emiliano Espinosa is a first-year student of the Master’s programme in ‘Media Management’ at HSE University. We spoke with him about his experience of living and studying in Russia.
I first heard about HSE a long time ago and when I finished my Bachelor’s degree, I didn’t have to think twice about where to study next—I immediately applied to HSE. I chose HSE for its quality education and excellence in Russia and beyond. I think it was one of the best choices in my academic life. I was surprised by the efficiency and seriousness with which all the staff work. They helped me a lot throughout the application process.
To get into the programme, I had to send my portfolio and have an interview with the academic supervisor of the programme. I was able to get a partial partial scholarship from the university.
I started studying at HSE University in September and my first impressions are extremely positive.
I have great classmates—there are many young professionals in our group and everyone is genuinely interested in what we are studying. This makes us constantly try to improve together. It is worth highlighting the quality of the teaching and the level of all the faculty members. It is something difficult to find. What’s more, HSE has excellent facilities.
As I am only just beginning the first semester of my Master’s, we have not yet taken too many subjects. So far, the Media Law course has been extremely interesting and this also has to do with the quality of the teachers. HSE has excellent teachers and colleagues who share the same vision, which is to constantly improve. Valentina Pavlenko, who teaches Media Law, and Alexander Sharikov, Academic Supervisor of our programme, are some of the teachers whom I really like. I like the way they connect with the students and make the lessons really dynamic. They are also ready to help any student at any time.
To anyone who asks me, I would definitely recommend HSE for any degree programme. It is a first-class university that not only gives students the necessary knowledge but also offers immense opportunities for internships and projects, which helps develop not only your theoretical foundation but also practical skills.
I chose Media Management programme because I’m interested in all media work—I have been working in this area for at least four or five years. I have a lot of ideas about what I might do after my graduation—let’s see how it goes but I would like to open a production company for audio visual content, or giving services of translation for a TV channels or clients. I would also want to work for news agencies, writing texts or managing the process. There are a lot of different possibilities.
On Moscow and Speaking Russian
I’ve been living in Moscow for almost 6 years. At first, it was a bit difficult since I am from a medium-sized city and moving to such a large and cosmopolitan city with enormous distances was something I had to get used to. Also there was winter and the cold. However, all this shock was temporary and now I really am in love with the city. I feel comfortable here and this is where a large part of my life belongs—my day-to-day life, my friends, and my work.
I would say my Russian is very good since I have been here for a long time and I study in Russian. But still, I make mistakes very often with the grammatical cases. Russian is a beautiful language and it takes years of study to really gain a deep understanding. I encourage everyone who wants to study Russian to do it and not to be afraid. It opens a whole new world of rich culture and history.
In the beginning, I felt my Russian wasn’t good enough to study at such a high level—I was really concerned about that, because sometimes you feel that you are a little behind your Russian peers and friends but with time you learn more and more. So, it is just something that you just have to adapt to. All the classmates and the teachers are always willing to help.
I really love the friendly atmosphere at HSE.
HSE University welcomes applicants from all over the world and offers not only different levels of study, but also different formats in English and Russian, online and offline. International applicants can apply for Bachelor’s and Master’s degree programmes in a separate admissions process for foreign applicants and receive scholarships with full or partial tuition fee coverage.
When applying to a Bachelor’s programme, including five English-taught programmes in Moscow, it is possible to submit international certificates you have received in English and mathematics, such as IELTS, TOEFL, A-Level and other international exams and they will be recognized by HSE University, so taking entrance exams in relevant subjects will not be required.
Undergraduate applicants can test their chances of admission now by taking mock tests. Master’s applicants also have the opportunity to get a preliminary assessment of their portfolio and communicate with their programme of choice online.