HSE Saint Petersburg Buddy Club Enters ESN
The HSE St Petersburg Buddy Club has officially become a section of the Erasmus Student Network (ESN). Today ESN brings together about 550 sections from 40 countries all over the world.
The buddy club is a student organization and its main aim is helping international students adapt to their new lifestyle in Saint Petersburg and to their studies at the Higher School of Economics. Buddy club members meet international students when they arrive, take them to the students' new home, explain how to use the underground, help buy a sim card, open a bank account and assist with other important tasks which students may find difficult to handle not knowing the Russian language. Additionally, the Buddy club also organizes educational and entertaining activities, trips to theaters, cultural events, Russian film evenings, etc.
To become part of the Erasmus Student Network, the buddy club organized a tour for the president of ESN Russia, and participated in the first national online platform of ESN where information about the work, values and the different sections of ESN was presented.
Currently, there are five ESN sections in Russia which operate in the Saint Petersburg State Forest Technical University, the Ural Federal University, HSE Moscow, Plekhanov Russian University of Economics and HSE St. Petersburg.
Undoubtedly, being part of the ESN will bring a lot of advantages to HSE St Petersburg as an institution, as well as to the buddy club and its members. It is an excellent opportunity for the university to attract more international students since membership in the network has become a benchmark for quality known all over the world. It is also a great chance for the club to work on a higher and more professional level, as well as share knowledge and resources with others who have longer experience in helping international students.
ESN offers members the chance to make use of extremely useful software which, for example, can help pair an international student with their Russian buddy. With regard to volunteers, the Network gives them opportunities to learn from experienced mentors. There are also good prospects for taking on more serious roles within the organization, including at international level. Last but not the least, volunteers can mention this valuable experience on their CVs – and impress leading universities and international companies alike.