Scholarship program "Global education" about the master's degree at the University of Bristol

Alla kositsyna told about how she managed to get a grant Program "Global education"and shared their impressions of studying at the University of Bristol in the master's program "Education and neuroscience"

EI: hi! Tell us a little about yourself. How is it that you were in the UK?

Hello! My name is Alla kositsyna and I was lucky enough to be part of the Programme "Global education". I was born in city Ryazan, where he received his first degree, graduating in 2013, RGU im. S. A. Esenin in the specialty "International relations". At that time, I dreamed of becoming a diplomat and to create a "world peace". Like many students, parallel with their studies, I worked as a tutor of English language with children of different ages. Communication with children has brought me incredible positive charge and energy. Then I discovered that I would love to dedicate his future to working with children.

Successfully graduated from University and got a job in a good company, this dream never wanted me to leave. Sometimes in my vacation I was able to go on a volunteer internship with AIESEC (international student organization) and one of these trips, I met a Russian girl who told me about the possibility of obtaining a grant to study in the best universities of the world. On arrival in Russia, I immediately applied and started looking interesting to me of the master's program in education and pedagogy. Being a fan of English and British culture, my choice was immediately stopped at UK universities. This was the beginning of a new unforgettable stage of my life.

EI: In what year were you admitted to Bristol University? Was it your first choice University or have you served somewhere else? What attracted you to this University?

In the fall of 2014 I started my search that I found interesting educational programs. To choose I helped my British friends from London, who constantly told me about Bristol and want to move from the bustle of the capital. Looking on the Internet pictures of the beautiful and mysterious city streets and magnificent buildings of Bristol University , with its Grand halls, reminiscent of scenes from the movie "Harry Potter", I suddenly felt that he had found "his". Hard to describe this feeling, but I think we all, at least once in life experienced this "love at first sight" to people, objects and places. Looking at the list of master's programs in the field of "Education and pedagogy", I have found a terrific unique program"Education and neuroscience". This course was offered not only the refinement of pedagogical skills, but also taught the basics of cognitive psychology advanced study of the structure of the brain. Functionality and plasticity of our brain has always seemed to me a fascinating subject. I literally fell in love with the program, the choice was made and it was a period of preparation for admission.

EI: How did you enter University? Tell us about your experience.

On the website of a particular programme of any foreign University is always detailed information about required documents and deadlines for submitting applications for admission. In my case, I had to pass IELTS with an average score of at least 6.5 points to write a motivation letter, provide a CV with all academic records and an official translation of the diploma of Russian education and character reference from two people. It should be noted that because of differences in the Russian and European education system, even having studied in Russia for 5 years in high school, my diploma was equated to the level of "bachelor". In addition, the University has put high demands regarding the average grade for all the subjects specified in Russian diploma. If the Russian "five" is considered the highest academic performance, admission into the Kingdom required that the average score for all subjects was not lower than 4.8 points.

It's time to register for the IELTS test. It turned out that the exam I had the next two weeks, as it was approaching the deadline of submission. In my opinion, IELTS is the most stressful test for admission, even for those who do not doubt your level of English. My exam preparation was held in Express mode over two weeks in his spare time, but for future applicants I would advise to give it at least 3-4 months. The most important thing is to thoroughly study the procedure of the exam and to practice specific phrases and language structures used when writing an essay, comparative constructions, idiomatic momentum. The execution time of each task strongly enough, the written examination shall be a large flow in a simple setting. My advice is not to panic, to focus on a specific job and to believe in themselves. And then your results will pleasantly surprise you!

EI: were there any difficulties when applying to University? If so, tell us about it in more detail.

In my case, special difficulties with the receipt arose, as the University of Bristol has an excellent system of interaction with applicants. Two months after filing I got a letter confirming my acceptance (the"letter of acceptance"). This letter assumes that You will give him an answer within a certain time, in my case I was given about 5-6 months to reach a decision. It is very convenient and gives you the opportunity to enroll in several universities and then choose the most interesting option.

Visa. It is worth noting that the most important condition for obtaining a student visa is a standardized document called CAS (“a conformation of acceptance for studies”). The decision on the issuance of CAS is accepted by the Visa Department in the UK on the basis of the application filed by the host educational institution. Usually, universities are beginning to send CAS admitted students in the spring to be able to do a visa before the beginning of the school year, which in most cases occurs in October-November.

In my case, the CAS was received in may, and I quietly gathered all the documents to apply for a student visa. I would recommend to spend some time to review the rules, apply for your student visa and prepare all the documents in advance, as summer is the period of the "hot season" in all visa application centres. To avoid extra costs, try not to use the services of agencies. When properly collected documents UK visa is easy enough to obtain yourself. In addition to the visa You will need to pay insurance for the whole period of stay in the UK for the whole period of study.

