VolSU students shine at the Freshmen Welcoming Gala in China

The autumn semester of the 2026/2027 academic year for 14 students of Volgograd State University (VolSU) began with a vibrant event. Our students traveled to Zaozhuang University (China) to study Chinese as part of an exchange program and have already taken the big stage. On October 15, they took part in the 2026 Freshmen Welcoming Gala. This year, the celebration was particularly large-scale, as Zaozhuang University celebrated its 55th anniversary.

The students prepared a dance and song performance. Music that united Russian and Chinese cultures filled the stage, and the audience greeted the students' performance with applause. For our students, this was not just a creative debut, but an important step in their language practice: the performance helped them get acquainted with the university more quickly, make new friends, and feel like part of a large international family.

The trip was organized by the International Office of VolSU: they helped to organize the exchange studies, handled the paperwork, and established interaction with the partner university. The department continues to develop international programs so that more students can gain experience of studying and living in another country.

The International Office of VolSU notes that such moments are the best way to understand a country and its people. We are glad that our students are not only studying on an exchange basis but also becoming ambassadors of VolSU and Russian culture abroad!

We thank all the students who took part: Sofya Saykina, Arina Stafeeva, Polina Karyakina, Angelina Karyakina, Maria Neklyudova, Ulyana Konovalova (Institute of Philology and Intercultural Communication); Yaroslava Ganigina, Anastasia Kravtsova, Maria Komarova, Yulia Arteeva, Angelina Pronina (Institute of History, International Relations and Modern Technologies); Alen Erlikh (Institute of Physics and Technology); Daria Puzyreva (Institute of Natural Sciences); Svetlana Stepanova (Institute of Economics and Management).

We would like to express our special gratitude to Olga Valerievna Korobova, Candidate of Philological Sciences, Associate Professor of the Department of Foreign Language Communication and Language Education, who is currently at Zaozhuang University as part of the "Visiting Professor" program, for her support and assistance in organizing our students' performance. Her participation and mentorship helped the students feel more confident on a foreign stage and represent VolSU with dignity.

Now, the students have a whole semester of studying Chinese language and culture ahead of them. We are proud of our students and wish them a bright semester, new discoveries, and excellent Chinese!