Hey Collins, nice to meet you.
Hi, nice to meet you, too.
Please introduce yourself to our readers.
My name is Collins Awusa and I am from Nigeria. Currently, I'm a first-year Bachelor’s student in mechatronics and robotics.
Did you do the preparatory course earlier?
Yes, I did a preparatory course last year at Kursk State University. I was supposed to study at Belgorod Technological University after finishing my preparatory course, but due to some reason I had to transfer to ITMO.
Why did you decide to study in Russia?
Actually, Russia chose me. In my country, we have a government scholarship program. I applied and fortunately I was chosen for a fully funded program in Russia.
How has your experience in Russia been so far?
It has not been easy, I must say. However, the overall experience here has been great. Last semester, I was having so much trouble understanding the lectures. Some teachers were very easy to understand, but others were not comprehensible at all. So, some classes ended up being only 50% useful. We were left with the only option to go back home and figure out the rest ourselves. So that was a difficult experience.
Collins says his experience in Russia has been sweet and sour so far. Photo courtesy of the subject
You were chosen as a participant of the World Youth Festival. How did you get to know about it?
I got to know about the fest on VK. Some of my friends were posting and talking about it. So I thought – let me try it out as well (the participants of the World Youth Festival were selected after a highly competitive screening that involved several criteria – Ed.). It's a really great opportunity to meet and interact with young people from across the globe.
How does it feel to be a part of the delegation of St. Petersburg?
I feel so good. And really, I wasn't expecting to be selected. It's so surprising! Well, I'm so excited for this experience.
What are you most looking forward to at the festival?
From the things I've seen already, I think I'm really looking forward to meeting people from different countries and having some discussions with them. I also want to participate in most of the events that will be featured in the festival.
Will there be a delegation from Nigeria, too?
Yeah, sure. I have some of my friends from Nigeria who are also participating in the festival as a part of the Nigerian delegation.
What is the significance of such festivals to you?
I think events like this one are very important because they help promote unity and world peace. You see here, nobody at this event is bothered about political differences. I think these kinds of festivals can have a long-lasting impact, especially on the youth.
“Meeting new people is my main goal at the World Youth Festival,” says Collins. Photo courtesy of the subject
And finally, what would you like to advise to future students from Nigeria who want to study in Russia?
The only thing that I would say is that it’s going to be difficult, but at the same time it’s going to be a very important and useful experience. Start learning Russian while you are still in Nigeria, as it is going to be super helpful when you arrive in this country.
