‘I Felt That the High Reputation of HSE University Would Offer Me Great Advantages in My Career Path’
Stephen Deduck, from New Jersey, USA, enrolled at HSE University after spending a study-abroad semester in St. Petersburg. He received his Master’s of International Business in 2020 and is now working in an international office of an American university to help other students interested in studying abroad. Stephen spoke to us about the content of the master’s programme, the benefits of learning Russian, and why HSE University is a great choice for international students.
Stephen Deduck
I was very excited to be able to study at HSE Moscow in the MIB programme. I felt that the high reputation of HSE, not only in Russia, but around the world, would offer me great advantages in my career path. The MIB programme in particular was attractive because of the hands-on experience it provided and the diverse background of the instructors who came not just from academia, but from industry as well.
I entered the programme with very little business background so I was happy to be exposed to many different aspects of international business. I particularly enjoyed the marketing course taught by Maxim Shevchenko and Slava Buyevskiy, as well as a world business culture course taught by Fyodor Vassilyev.
They all challenged me to think in different ways and consider new perspectives!
Thankfully I was able to finish all of my classes just before the start of the pandemic, so all of my classes were 100% in-person. My courses were taught entirely in English and overall, as a native speaker of English, I was rather impressed with the advanced language levels of my instructors.
With it being a very competitive programme, some of the tests were certainly challenging. I think the assessments were fair and were accurately based on content covered during lectures. My instructors were definitely open to questions when I needed more understanding and my classmates were always very supportive of each other.
This programme helped to develop my confidence in my public speaking and presentation skills. I have also bettered my cross-cultural communication skills, which are very important in this rapidly globalizing world
While at HSE-Moscow, I took a Russian language course that helped me greatly. Now I am conversationally proficient in the language and enjoy using my knowledge to engage with Russian people and news sources. Russian is a difficult, but very beautiful language. Fortunately I was able to study Russian at my home university in the United States and even spend a semester abroad in St. Petersburg before I started my master’s programme.
Currently I am working at a university in the United States in the international office. After having such an impactful international education experience myself, I wanted to help others feel that same amazing impact. I hope that in my next job, I can focus more so on international business and even better use the knowledge and skills I gained in my masters program.
I encourage students to be open to new opportunities and challenges. With HSE and the city of Moscow, there are so many things to take advantage of that can really change your life
It is not always easy, but I can assure you that it’ll be worth it. I was so happy with how much I grew during my time at HSE in Moscow!
Apply to HSE University until August 15
HSE University welcomes applicants from all over the world and offers not only different levels of study, but also different formats in English and Russian, online and offline. International applicants can apply for Bachelor’s and Master’s degree programmes in a separate admissions process for foreign applicants and receive scholarships with full or partial tuition fee coverage.
When applying to a Bachelor’s programme, including five English-taught programmes in Moscow, it is possible to submit international certificates you have received in English and mathematics, such as IELTS, TOEFL, A-Level and other international exams and they will be recognized by HSE University, so taking entrance exams in relevant subjects will not be required.
Undergraduate applicants can test their chances of admission now by taking mock tests. Master’s applicants also have the opportunity to get a preliminary assessment of their portfolio and communicate with their programme of choice online.
To learn more about HSE University, its admission process, or life in Moscow, please visit International Admissions website, or contact the Education & Training Advisory Centre. The staff are happy to advise applicants and their parents via e-mail at inter@hse.ru, by phone +7 (495) 531 00 59, or WhatsApp +7 (916) 311 85 21, as well as on social media in Russian and in English: Vkontakte, Facebook, Telegram and Instagram.