Ich habe das geschafft! HSE GSB student Egor Kazankin on life, studies, and the challenges of mobility in Bavaria.
A third-year student of the "Business Administration" programme, Egor Kazankin, shares his experience of academic mobility at the Würzburg-Schweinfurt University of Applied Sciences, Germany.
From September 2024 to March 2025, I participated in an academic mobility programme with the Würzburg-Schweinfurt University of Applied Sciences in Bavaria, Germany.
I chose this university and country for mobility because I wanted to test myself and see if I could integrate into a different society and become a full-fledged member of it. And I did it! Moreover, I had been learning German for two years, and I desperately needed real-life practice with native speakers.
The first, longest, and probably the most challenging step was collecting documents for a visa, opening a blocked account, and transferring money to it. During this period, I had moments when I seriously questioned whether I should go through with it or just give up. After all, transferring money abroad from Russia these days is no easy task. But, as they say in German, "Ich habe das geschafft!", which means "I managed to do it." The biggest lesson I learned from this experience was to follow checklists and clarify any details that seemed unclear—this is the key to success. And in my case, it worked: my visa was approved in just a week.
Arriving in Germany was stressful and nerve-wracking, as this was my first time being so far from home. But I knew this was a step I had to take. Fortunately, Würzburg matched my personality perfectly. It’s a cozy, peaceful, and charming city. Even now, after traveling to many German cities, I still consider it one of the best.
Some people say there’s nothing to do in Würzburg, but I completely disagree. If you seek, you will find! We were warmly welcomed by the WIN (Würzburg International Network) community, which hosted multiple networking events at the start and throughout the semester. There was also the Espresso Running Club, which organized Sunday morning runs, and many other initiatives. But for me, the most important aspect was interacting with Germans. So, I spent a lot of time exploring the city, meeting people, and learning about their culture.
I also want to debunk a few common myths about Germans. They are not cold and distant—they just take time to open up, and if you find the right approach, you can connect with them. Another thing that surprised me was that German bureaucracy is not as terrifying as people claim. As long as you do everything on time and check your mailbox at least every two days (yes, in Germany, a lot of communication still happens via letters!), everything will be fine.
Personally, I preferred to visit the insurance office and the bank in person because emails can take a week or even longer to get a response. Fun fact: the average response time from Germans, even in personal communication, is around 48 hours! Still, I found the whole system logical and structured. It’s just different from what I was used to.
Studying at the university wasn’t difficult, so I focused my free time on building relationships with German students. At first, it was challenging—locals already had their established friend groups and weren’t particularly eager to let someone new in. But my optimism, persistence, and German language skills helped me break through. As a result, I integrated into a German friend group, and we still stay in touch.
Now, about the academic experience. Some aspects were different from my expectations. Classes lasted three hours because there was no clear separation between lectures and seminars—they were merged into a single session. Luckily, professors gave us breaks to recover. However, sometimes lecturers canceled classes minutes before they were supposed to start, and those lessons were never rescheduled. Instead, students had to study the material on their own.
But not everything was negative. I absolutely loved the Intercultural Management and Communications module, where we honed our international soft skills. I took away a lot of valuable knowledge for both my personal development and future career.
To anyone considering academic mobility, my advice is this: challenge yourself, explore new opportunities, connect with as many people as possible, and most importantly—never give up!
