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Practical Information for Exchange Students and Free Movers

Passport, Invitation, Visa
Insurance
Registration Before Your Arrival
Registration Upon Your Arrival
Arrival: Buddy System
Introduction Week
Accommodation

Passport, Invitation, Visa

Most foreign citizens need a visa to enter and exit Russia. A visa is a slip of paper/a sticker that contains information about you and your stay in Russia such as your name(s), birth date, passport number, duration of your stay, and has the name of the organization that has applied for the visa for you.

You cannot get a visa without a passport, if you do not have a passport get one as soon as possible.

  • Make sure that your passport is valid until June 2010 for the fall 2009 or until January 2011 for the spring 2010.

You cannot get a visa without an invitation from the GSOM, SPbSU.

  • According to the RF legislation, a GSOM, SPbSU invitation requires a single entry, 90 days Russian visa. When you are in St.Petersburg you will be "registered" for the whole semester and will get multiple visa.

To find the nearest Russian embassy or consulate, please, visit: http://www.russianembassy.net/

For more information on Russian visa requirements, please, visit: http://www.visatorussia.com/

Insurance

Students are required to have health insurance. Health insurance may be purchased in Russia for a nominal fee (about 0.50 EURO per day), however it is recommended that students purchase their own private insurance before leaving home country and indeed many Russian Embassies/Consulates require proof of health insurance before they will issue students a visa.
Be sure to keep you medical bills so your insurer could reimburse you later. If anything is stolen from you (including cash), immediately report the case to the police. Otherwise, you will not be able to make the insurance claim.
The GSOM or the SPbSU cannot reimburse you for any such accident in case it occurs.

Registration Before Your Arrival 

All incoming exchange students have to fill in the GSOM on-line Application Form which must be sent to us with all enclosures no later than May 1, 2010 (for Fall 2010 Semester)  or November 15, 2010 (for Spring 2011 Semester). However, the Application Form can be filled in only after you're nominated by your home university.
 

Encloses:

  • Copy of your previous diploma or official transcript of current records
  • Curriculum Vitae (Resume)
  • 2 Recommendations (from Home Institution professors)
  • Proof of your proficiency in English (Institutional TOEFL certificates or any other confirmation)
  • Copy of your passport
  • Health insurance policy (a copy)

Registration Upon Your Arrival

You and your visa must be registered within 3 working days upon your arrival.

To register, you must submit to the GSOM International Office the following:
 

  • Registration forms (will be given to you upon your arrival)
  • Passport with a visa and a stamped migration card
  • 8 black and white, mate photos (can be taken upon your arrival to St.Petersburg)
  • Health insurance policy (a copy)

 

While crossing the Russian border, please, do not forget to fill in a migration card and receive a STAMP on it (you should receive it from a passport control policeman at the boarder). According to the Russian legislation, a non-Russian citizen cannot be registered without A STAMPED MIGRATION CARD received at the border.

At the International Office you will get a temporary certificate ("SPRAVKA") that will be valid while your passport is taken for the visa extension procedure. The certificate says that you are a student at the GSOM, SPbSU and your passport has been taken for registration. Mind that the process of issuing of a multiple visa might take up to a month and plan your stay accordingly.

Arrival: Buddy System

We have a “Buddy System” at the GSOM so that each of you will be accompanied by a Russian student - your “buddy” – who will help you to settle more easily into your new environment. The buddy will help you both before and upon you arrival. Your buddy will also meet you at the SPb railway station or the SPb airport when you arrive and bring you to the Dormitory.
Your Buddy will be in contact with you during your first steps in Russia and will provide you with basic orientation in the city and at the school. He or she will probably become your first Russian friend, with whom you can spend a lot of fun time together.
“Buddies” are the GSOM students who have volunteered to help one or more of our international students. They will make every effort to help you but, please, respect their privacy and remember that they can’t only spend all their time with you.
 
