Russia medical, engineering varsities beckon Indian students

Russia medical, engineering varsities beckon Indian students -Caste & creed no consideration; just be there first.

Kolkata, June 23: One of the best infrastructure and research facilities in the world, low course fees and friendly people. The Russian alternative is proving to be alluring for Indian students, what with the reservation dragon rearing its head again and course fees for medical and engineering courses moving up for those lucky to get past the reservations. The International Foundation for Studies & Culture (IFSC), affiliated to the cultural department of the embassy of the Russian Federation in India, is the premier organisation for routing students to Russia for higher studies. Last year, it attracted nearly 1,600 Indian students wanting to study engineering and medicine, with over 175 from the eastern region alone. This year they hope to top the number.

Here to address students, Ashish Sonde, director of the IFSC, says: “The degree provided by the Russian universities is recognised by the Medical Council of India and is therefore a safe bet for students.” A medical course at the graduate level spans six years and at the post graduate level, two years. The fees are very low compared to levels in other universities in the US, UK and Australia. “The Government of Russia subsidises education heavily, which is why it is pocket-friendly for most middle class households of India,” Sonde said. The IFSC has tied up with Oriental Bank of Commerce and Saraswat bank to fund students going to Russia on a priority basis. Competition in South East Asia for the 450 - 500 available seats is high but it is on a first-come first-served basis. Aspiring students do not have to clear any language test such as TOEFL that is imposed by US universities. All they need is a 50% aggregate in physics, chemistry and biology.

The IFSC recommends three universities for medicine - the Ryazan State IP University, Peoples Friendship University and St Petersburg State Paediatric Medical Academy. Ryazan is the only institute offering PG courses in the English medium. Sonde clarified that the Russian language is a part of the curriculum and therefore does not prove to be a problem for the students. The IFSC takes complete care of the students while they are in Russia and even guides them in the admission procedure and emigration matters - arranges their visa and foreign currency.

“From Mumbai airport to the Moscow airport and beyond, we are with the students helping them settle in,” Sonde said. Vorontsova Evgenia and Aliaskhab Nutsalov from the Russian Asian Centre for University Services, which promotes Russian education and helps international students in Russia, were also present at the seminar. They told Newsline that they were looking to increase the number of students from India, a country with whom cultural ties date back to the erstwhile USSR. Evgenia debunked talk about Russia being too cold or that Indian food is not available in Russia. She said the Russian public was enthusiastic to meet more students from India, the land of their favourite cinema stars such as Salman Khan. For Indian medical students, the preferred fields in Russian universities are medicine, orthopaedics, oncology, general surgery and paediatrics. For budding engineers, aeronautics and robotics are the big draws.