Go for a diploma and �stay behind the hill�

Baku/10.02.18/Turan: On February 10, an international educational exhibition took place in the JW Marriott Absheron Hotel in Baku. The organizer was AzeriStudent. About 50 higher educational establishments of Europe, the USA, Canada and even Australia took part in the event. Among them, Coventry university, University of Leicester (UK), Epoka (Albania), UNI Mannheim, Munich Technical University (Germany), University of Vermont, Oglethorpe university (USA), Royal Roads University, St Giles Junior summer Vancouver UBC (Canada).

The tight schedule of the exhibition provided for blitz presentations on the topics of new standards of training, labor market conditions, scholarship programs, internships abroad, career opportunities for young people. Background information on more than 200 undergraduate and graduate programs, PhD, MBA from universities, as well as on boarding schools and language courses, made it possible to orientate in the modern market of educational services, to make a choice in favor of one or another university program. In addition, information about not only the cost and conditions of training, but also the student campus - library, hostel, sports and entertainment centers of universities - was placed on the stands of universities.

The head of AzeriStudent company, Rasim Allahverdiyev, told Turan, studying abroad in recent years has become prestigious for our youth. Thousands of Azerbaijanis seek to enter foreign universities in order to obtain a quality education, to have the best professional prospects. Today the most popular are economic, technical, medical specialties, because these areas are developing dynamically. Therefore, young people are more interested in these areas.

"Getting higher education abroad is not only an interesting experience, but also an investment in your future and the future of your children. The decision to leave for study abroad for a long time is a serious step that requires careful preparation and search for answers to numerous questions," Allahverdiyev stressed.

Studies have shown that in recent years a new trend has emerged on the domestic labor market - the demand for highly qualified specialists with diplomas of overseas universities has increased. Employers give preference to such applicants. This factor influenced the choice of students not only specialties, but also places of study. It is noteworthy that, against the backdrop of the economic crisis in Azerbaijan, interest in studying abroad stays at a stable level. To this, the state program on the training of Azerbaijani youth has already been completed. In this situation, exhibitions play the role of assistant and consultant.

Indeed, in two large halls of the hotel, where a wide exhibition, it was quite crowded. Students from the capital's universities, high school students got acquainted with printed information materials, and also communicated directly with representatives of world universities, asking them not only about the complexities of the training program, but even about the possibilities to stay in that country for the purpose of employment and living.

As it turned out, such a plan is quite real and a living example was Anar Seifaddin, who arrived in Baku from London, who stayed there after graduating from the University of Epoka in Albania. Today he teaches at the same higher school on marketing, has his own small business in Tirana, established business relations with colleagues in the UK.

According to Seifaddin, Azerbaijani students are most often chosen by universities in France, Great Britain, Turkey, Germany, Czech Republic, Canada and the United States. At the same time, they pay attention to both the cost of study and the prospect of further employment in Europe. For example, the advantage of higher education in the same Albania and Hungary - low prices compared with the more developed European countries. Educational programs here are much cheaper (5-7 thousand dollars per year) than in Sweden, Holland, Austria. Rental housing, transportation and food are also relatively cheaper, especially given the student discounts. The same favorable situation from the financial point of view is for students in the Czech Republic, Poland, Bulgaria, Latvia and Lithuania.

But there is a significant point - after graduating from the university in the UK, almost all Azerbaijani graduates (from other CIS countries too - the author) return home, because British laws prohibit local employers from giving jobs to migrants, there are certain restrictions. In Germany and the United States there are no such strict rules. Therefore, as Seyfaddin notes, young Azerbaijanis most often choose to study these countries for a specific purpose.

More than 300 students and schoolchildren of Baku attended the international educational exhibition.