Housing. A particular challenge appears to be finding housing. In my case, I decided not to risk rental housing in the private sector and take advantage of the student dormitories. The University sent me a list with prices of housing in different parts of the campus, and I chose some of the most interesting options. In the summer I received an offer for checking-in at student residence and signed a contract for a year. On arrival at Bristol, to the great surprise, I found that the price of housing in the private sector in the city centre was 1.5-2 times lower than on campus, so I would advise future students to consider all possible options.

EI: Tell us more about the experience of the grant programme of the Global Education? When you filed for the grant? Was it difficult to get a grant?

I started to apply for the grant immediately after confirmation of admission to the program.The process of preparing the documents did not take much time, the Operators of the Program helped and promptly answered all questions, in the end, I hit the turn in December 2014 and in March 2015, received a reply confirming my candidacy as one of the winners. To grant was actually very easy, and ongoing support Operator "Global education" was a pleasant surprise.

EI: what program are you studying? What are your impressions of the program? Do you have a favorite subject, teacher?

I was trained at the master's program "Education and neurology". If before the beginning of study I was a little worried about whether I did, I chose a narrow specialization, then after a month of interesting lectures and visits to seminars, all my doubts disappeared completely. We studied the structure of the brain and nervous system, cognitive functions of the brain, pedagogy and psychology. The most striking example for me was our main teacher on the course – Professor Paul Howard-Jones (eng. – Paul Howard-Jones). Professor Howard - Jones is a born teacher. Every lesson he turned into the interesting discussion and even such complex themes as the unit of functional magnetic scanner to scan the brain, it seemed easy and fun. In addition to teaching in Bristol and Cambridge, he conducts own program on British bi-Bi - si "the secret life of four year-olds", telling and commenting from a psychological point of view funny and unusual behavior of preschool children.

EI: Who is learning with you in your program? A lot of foreigners, Russian-speaking students? Were you able to have close friends, and who they are – Russian-speaking foreigners, the British? With whom it is easier to find a common language?

In my opinion, the main advantage of obtaining foreign education is meeting and talking with students from different countries. In my group students were trained from all corners of the earth, including countries such as Greece, India, Spain, Dominican Republic, Uruguay and etc. surprisingly, I was the only Russian in the whole flow of the branch "Education". It is worth noting that about half of all international students – it's the guys from China. I was lucky with my classmates, we very much made friends and now plan to meet at the graduation, which will be in February 2017.

EI: What do you do in your free time at University? Are you in any student clubs? Tell us a little about it.

In the University of Bristol an incredibly large number of different student clubs, ranging from a variety of dance styles, language schools, sports clubs, drama studios and ending with his own diving school where you can go snorkeling with sea lions off the coast of Wales! Also on campus the University has several pubs and clubs. Every week arranged amazing activities, free movies in the University cinema, Ted Talks, job fairs, volunteer events, etc. of the Student life is incredibly rich and diverse!

EI: Tell us a little bit about the city. What are the pros and cons you see for yourself? Easy to find housing, jobs, convenient transportation, and rich if night life?

Bristol is a fascinating city with an extraordinary artistic atmosphere. The British themselves called Bristol capital artists, musicians, and all extraordinary talented individuals, seeking a vocation. The entire city is literally covered with colorful street art.

In addition, Bristol has been living legendary street graffiti artist Banksy. Are scattered throughout the city, his most famous works and tourists even go to a "Banksy tour" in search of his works. I lived next to one of his most famous works, which is adorned on the right adjacent to my Dorm house.

Transportation system is very convenient and inexpensive, compared with London. All the buses run on schedule, and the Central bus station can be reached in two hours from Central London. Bristol has its own airport with domestic and international flights. Most flights operates British loukoster EasyJet with whom you can fly to Paris, Amsterdam, Barcelona, Berlin 25-30 pounds. Another cheap operator RyanAir. With him from Bristol to Dublin, you can reach over 9 pounds. The most important conditions cheap travel – search and book tickets in advance, preferably for two to three months before the desired date.

A separate word should be said about the nightlife of the city. Here she's loud, festive and covers everyone, if You live in the centre of the city where actually live 90% of all students. Going out in the evening from the house you immediately find yourself in the epicenter of all parties. Bristol is good because everyone can find something to their taste and within walking distance from the bustling multi-storey clubs to small cozy cafes with live music and overlooking the harbour.

EI: do you have a company that you will work at the end of the program?

I thought the choice of the company, received several proposals from different regions during the study. I chose an organization in his hometown of Ryazan – Ryazan medical state University. academician I. P. Pavlov. It is here that I hope to apply the acquired knowledge and skills.

EI: Thank you so much for this interview! What would you like to say in closing to our readers?

First, I would like to wish our readers to believe in themselves, to set themselves challenging tasks and achieve success in their implementation. Definitely going to study abroad, not everyone can. Someone does not have enough resources and time, some lacking the desired scores for admission, and some just can't decide to get out of the comfort zone and go to a foreign country alone. For me, studying in the UK has always been a dream, but it was difficult to implement in financial terms. Program "Global education" gave me a tremendous opportunity and I'm sure it will help other guys to turn their dreams into reality!

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