Stenden University: story about Russian student Starkova

Elena Starkova is a 23-year-old Master student of International Leisure and Tourism Studies. She comes from the Russian city of Perm, which lies in the Western part of the Ural Mountains and is considered to be the most Eastern city of Europe. During the last year of her studies at Perm State University, from which she graduated in 2006 with a Bachelor degree in Socio-Economic Geography, Elena started to work in her uncle’s company, which is one of the biggest tour operators in Perm. There she had to do a lot of different jobs, starting from administrative work and assisting various managers in their duties, to organization of events and working as a snowboard instructor in a winter camp for kids. All these tasks, together with her 5 years of experience in skiing and snowboarding, as well as parachute jumping, horse riding and skating were supposed to prepare her to become a manager at the newly opened department of Active Tourism. However, instead, Elena decided to concentrate on her education for a bit longer,which is why she came to Leeuwarden to do her Masters here. “I have been dreaming of studying in The Netherlands since I was 14 or 15. This country attracted me by its freedom, people and history. I have always been fascinated by how people manage to live below sea level and strive with water to survive,” explained Elena. As Elena already had a bachelor degree and some experience in Tourism,MAILTS was a logical choice for her. “So I was searching online for a university in the Netherlands that offered a Master programme in Tourism. The educational bureau "Eurogates" that I contacted directed me towards CHN (now Stenden) University, which also attracted me with an opportunity of getting a scholarship.” “I like the international environment here and that people are friendly and smiling and ready to help you. I enjoy the interactivity of the learning process and that students are also involved in it… It is very different from Russia,” remarks Elena. At the same time, she finds studying in a foreign language challenging and is surprised that students call teachers by their first name. For her dissertation Elena is planning to research the application of the Learning Region project to the Tourism sector in the Perm Region. “After the graduation, I want to work in tourism on a management level, making planning and policies as well as researching and promoting sustainable development in tourism. But before I do that, I would like to have a broader understanding of the service industry on the whole, which is why I have already applied for the second Master programme in International Service Management. It’s a two year part-time programme, but I will try to finish it in only one year as I have already been working as a Problem Based Learning (PBL) tutor at Tourism Management department. During my second education, I also want to improve my Dutch and get more practical experience,” concluded Elena.Konstantin Gridnevsky// Stenden University