Foreign Languages That You Can Learn at HSE University

© iStock

Improve your German, learn Chinese from scratch, or dive into business English – these are just some of the options offered by the HSE School of Foreign Languages’ Centre for Language and Methodology Training. HSE News Service talked to Tatyana Baranovskaya, Head of the Centre, and Ekaterina Kolesnikova, Head of the School of Foreign Languages, about their new programmes and the centre’s goals.

About the Centre, its students and the future of distance learning

Tatiana Baranovskaya with HSE Rector Yaroslav Kuzminov at ‘Acknowledgement’ medals awarding ceremony for HSE University staff

Tatiana Baranovskaya, HSE Professor

Our Centre has existed for over 20 years. During this time, we have developed our own practices and techniques of foreign language teaching, and we regularly update them, taking into account the interests and needs of our students. The programmes teach languages not only at different levels, but with different focuses. Primarily, this means language training in certain specializations (economics, law etc). We also pay a lot of attention to programmes that prepare students for international exams.

We are part of the HSE School of Foreign Languages, and all our programmes take into account the university’s fields of interest and are built within the overall conceptual structure, which involves various types of activities. Specialized language programmes are carried out in coordination with the relevant leading experts at our university, who are internationally recognized specialists in their respective fields.

Students at our Centre come from many different backgrounds: they include university students, managers, or department heads wanting to improve their language skills in order to communicate with international partners. We often teach specialists who would like not only to ‘complete’ their education with language studies, but to get a new profession. They are usually people with high ambitions and strong motivation, who are focused on results and make a lot of effort to reach their goals.

Maria Ermolaeva, student of the ‘Translator in professional communication’ programme

I applied for the programme not only to improve my English and learn to translate, but to get to know more about my mother tongue. The programme exceeded all my expectations. The course is full of interesting disciplines, where we learn about the specifics of the English language, learn to use translator’s tools in written and oral translation, and learn many curious facts from the history of Great Britain and the USA.

The exam was conducted online. This made me anxious, since I prefer to talk to teachers in person, it feels easier and more comfortable. But the exam went well. The teachers are extremely positive, energetic, understanding and reasonably strict. I’m grateful to them for making the subject interesting, and for focusing on certain aspects that we hadn’t considered before, but which are really important.

I particularly want to mention that I have become friends with all my classmates, we supported each other before the exam and any tests, and shared lots of useful information.

The Centre for Language and Methodology Training offers its students a wide choice of programmes in different languages: English, German, Italian, Spanish, French and Chinese at all levels. We also prepare students for such international exams as CAE, BEC, and IELTS. In addition, the Centre offers professional ‘Translator in professional communication’ and ‘English language teacher’ retraining programmes, as well as continuing education courses.

This year, we are also launching programmes in Arabic and Portuguese, as well as online German courses for students from different Russian regions, and preparation programmes for GMAT, TOEFL and DELF (French) exams. All programmes at the centre are launched following requests from students. Our managers do a lot of work monitoring feedback and talking to our current and potential students, and, of course, they also monitor the educational market. This year, we have received requests for Arabic and Portuguese courses for the first time (in future, we are going to develop online courses for these languages). We have also received a lot of requests to develop online German courses, since this language is growing in popularity at the moment. The Centre already offers online English courses.

If required, all programmes by the Centre for Language and Methodology Training can be offered via Zoom and MS Teams

In addition to language courses, we also have professional retraining courses. Their value is that in comparatively short time, students can complement their background with new skills and knowledge. On these courses, students not only get a new profession, but improve their English language proficiency.

About the Centre’s Development Trajectory

Ekaterina Kolesnikova, HSE Associate Professor

The Centre has always provided the highest quality foreign language training. Every year, we offer new cutting-edge programmes. As we reinforce our methodical and digital development, we plan to enter new markets, and develop strategic partnerships with companies. This year, we are particularly focusing on working with corporate clients.

At the moment , we are aiming to design and implement a prospective business model for the Centre for Language and Methodology Training. This is based on a deep understanding of our students’ needs and our willingness to offer a maximum number of solution options for their requests. For example, the need to quickly prepare for an international exam should have five or six solution options, so that the student can choose the type of certificate, the difficulty of the course and its intensity, the time of classes, the number of students in the class, distance or classroom learning etc.

Tatyana Baranovskaya – to the future students of the Centre

Dear prospective students and their parents!

Your children are applying to HSE University, a unique establishment. In addition to their degree studies, we offer a lot of additional courses. I would like to invite you to explore the HSE+ programmes. Today, it is very important not only to improve one’s English language skills, but to learn a second foreign language. I would also like to invite everyone who is thinking about changing their job or getting another profession to think about our Centre’s professional retraining programmes.

More information on our Centre is available on our website (in Russian) or by phoning 8-495-621-11-73.