First in Russia: International Volunteer Center to be set up at LUNN

On January 13, LUNN hosted a working meeting on promotion of international volunteering in the Nizhny Novgorod Region. The meeting was attended by the representatives of the Department of International Relations of the Government of the Nizhny Novgorod Region, the Linguistics University of Nizhny Novgorod (LUNN), and the Nizhny Novgorod regional branch of the Russian social movement "Victory Volunteers". The meeting resulted in an agreement to establish the first International Volunteer Center in Russia based at LUNN.

LUNN has solid experience in international volunteering. The LUNN Foreign Volunteers Club has been successfully operating for several years, helping to arrange numerous international events, including the 2018 FIFA World Cup.

"I would like to point out that the Linguistics University of Nizhny Novgorod creates a unique environment for foreign students, an atmosphere of international cooperation," says Kakadzhan Muratgeldiev, head of the LUNN Foreign Volunteers Club. "Principal and additional educational programs offer students an opportunity to study 16 foreign languages. No other university in the Volga Federal District can boast such a variety. Students and postgraduates from 130 countries study at LUNN. Foreign students not only get academic training but are also integrated into Russian culture with the assistance of teachers and senior students, master students and postgraduates. The LUNN Institute of the Russian Language offers a program that is rather rare for most universities: "Teaching Russian as a Foreign Language". Students that opt for this program have teaching practice on campus as they teach Russian to foreign students. When a teacher and a student are practically the same age, with common interests, hobbies, and problems, learning is easy and fun!"

The goal of the LUNN-based International Volunteer Center will be to support international events in Nizhny Novgorod and the Nizhny Novgorod Region and to organize volunteer events in other countries.