Wroclaw University of Science and Technology - WUST, Poland
The group of students that have been studying at WUST on the Erasmus+ shares their impressions of the education in the spring semester 2016/2017. Erasmus+ в весеннем семестре 2016/2017 учебного года.
Vadim Zakutsky, IPEE, Master course:
In the spring semester of 2016/2017 I was passing the education at WUST at the faculty of Electric Power Engineering. On the very first day after have come the Polish University, I was overwhelmed with emotions: I have never been to such a marvelous and vast campus yet where everything is done for students’ sake, even lawns, meeting places and many others. And, by the way, at the campus there are around 35000 students.
Later, during my study, I noticed that huge attention was paid to personal preferences of the student in building his study plan because he is allowed to choose his courses and timetable by himself. Such a system makes the education more flexible. Particularly, I have chosen a few courses, including the language ones. I especially liked the “Renewable Energy Sources” program that was read by professors of Otto von Guericke University of Magdeburg. The lectures were given twice a week every time by a new teacher who had just arrived from the airport. As it was Europe there were no limits.
On Erasmus+ you can find friends from any country, gain experience of education in Europe, sufficiently improve your English and Polish and make true good friends.
I definitely recommend this program for everyone, like a priceless experience.
And, of course, I want to express my gratitude for the opportunity created by Igor Zhelbakov and Irina Kulik.
Elena Stolyarova, ITNPE, Master course
Participation in Erasmus+ program is a unique opportunity to get the education at the European level, for personal and career growth, priceless experience of living in country abroad and good chance of raising the foreign language skills.
I was studying at Wroclaw University of Science and Technology during the spring semester at the Faculty of Electrical Engineering. The education was built around lectures, practical lessons, and laboratory practice. The huge advantage was to choose my subjects during the first week and making corrections later, if needed. The opportunity to learn foreign languages was also a good one, so I managed to learn German at the A1 level.
During all the semester at WUST there were exhibitions, presentations of international companies that were open for anyone who wanted to participate and talk to the employers.
Participation in the program helped me to obtain and improve professional skills and competencies, as well as to compare the structure of the Russian and European education.
I want to mention the work of Irina Kulik, program coordinator, who paid due attention to all the participants of the program and helped in all difficult situations.
I am satisfied with the ERASMUS + program and I advise everyone to participate in it.
Ekaterina Ulyanova, ITNPE, Master course
The Erasmus + program provides excellent opportunities and experience for students, allowing you to dive in the study environment abroad. By passing the training under this program, you can improve your language skills, gain invaluable experience of international communication with students from all over the world and expand your knowledge about the country of study.
The University made positive impressions, as well as the organizations that help foreign students to adapt to new conditions and to provide interesting leisure options - ESN and Buddy. As additional classes, you can choose various language courses, for example, I took the German course A1. I can say with confidence that Erasmus+ works well and I hope that in the future it would only progress. I advise every student to ignore any fear and try himself on this program.
Evgeniy Lukin, NCEPU, Master course
WUST is one of the largest and most respected Technical Universies in Poland, a leader of its prestigious ratings.
At the entrance to every building stands an information desk, where students or responsible staff answer all the questions that might appear.
During the first week the student must arrive to his faculty in order to receive the schedule. All the processes in WUST are automated, so a student arrives to his dean, who logins to the profile, chooses the requested subjects and makes a confirmation. During the first two weeks you can decline the courses that you don’t like and add new ones. This is very useful because you can understand the benefits of the subjects during the first two lessons, and should you take them or not.
A student can choose from 1 to 15 disciplines. I added 4 courses to my curriculum, because in Wroclaw there are not many subjects related to Thermal power engineering. I took:
- Renewable energy sources;
- Market Mechanisms in power systems;
- Social Communication;
- German language.
The lessons include the same set as at MPEI: practice, laboratory work, lectures. The difference is that at Wroclaw you can attend practice without the lecture course and the lecture course without practice. The structure is built around the concept of credits. If you attend all the three forms of study, you receive 6 credits, if only one – 2.
The teaching staff members speak English, so students from abroad do not have principal problems with communication, anyone of them can ask the teacher about any study issue. There is no special difference in methodologies of MPEI and WUST, the basics are similar – projector classes and home assignment. After each lesson, the teacher sends you the slides and the presentations. At the course of Renewable Energy Sources we had German teachers that carried out the lessons in a special way - in a dialogue: before turning on the text on the slide, they asked if anyone knew, for example, what a biomass is, etc. In this way it is easier to digest the information. By the by, I am going to share all the slides and presentations with MPEI.
All the exams were given in written form and the date of the exam is set in advance. The attendance has its cast on the final grade, and the system of rating is score-based.
My room at the dormitory
Wroclaw is the former German city of Breslau, which could not but affect its architecture and culture. In general, Poland is a very friendly country, especially towards Russians. I can say that when you start a conversation on a street, at the shop or at the institute in English, you would often be asked to speak Russian because many Polish speak it and the languages are quite similar. WUST appreciates Erasmus program students, and local students committee organizes various events almost every day.
So, if you have an opportunity to apply for the Erasmus+ international program, do not hesitate. Yes, it is tough, especially taking into account the weight of the subjects that you would have to pass when you return to MPEI. But life shows that all these issues could be solved. As long as you have an opportunity to go to Europe for study, you should capture it. And to brag before teacher that the European Commission has chosen you is kind of funny, isn’t it?
Pavel Yakovlev, Smolensk branch of MPEI, Department of Technological machinery and equipment, Bachelor course
I wish to say a few words about the computer system JSOS 2.0. This is an original educational computer system that holds information about the student and the schedule. This system could also be used as a mail service to contact the teachers.
Study courses are built by the scheme of lectures + exercises. Most of the teachers use multimedia presentations and study video.
Laboratory test bench for modeling hydraulic systems
Particularly I wish to outline the laboratory events.
The structure of laboratory work is quite simple. At the beginning, the teacher gives a theoretical introduction to the topic of laboratory work, explaining to students the goals and objectives of the lesson. Further, students under the guidance of a teacher carry out the practical part of the work.
Determination of the main parameters of an internal combustion engine
Reports on laboratory work are sent by e-mail. Each work is evaluated and subsequently affects the final grade.
The list of my courses also included the Polish language. Studying Polish allows you to feel more comfortable outside the university. Just a month of language learning allows you to ask simple questions on the streets and at the shops of the city. I was also pleasantly surprised by the level of knowledge of English specifically by citizens of Poland. In many cafes and bank branches, it was possible to communicate with staff in English without any problem.
Erasmus+ program is a huge life experience. It is an opportunity of unlimited communication with students from abroad, a chance to visit different countries, it is an opportunity to improve the knowledge of foreign languages and cultures, so it can be an important point of your portfolio.