HSE: Studying in English, Thinking Globally
In recent years, the Higher School of Economics has increasingly positioned itself as a global university. The expansion of English-taught programs, the growing presence of international faculty, and partnerships with foreign institutions have become central to its institutional identity. However, the notion of a “global university” extends beyond the use of English as a language of instruction. At HSE, globalization influences not only the formal structure of education, but also students’ modes of thinking, academic expectations, and sense of belonging within a broader intellectual space.
While the linguistic dimension of this transformation is the most visible, its deeper effects are less explicit. These changes often manifest in subtle shifts in how students engage with knowledge, authority, and academic norms - processes that are difficult to define, yet fundamental to the global university experience. At our university, English functions not as an additional skill, but as a primary academic tool. Reading lists frequently consist of original works by international scholars, and seminars require students to articulate complex ideas in a non-native language. This creates a qualitatively different learning experience, one that demands greater concentration and intellectual effort.
Working in English reshapes the way students construct arguments. Vague formulations and emotionally driven statements become more difficult to sustain, as they are harder to justify in a foreign language. Precision, structure, and clarity therefore gain particular importance. Over time, this linguistic constraint encourages a more analytical and disciplined mode of thinking and writing.
One of the most distinctive aspects of HSE’s global orientation is its international teaching staff. Professors from diverse academic and cultural backgrounds introduce different pedagogical traditions into the classroom, significantly shaping the learning environment. For many students, this represents a contrast to more hierarchical educational models, where the professor’s authority is rarely questioned. At Higher School of Economics, seminars are typically structured around discussion rather than instruction. Students are encouraged to engage critically with ideas, challenging arguments without personalizing disagreement. This approach reduces the perceived distance between students and faculty and familiarizes students with international academic norms, in which dialogue, critical engagement, and intellectual exchange are valued over passive acceptance of authority.
The student body at HSE further reflects the university’s global orientation. International students and exchange programs contribute to a multicultural academic environment in which diverse perspectives interact. Group projects often become spaces for negotiating meaning, values, and communication styles across cultural contexts. Through this process, students develop the ability to navigate cultural differences, cultivate academic reflexivity, and understand knowledge as context-dependent rather than absolute. In this sense, the classroom functions as a microcosm of global intellectual exchange.
Despite its advantages, studying within a global academic environment also presents significant challenges. Language barriers increased academic workload, and constant comparison with international standards can place additional pressure on students. Not all students are equally prepared for this shift, and the process of adaptation often requires time and resilience. However, these difficulties are not merely obstacles but integral components of the global university experience. By confronting uncertainty and navigating unfamiliar academic norms, students develop flexibility and adaptability-qualities that are essential in an increasingly interconnected world.
Learning in English influences not only students’ academic skills, but also the way they perceive themselves as intellectual actors. When students write essays, participate in discussions, or conduct research in English, they gradually enter a broader academic space. Their work is no longer addressed solely to a local or national audience, but to an imagined international reader. This shift subtly changes how students relate to their own arguments. Writing in English requires ideas to be grounded in theory, supported by evidence, and articulated with a level of clarity that allows them to be understood beyond familiar cultural contexts. Arguments that rely on implicit assumptions or emotional intuition become more difficult to sustain. Over time, this experience reshapes students’ understanding of knowledge itself. Learning stops being perceived as engagement with a fixed national canon and instead becomes part of a global conversation, where ideas circulate, are questioned, and gain meaning across borders. In this sense, studying in English does not simply expand linguistic competence - it transforms how students think, argue, and locate themselves within the academic world.
The global university model, despite its many advantages, also raises complex questions of identity and belonging. Studying in English can sometimes create a sense of distance from local academic traditions and from the expressive possibilities of one’s native language. For some students, this experience produces a feeling of being “in between” - not fully anchored in either local or global academic cultures. This in-betweenness is not merely a source of uncertainty, but also a space of reflection. Moving between languages and intellectual traditions encourages students to become more aware of how knowledge is shaped by context. Ideas that feel natural or self-evident in one academic culture may require explanation, translation, or reconsideration in another.
Over time, students learn to navigate multiple ways of thinking and communicating. They develop the ability to shift between frameworks, adapt arguments to different audiences, and critically examine both local and global perspectives. Rather than experiencing identity as something fixed, students begin to see it as flexible and relational. In this sense, HSE does not replace national academic identity with a global one. Instead, it creates conditions in which students learn to inhabit both simultaneously, using the tension between them as a source of intellectual growth rather than conflict.
HSE’s global identity extends far beyond its status as an international institution. It functions as an academic space in which students are introduced to global standards of research, argumentation, and scholarly communication, while simultaneously developing their own intellectual positions. Rather than offering ready-made perspectives, this environment encourages students to question assumptions, refine their ideas, and take responsibility for how they engage with knowledge. English-taught courses, an international faculty, and culturally diverse classrooms collectively shape a learning experience that demands clarity, critical thinking, and openness to alternative viewpoints. These demands are not always comfortable. Students regularly encounter linguistic limitations, unfamiliar academic norms, and moments of uncertainty that challenge their confidence and habits of thinking.
Yet it is precisely through this everyday exposure to difficulty and difference that intellectual growth occurs. Navigating cultural diversity, working across languages, and adjusting to global academic expectations foster a form of intellectual flexibility that extends beyond professional competence. Students learn to adapt, reflect, and position themselves thoughtfully within complex academic conversations.
In this sense, HSE prepares its students not only to compete in an international academic and professional landscape, but to participate meaningfully in the production of knowledge across borders. Importantly, this global orientation does not require the abandonment of local academic or cultural identities. Instead, students learn to remain connected to their own intellectual backgrounds while engaging confidently with a shared global academic space.
Ultimately, HSE’s transformation into a global university is not defined by the number of English-taught programs or international partnerships it holds. It is reflected in everyday academic experiences - in how students learn to speak, write, question, and listen within a broader intellectual space. Studying in English, engaging with international faculty, and working alongside peers from different cultural backgrounds gradually reshapes how students relate to knowledge and to themselves as learners. What begins as a linguistic or institutional change becomes a personal and intellectual journey, marked by uncertainty, adaptation, and growth. By the time students move forward from this environment, they carry more than formal qualifications. They carry the ability to think across boundaries, to remain open to difference, and to situate their own perspectives within a global conversation. In this way, HSE does not simply educate students for the world beyond borders - it teaches them how to belong to it.
Shared by
Sofia Nikomarova
