Maxim Grishin

Maxim is 21, he was a Yessenov University student (Aktau), his speciality is Information Systems. The guy participated in the Yessenov Foundation six-month program to improve his English and won a one-month course at the EC Bristol School.

How did you get into the program?
It all started with the fact that the Shakhmardan Yessenov Science and Education Foundation announced the start of its English language courses. Since I need English for my future activities (I do computer programming) and self-study and filling in the gaps in my knowledge would take a long time, I decided to apply.

How was the training?
Our group classes took place five times a week over six months. We had Daniel Maurice and Vernon Lehmann as the teachers. We studied the intricacies of grammar, read and discussed different texts, studied business English and put into practice the learnt material; role-playing and other games were widely used… to sum it up, the class components were very varied. I found the teaching methodology very interesting.

How did you win the trip to a UK’s language school?
Based on the results of the six-month program the Foundation conducted contest among the participants, the prize being a trip to a language school in the UK. There were several stages of the selection process, writing an essay on a specific topic, making a presentation in front of an audience and the test results were considered too.  I scored the highest and was the winner.

Why do you need English? What helped me participate in the program and courses in the UK?
English is the required tool for efficient communication with foreign colleagues and customers. It is also needed if you want to read the technical and scientific literature that is not available in Russian. By participating in the Foundation’s program, I was able to fill in the gaps I had in English and to structure the existing scattered pieces of knowledge. Thanks to these courses now I am a more confident user of English. I improved my speaking skills and learned a lot of new phrases/expressions.