The number of foreign students who purposefully come to Yakutsk to get higher education is increasing from year to year. And even if the first place here belongs to the Chinese, which is typical for the entire Far East, young people from other Asian and European countries also come here to study. The guys from Latin America are also coming to us, with one of them the correspondent of "Yakutia" newspaper spoke.
So, meet Sebastian Pineda Gallego, a student of the NEFU Institute of Medicine. He is from Colombia and he is 20 years old. Since childhood, he dreamed of becoming a neurosurgeon.
- Sebastian, tell us why you decided to get a higher education in Yakutia, and how did your family perceive your choice?
- All my life I dreamed about the profession of a doctor and planned after graduation from school to go to study exactly as a surgeon. But the circumstances were such that in Colombia I could only enroll in an engineer. But I never forgot about my dream. I studied the Internet for a long time, looking for all the necessary information. This went on for some time, until I came across the site of NEFU. I got acquainted with its content in detail and saw that in Yakutia there is an opportunity (and all conditions have been created) for foreign students wishing to study at the Institute of Medicine. Of course, I immediately told my parents about my decision to go to study in Russia. They were very understanding and fully supported me.
- Did you make friends? How are you spending your time?
- Of course, first of all (I think any foreigner who first visited Yakutia in winter would say this) I was impressed by your climate, the winter is very cold. But most of all I was impressed by the people who live here, they are very kind, polite and positive. And I have something to compare with, before coming to Yakutsk I lived a little in Khabarovsk and now I can say that I like it here more than there. When I arrived in Yakutsk in September, winter was already beginning. My friends and I went to cafes, restaurants, walked around the city center. I liked all this very much, although now such walks are rare. It is simply difficult to combine with study, since it takes a very long time. One of them is my roommate, also a foreigner, and the other is from Yakutia. The positive side is that we speak English, and, despite the fact that everyone is from different countries, we understand each other perfectly. I’ll tell you, maybe, not a very funny story, but rather humorous. When I just arrived in Yakutsk, they settled me in a hostel, wh ere I lived in a room alone for some time. One day I woke up to the fact that someone was walking around the room. I lay there for a long time, trying to figure out who it could be. It turned out that this is my new neighbor (I honestly thought that the whole room was for me alone), a very good person. We became friends with him.
- Do you have any hobbies, interests?
- Like many people, I love watching movies and TV shows. I also play the flute. I enjoy reading books. The last one to read was Victor Hugo's Les Miserables.
- After graduation, will you return to Colombia or will you stay in Yakutia?
- I would like to work in my country, but if I am offered and the opportunity arises to stay in Yakutia and build my career here, I will be very happy about that. But I’m not looking that far yet.
- Our interview with you is timed to Tatiana's Day, what would you like to wish the students on the eve of this holiday?
- Of course, I would like to wish all students in Yakutia and Russia to be devoted to their goal, to develop in science and be purposeful. I am a living example of the fact that everything in this life is possible, and now I live in Yakutsk and study at the Institute of Medicine.
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