Erasmus Mundus scholarship will help me get a job at an international company and work around the world

In the 11th grade I was lucky enough to take part in a business project competition in English, where the prize was a trip to the UK for a year. I received this prize and studied in the preparatory program for my bachelor's degree (International Foundation, Business and Management at Newcastle University). Also I got the Bachelor's degree but further education was expensive. So I went back to Moscow and I entered the Russian Presidential Academy of National Economy and Public Administration at the Faculty of International Economic Relations, which I graduated with honours.

After my first education, I wanted to work for a year, look around, study some short courses, and then apply for masters. But there was a pandemic, so I worked for two years before I decided to go abroad. I combined my studies with work from the beginning in order to pay for my education in Moscow. And now I just want to study without working. Therefore, I had a goal: if I go abroad, then only on a full scholarship that pays for the cost of education and living. I am ready to earn extra money, but not to combine work and study, and I don’t want my earnings to depend on whether I study or not.

I initially considered Erasmus Mundus and the IMCEERES program for admission, planning to tie my life to the field of international relations. I studied the admission to this program and began to gradually delve into the subject. When Maria told me about the other programs, I was so excited to join GLOCAL and study in Barcelona, Scotland and Chile. I was just learning Spanish with a tutor.

However, I did not pass, but I got into the program which I initially desired. Now I am studying in Estonia, next Scotland. The last year I will choose between Russia, Georgia, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Kazakhstan. I will probably choose Kazakhstan to learn about Central Asia, which I studied at the undergraduate level.

I just saw an ad on instagram. I thought it was better to pay for the service and be sure that all the documents were prepared correctly, than to lose a year because of an unfortunate mistake. I know there is no guarantee of getting a scholarship, but there is a guarantee of getting the paperwork right.

It took me a long time to decide to apply, although I had been thinking about it for a long time. The decision was spontaneous, I started to prepare in the last week before New Year's holidays, and I was collecting letters of recommendation on December 30.

From the moment we started working with the mentor to receiving the invitation, it was relatively little time. I got the invitation in the mail as early as mid-March. The preparation was extremely fast and took a couple of weeks. Maria was in touch with me 24/7. Since I was working, I did most of my paperwork at night and didn't expect her to respond to me. And she responded even at night. I am very grateful to her!

One program was chosen by me initially, the supervisor helped me choose the other two. Maria was a good help, gave me a framework of motivation letter, corrected and double-checked it several times. I received letters of recommendation from my employer and teacher. The difficulty was catching them on the spot in the pre-holiday rush. The professor from the university wrote the recommendation himself in Russian. We translated it into English and we tweaked it a bit for each major.

I had two C's in my freshman year from the same teacher. In my fourth year, I retook them with an A to get my red diploma.

I think my work experience played a significant role in my admission. I worked at the same company for 4 years and was promoted there twice. The experience is not exactly relavant, I was doing tech support, but I worked for a company helping foreigners in Moscow, including working with representatives of international organizations.

IELTS scores don't seem to be the main thing. I took the test with a 7.0. The girl who took IELTS with me got a score of 8.0 but did not get in for Erasmus Mundus. She prepared the documents herself, the only help she took - to write a motivation letter for 15 000 rubles. I advised her to seek help from specialists, but she decided her own way.

I was very happy when I got the invitation. I was waiting for it, and even before that I told everyone that I was moving away. There's a saying, "Don't say 'goop' until you've jumped over," but that wasn't me. It was like I had a feeling that everything was going to be okay.

The next country of study is Scotland and there is an opportunity to extend the visa for two years without an invitation to work and other justifications. This opens up the prospect of finding a job and staying in Europe. Although I do not plan to stay in one country, I want to work in different countries, for example, by taking a job in an international company. With a European education it is much easier to find work in international companies, such as the Big 4, that attract me.

I wanted to live alone in a room with a kitchen and a shower in the unit, but there was a long waiting list for such rooms. I was even eager to pay extra for it, but I was told that there was no guarantee that I would wait for my turn before my semester in Estonia was over.

So as not to be left without a roof over my head, I just chose a room for two. Because of the pandemic, only one person is supposed to live in the room, but when I arrived, it turned out that I had a roommate. I wasn't upset, I have a good roommate.

When I studied in England, the dormitory provided all the necessities of life: dishes, linens, etc., although the rooms and kitchen were smaller. Be prepared to buy all the necessities of life at first. In my dorm, there are no dishes, no microwave, no blankets and pillows by default. But it doesn't bother me, the main thing is that I'm studying!