Intensive Course for Students of HSE SPb and Jyväskylä University
In September 2018 the 2nd year students of the international master program in Applied and Interdisciplinary History “Usable Pasts” met with students of the University of Jyväskylä (Finland) within an intensive course financed by the Finnish-Russian Student and Teacher Exchange Programme (FIRST).
Thematic framework of the course concerned the history of interaction and cooperation between Russia and Scandinavia over the past centuries, the most topical issues of which were presented by professors of the Department of History of the HSE and the Department of History and Ethnology of the University of Jyväskylä. The subjects of the lectures were varied and interesting. Simo Mikkonen, academic researcher at the University of Jyväskylä, told students about Finnish-Soviet cultural exchanges. Prof. Julia A. Lajus, Head of the International Master’s Programme in Applied and Interdisciplinary History “Usable Pasts”, made a lecture on cooperation and rivalry among Russian and Scandinavian scientists on the problems of studying the Arctic. Another interesting lecture was devoted to the trade and Scandinavian technologies in the cases of Finland and Sweden, the experience of which was introduced in the USSR between 1950s and 1960s.
The educational part of the intensive course also included group work, on the basis of which the students presented their projects in various areas of the intensive course, for example comparison of educational systems in Russia and Finland, etc. The program’s cultural part of the program included 2-hours walking tour in “Nobel City” (“Residential campus for employees of Nobel factory”, Nobel house, “Russian diesel” factory) in Saint Petersburg. Furthermore, the students took part in a day trip to the Oreshek Fortress (Shlisselburg). In addition, the students visited the village of Staraya Ladoga, the ancient capital of Northern Russia, that is located near Volkhov town. The students visited the fortress and the Holy Assumption Monastery for women in Staraya Ladoga. In Volkhov participants of the intensive course were told the history of the city during the visit of the Museum of Volkhov History. Students also saw the most famous sights of the city, for example, the Volkhovskaya Hydroelectric Power Plant named after Vladimir I. Lenin. This Hydroelectric Station was constructed in 1926 by Heinrich Osipovich Graftio (1869–1949), a Russian engineer, creator of the first hydropower plants in the USSR.
Undoubtedly, the participation and cooperation of students from two partner universities promoted cultural exchange. The participants of the intensive course were satisfied with a variety of activities organized within the course.
«“I chose to partake in the course with HSE because I had never been to Russia and for me (and most Finns unfortunately) Russia has been this mysterious neighbor. Saint Petersburg has always fascinated me, with its unique and bloody history and its magnificent architecture. I loved my stay there. Especially the museums! There are so many lovely museums and palaces. Also the fantastic monasteries and churches are really beautiful. My choice for best museum has to be the world renowned Hermitage with its grandeur style and the seemingly limitless art collection. We had only two hours inside the museum and we had to run through most exhibitions since we just didn’t have the time! I also enjoyed our trip to the “countryside” to Staraya Ladoga and Oreshek (Shlisselburg), and we got to visit a few castles and other fascinating sights. What I will miss the most is the food and the culture surrounding it. The city is filled with wonderful cafeterias, bakeries and restaurants. I had the privilege to taste some traditional Russian foods such as beef Stroganoff, bliny (pancakes) and borsch. I also had the chance to taste Georgian cuisine as well. Delightful! The students from HSE were extremely polite and welcoming from the first day onward. I thoroughly enjoyed working on our projects with the students from HSE. The atmosphere in the group was great and I certainly made some good friends there. I really enjoyed my stay there and can thoroughly recommend St. Petersburg and HSE for my friends. Spasibo!”»
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Laboratory for Environmental and Technological History: Research Assistant
Dominik
Undergraduate student, University of Jyväskylä, Finland