Education in Russia for Chilean Citizens

For almost 30 years, diplomatic relations between Russia (then the USSR) and Chile were put on ice. Humanitarian, economic, and political cooperation was actually terminated. After such a long break, return to comprehensive bilateral interaction between our countries required major efforts at the highest levels. Today, Chileans rediscover Russia and Russians. Nina Milovidova, Head of the Rossotrudnichestvo Representatitive Office in Chile talks about the role of the Russian House in Santiago in this process.

Modern Chileans know little about education in Russia and about Russia in general. This can be partially explained by geographical distance. However, this factor is not the only one. And here, we should turn to history. During the presidency of Salvador Allende, the USSR sent its eminent teachers and a lot of various books, including study books, to the Chilean-Soviet Institute. People were interested and had a lot of opportunities to find out more about distant and cold “Rusia.” After the coup d'état in 1973, the situation changed. The severance of diplomatic relations between Chile and the USSR suspended humanitarian cooperation between our countries for a long time.

A great many Chileans were forced to leave their home country in that dramatic period. Some of them went to the USSR. They managed to get an education at Soviet universities. Hundreds of Chilean graduates of Soviet universities still communicate with each other. Today, making great awareness-building efforts, telling the younger generation of Chileans about the opportunities to get an education in Russia, we actively involve the community of graduates in this process.

Promotion of education in Russia

Today, free education in Russia is becoming a more and more attractive option for Chileans, especially compared with the tuition fees at local universities. Over the last few years, more than a hundred Chileans have gone to study in Russia within the Russian Government quota.

To promote education in Russia among Chileans, the Russian House in Santiago holds various online and offline events, participates in exhibitions, and informs the interested audience about the enrollment campaign on its social media. The attraction of today’s students who share their observations about our country with their compatriots online and debunk myths is an important part of our activities.

One of the most successful recent events was a “star lesson” with polyglot and famous Russian TV host Dmitry Petrov who familiarized the audience with his secret methodology of learning the Russian language. The meeting was held at one of the largest universities in Chile. This event caused a large wave of enthusiastic publications. The celebrities shared their success and photos on their social media, which helped disseminate as much information about our education and the attractiveness of the Russian language as possible. Now we are waiting for Dmitry Petrov in Chile. We are planning to record 16 lessons in a TV studio and send the videos to the Russian Houses in Latin America.

The Russian House in Santiago successfully cooperates with the state Chilean Agency of International Cooperation for Development (Agencia Chilena de Cooperacion Internacional para el Desarrollo). The agency provides strong support for creating awareness of the opportunities to study in Russia among Chileans.

The Russian Government Scholarship

The Russian Government allocates twenty scholarships (quotas) to Chilean citizens. In recent years, we have seen an increase in the number of applications for these government scholarships. The number of quota places has also increased.

Applicants send their applications online. After their applications are processed, candidates are invited to an interview. The interview is a crucial stage, and we recommend that you prepare for it ahead of time. To prepare for the interview, the best thing is to write a motivation letter in advance. This will help you focus on important aspects such as academic success, personal achievements, give a reason for choosing your major and university, and talk about your plans for the future.

After that, the procedure depends on the field of study chosen by the applicant. For example, those applying for creative fields of study, e.g. musicians, must pass additional exams at the chosen university.

Popular fields of study

Despite a small number of quota places allocated for Chilean citizens, we can see a great deal of variation in the chosen fields of study.

The most popular fields are in line with the general trend – social science and humanities predominate. These are economics and international relations.

IT is certainly the leader among engineering fields of study. Information technology specialists are in high demand in the Chilean job market, like in many other countries. There is a great demand for engineering and medical fields of study.

Here, in Chile, one of the visible footprints of Russian education is music. In Chilean orchestras, you can always find a musician who graduated from a conservatory in Moscow. Also, there is a creative professional among scholarship holders every year.

Career prospects

For most fields of study, Chile requires validation of foreign degrees. However, after undergoing the education recognition procedure, holders of these degrees become top-notch and sought-after specialists here. Education in Russia is still considered among the best in the world. Health professionals and doctors, mining engineers, creative professionals have especially good prospects. The ballet dancers and musicians, who are graduates of our universities, participate in all seasons of the main Municipal Theatre of Santiago, which is a counterpart of Bolshoi Theatre in Moscow. We believe that our education in Latin America has a promising future.

Tip

Learn Russian. Studying within the quota includes a one-year language course, but it is not always enough for the comfortable study of humanities and medical fields. Even a basic level of language will give you an edge at the stage of preparation, help choose a university, and considerably reduce stress and facilitate communication in the first months after your arrival in Russia.