'I Want First-Years to Get to Know Each Other, To Be Friends and Not Rivals'
Danil Hazigaliev completed the first year of studies in the programme 'International Bachelor’s in Business and Economics'. Thanks to extracurricular events, he mastered the profession of photographer, made new friends, and got an award for the best supporting role. This year, the student will become a curator for the freshmen. We talked to him about the most vivid moments of his extracurricular life.
How I became a student
I enrolled in HSE University-St Petersburg after a year at another university. I checked out the programmes and opted for 'International Bachelor’s in Business and Economics'. I was attracted by an opportunity to get a diploma in two qualifications at once and also the English-taught curriculum. As a result, I got a fee-paying place with a 70% discount. Moreover, I passed the English test well and got into an English group straight away.
In my programme, I feel the maximum effect from the education. I spent a lot of effort on linear algebra, two sections of the mathematical analysis and macroeconomics but I also developed myself, all of these things are useful. I was also happy to learn all the peculiarities of Excel and accounting—it is important for future economists and managers to be versed in it.
By the end of the year, I had realised how good HSE University is in terms of networking. I think, by the end of the bachelor's degree, my list of contacts will be enriched by 1000 people which is important for future life.
What my first year started with
A meeting with curators
As a tradition, at HSE University-St Petersburg, first-years start getting to know each other in advance. For this, curators organise special meetings. For us, it was like this: on August 31, curators gathered us at the Baltic Station, and we went to Gatchina together. We talked, had some snacks, played, and took photos... After four-five hours, the people broke into small companies according to their interests.
The first meeting introduced me to a lot of interesting people. We are still in touch with some of them. At this meeting, I also met my groupmate. During the adaptation days, we often helped each other. Of course, with time, I gained new acquaintances and friends—when I started to participate actively in extracurricular events. However, I am still grateful to my first acquaintances from HSE University. Immersing in university life not on your own was much easier.
The first of September
At first, my groupmates and I met next to the university. We got our passes and then entered the building. Then, we wandered off to big lecture halls where the professors of the School of Economics and Management told us about what awaited us, what we would study and how the educational process was structured. Then, we were handed festive merchandise, and we went on an excursion around the campus with our curators.
What led me to the extracurricular life
I am from Polevskoy, a small town in Sverdlovsk Oblast. Lots of its citizens know each other well, and one of my acquaintances—Sasha Galkin—enrolled in HSE University-St Petersburg shortly before me. From his social networks, I found out that he founded the basketball league 3x3 at the university and developed it quite well.
As soon as I enrolled, I texted Sasha and offered him my help in the club activities. Thus, I helped to shoot a video for the basketball league and became a videographer, and then, they asked me to be a photographer for the station of '3x3' at the festival for first-years. They liked my photos and started to involve me in shootings more often: I started to shoot HSE basketball games and games with other universities. Besides, I had a hand in the reporting video of the All-Star Game—there, the best players of the basketball league competed with each other.
How the extracurricular life drove me towards photography
Once, I came to the video studio of HSE University-St Petersburg, there were employees of the Media Complex Office. They told me about a new student project on visual content—MediaLAB—and offered to submit my portfolio. This is how I got into the project.
Everyone who got into MediaLAB had to complete the training. Once a week, we gathered in the studio and attended workshops on photography, cutting, sound engineering and so on. All classes were delivered by the staff of the Media Complex. Over a year, we have upgraded—largely thanks to the practice: they often asked us to take photos at various HSE events. I learnt to output the results very quickly: I can look through 1500 ready-made photos over a night, choose the best one and edit them.
Thanks to MediaLAB, I realised that I truly liked photography. I would like to engage in creative photoshoots seriously. Moreover, people started coming to me for photoshoots via word of mouth. There were people for whom I shot exhibitions and festivals, and they started to return to me because they liked the results. Some clients came from the photographers’ forum where I became a winner. Now, I manage to earn money thanks to the skills I gained.
How I turned into Gorshok and got an award for the best supporting role
HSE University-St Petersburg has a competition 'Mr and Mrs' (hereinafter—M&M—ed. note). It is for the first years of all educational programmes. At first, it is held locally, and then—gathers the whole HSE University. Under the terms of the competition, participants have to come up with a vivid performance on a given topic and present it to the audience.
We joined the local Mr&Mrs with the long-established team. We spent a lot of time choosing a famous couple around which we could make a performance and opted for the town musicians of Bremen. We quickly realised that we needed some kind of antagonist but unhacked. Together with our Troubadour, we were big fans of the band 'Korol i Shut' and after long discussions decided that our antagonist would be Gorshok (Mikhail Gorsheniov, a leading singer and co-founder of the band—translator's note). This is the role I played.
Preparations for 'M&M' were a true pleasure. Four of us communicated round the clock: exchanged ideas, discussed scenarios, searched for stage requisites... As a result, we received the Audience Choice Award, and I—an award for the best supporting role. Later, we went to the whole-HSE 'M&M' but polished off the performance a little: we sent the town musicians of Bremen on a world tour and made them fight the Sicilian mafia. There, I played the detective and was again named the best supporting actor.
Of course, I had a lot of impressions of the competition but the main one was teamwork. We prepared this performance through suffering, spent a lot of time and effort and became best friends by the end.
Why I became a curator
This year, the School of Economics and Management has four new educational programmes. I want first-years to get to know each other, to be friends and not rivals. As a curator, I can influence it. This is why from the new academic year, I will become one of the assistants of our first-years.
The example of my curators also inspired me. The way how they managed to combine everything and at the same time organise qualitative events is simply awesome.
I cannot yet reveal all the cards and tell what we have prepared for the first-years but I can promise one thing for sure: it will be hearty. I am sure that at the end of the first year, you will want to experience all of it again. We will try to create the exact atmosphere for which people come to HSE University-St Petersburg.