From 1 to 26 April, SPbGASU students visited the People's Republic of China as part of the academic mobility program. They completed an internship at Henan University of Urban Construction (hereinafter referred to as HUUC), where they were able to immerse themselves in Chinese culture, visit laboratories and classes. In addition, our students learned more about architecture, construction and road construction in China, which is relevant to their future professions. Upon their return, the students met with the management team represented by the First Vice-Rector Svetlana Golovina and the Vice-Rector for Educational Activity Sergey Mikhailov. The meeting was also attended by deans of faculties and head of the International Relations Division Shuainat Akhmadulaeva.

The trip of SPbGASU students to HUUC was not the first this academic year. Students from our university have already visited China in September, but with a different group. The leader of the group was Roman Gurdin, a PhD student of the Department of Water Use and Environment, Faculty of Environmental Engineering and Municipal Services. On the spring trip, students visited a building testing laboratory, a TIM laboratory, a water supply laboratory, and a mock-up workshop. They listened to lectures on their specialty and took courses on Chinese culture, including language learning. According to the students, this helped them better adapt to the new environment.

“We visited various laboratories and workshops. We were shown how they are working on TIM technologies in China. In addition, we got acquainted with the peculiarities of the educational process in Chinese universities,” Zlata Zolotykh, a third-year student at the Faculty of Civil Engineering, shared her impressions of the trip.

In addition to Henan University of Urban Construction, students visited Pingdingshan and Zhengzhou universities. In the latter they were told about work on unmanned vehicles.

In the city of Zhengzhou, students climbed the Zhongyuan Tower, 388 m high. Valery Yuroshev, a second-year student at the Faculty of Automobile and Road Building, shared his impressions: “When we were on the tower, I took a photo of the city. I tried to capture the junctions of the road network as clearly and in detail as possible. Speaking of roads, I noticed that the Chinese are using intelligent transport systems. At busy intersections you can see vehicle detectors, motion sensors, and video cameras recording violations. This helps you monitor the traffic situation. I found all this interesting.”.

Students also visited temples and monasteries, climbed mountains, and participated in a traditional national holiday, where they tried on national costumes. The guys had only positive emotions. They thanked SPbGASU and HUUC for the opportunity to gain cultural and professional experience. Upon completion of training, students received certificates.