Let’s Speak ‘HSEian’

When students finally arrive at their dream university, it always takes time to get used to the new environment. In order to prepare the newcomers who will arrive on August 27-30, we have prepared a list of terms that we often use here at HSE University St. Petersburg.

Piterskaya Vyshka / Питерская Вышка

It is an unofficial, but widely used term referring to HSE University in St. Petersburg. ‘Piterskaya’ is an adjective which was formed from the name of the city. The term ‘Higher’ in Russian transcription is ‘Vysshaya’.  Without going into details of derivational morphology, let's just say that ‘Vyshka’ is a slang word from ‘Vysshaya’.

Minor / Майнор

Like many other universities in the world, our curricula contain minors or elective courses which undergraduates choose in addition to their core courses. Some of our students might say: ‘My major is Political Science, but I’ve decided to take a Finance minor next module’.

Module / Модуль

The academic year at HSE University is divided not into two semesters like at most Russian universities, but into four modules. Each module lasts 8-12 weeks, and ends with exams. Students have no more than one exam per day over the seven-day exam period.

Magolego / Маголего

Everyone knows what Lego is, right? A toy that consists of standard elements which you can assemble to create non-standard things. The same principle lies behind Magolego, that refers to a combination of courses that can be chosen by our first-year Master’s students. Students can pick electives from all faculties to build their individual curricula.

Buddy / Бадди

A buddy is an HSE student volunteer who helps international students with different tasks which they may find difficult to handle without knowing the Russian language, such as buying a sim card, opening a bank account, or using the metro. Buddies also organize fun activities, such as trips to theaters, Russian film evenings, parties etc. Last year, the HSE buddies officially became a section of the Erasmus Student Network (ESN).

Learning Management System aka LMS

LMS is a local analogue of Moodle. It’s a space that enables students and teachers to communicate online regarding different aspects of the learning process. For instance, teachers upload course materials, assignments, etc. via LMS. Students are able to complete term papers, sit tests or discuss any issues they may have.

Kant / Кант

This term has nothing to do with the famous German philosopher Immanuel Kant. Kant is a very informal way to mention one of our six campus buildings, which is located on Kantemirovskaya street. You can say, for instance, “I’m going to Kant. I am having the Orientation Session in an hour”.

There is more to learn: the Orientation for international students is scheduled for August 31 (in English) and September 1 (in Russian).

 If you are a new HSE student, we are looking forward to meeting you!