First-year students talk about winning the competitive selection for the Combined Master's-PhD track 2023

Today, first-year students of our program - Maria Antasheva and Nikita Terekhin - agreed to devote time and share their experience in the selection for the Combined Master's-PhD track

- Good afternoon, glad to meet you! First of all, tell us which track of our master’s program you chose – “Politics, Society, International Relations in Asia” or “Economy and Business in Asia”?

NT: Good afternoon! Maria and I both chose international relations.

- Which universities did you graduate from and in which country do you specialize?

MA: Hello! I graduated from an educational programme in Asian Studies of the Higher School of Economics in 2023. I specialize in China and India using quantitative methods of big data analysis.

NT: I ​​previously studied at St. Petersburg State University at the Faculty of Oriental Studies (Department of Korean Studies) and, accordingly, also graduated in 2023. Specialization - Korea, namely the history of Korea.

- What prompted you to choose the Combined Master's-PhD track?

MA: I have always been interested in pursuing scientific activities and, in particular, a career in science. To successfully start a career in science, I see my goal in defending thesis. In addition, my research topics are more or less defined. Therefore, the Combined track for me is a successful start to my academic career.

NT: I agree with Maria, we have similar goals and motivation.

- How long did it take you to prepare for the selection?

MA: The selection is carried out in 2 steps: portfolio preparation and interview. In your portfolio you need to include not only your achievements and resume, but also the most important thing: the outline of your future thesis. It was this point that took me personally a lot of time to prepare. It requires careful study, since the research plan is drawn up for master’s and PhD studies, i.e., for several years ahead.

NT: Somewhere in October, an interview took place at which we defended our prospectus plans. As for my preparation, it’s hard to say for sure; in fact, the completion bachelor studies and participation in scientific conferences was a part of the preparation. But if we talk specifically about writing all the necessary documents, then it took about a week or a week and a half. The research prospectus plan was especially difficult because, although very general, it was still a plan for a future PhD thesis.

- In September, a meeting was held with scientific supervisors. Nikita, how difficult was it to choose your mentor?

NT: Despite the fact that I came from another university, and from the university of the northern capital, choosing a mentor was not a difficult task. Olga Vilenovna Volosyuk helped me by recommending Pavel Semenovich Leshakov, and I am very grateful to her.

- Maria, have you stayed with your supervisor from your bachelor’s program?

MA: I was very lucky with my supervisor, who means for me more than just a supervisor; she is also my teacher and mentor. I work with O.L. Solodkova from the 2nd year of my bachelor’s – and continued within the framework of the Combined Track.

- Nikita, our program is focused on the studies of modern Asia, please tell us why you decided to leave the classical East for modernity?

NT: Actually, I have never been directly involved in the classical East. My area of ​​research has always been colonial Korea, i.e., XX century. Namely, I concentrated on the Korean peasantry, their movement and the socio-economic transformations that took place during the years of Japanese colonial rule. In other words, in one form or another, my area of ​​scientific interest was still modernity, since modernity can be understood both broadly and narrowly. However, as I studied the period of Japanese colonial rule, I realized that I could not limit myself to it. That is why I decided to focus my attention on the history of Korea after 1945 as well.

- Well, it seems to me that we had a meaningful conversation. Thank you very much for your time and your answers, I wish you to remain enthusiastic in your research!