You should inform the International Office staff about your travel arrangements (date, time, flight/train number) as soon as possible. Consequently, if we do not receive any information from you about your travel arrangements in time, there will be no one to meet you at the train station or airport.
In that case you will have to figure it out on your own: take a taxi or use public transport to get to the Dormitory.
How to get to the Dormitory from…
  • The “PULKOVO-2” International airport:
By Bus. Bus no.13 leaves for St. Petersburg from the front of the central office building at PULKOVO 2. There are two stops. Buses leaving from the stop nearest Arrivals will take passengers to the MOSKOVSKAYA Metro Station (in 30-40 mins). Your can also take a shuttle minibus (MARSHRUTNOYE TAXI) marked 'T-39' that goes from Pulkovo 1, via Pulkovo 2, to Moskovskaya Metro Station and then to the centre of St. Petersburg. After you get to the Moskovskaya Metro Station, go underground and move to the VASILEOSTROVSKAYA Metro Station and there, finally, you’ll have to take one more minibus (MARSHRUTNOYE TAXI) marked ‘K-362’ (the bus stop is located on the 9th line of the Vasilyevskiy Island) and go till Shevchenko street. There you will find your dormitory.
By Taxi. A taxi from the airport costs about $25-$40 US, depending on the time of the day and your ability to negotiate. You can save money if you take a bus or shuttle no. 39 or no.13 to Moskovskaya metro, and then take a taxi to the dormitory from there.
  • The FINLAND railway station (Finlandsky Vokzal):
The station is located in the center, near the PLOSCHAD’ LENINA metro station, and is easy to access. Never take a taxi from the railway stations as you will most likely be overcharged 2-3 times. It makes more sense to order a taxi beforehand or to walk 5 minutes from the station and wave down a car.

Map

1 - St.Petersburg State University
(Universitetskaya Emb., 7)
2 - Graduate School of Management (Graduate programs building)
(Volkhovsky Pereulok, 3)
3 - Graduate School of Management (Bachelor program building)
(Dekabristov Pereulok, 16)
4 - Student's dormitory
(Shevchenko St., 21)
5- Student's dormitory
(Korablestroiteley St., 20)
enlarge

Introduction Week for International students

Every semester begins with an Introduction Week (attendance is not obligatory, but highly recommended). The first week in a new country is always difficult. In order to help to make your transition to St.Petersburg a smooth one, we have arranged an Introduction Week, including various events arranged for you by the GSOM International Office and by a group of the GSOM, SPbSU students. Introduction Week is meant to give you a "soft landing" in St.Petersburg, by introducing you to the Russians, the city, and other exchange students.

Accommodation

Student's Residence

The Graduate School of Management does not have a campus as such. The Russian students either live at apartments (if they are from St.Petersburg or rent them) or in the dormitory. Most of the foreign students from several other faculties are also located here. An accommodation in a double room in SPbSU dormitory is guaranteed for every incoming exchange student.
If you need any help in finding accommodation for the semester, please indicate it in the Application Form.
There is a big dormitory situated at the Vasilyevskiy Island, about 10 minutes away by bus from Vasileostrovskaya metro station and 15 minutes away by bus from the GSOM. The dormitory is located close to the shore of the Gulf of Finland, within close proximity to the major city attractions such as the Hermitage, the Peter and Paul’s Fortress, the Mariinsky Theatre, etc. The distance to the Pulkovo International Airport is 25 km; to Moskovsky Railroad Station - 10 km; to the historic center of the city - 7 km; to the Sea Passenger Terminal - 3 km; and to the nearest subway station Vasileostrovskaya - 2 km. The dormitory comprises a caf? and some mini-shops. A drugstore, a hairdresser's and a sporting hall are situated nearby. There is a shop next door, which sells both food and domestic equipment, a good Russian supermarket across the road and a pizza restaurant nearby.
 

The cost of a place in a double room is 5400 RUR (appr. EURO 125) per month. Crockery, cutlery and pans are provided. Access to each corridor is via a locked door, each flat having its own Intercom system. The dormitory is of a fair standard, and the staff is usually willing to help you if there are any problems with the rooms.

You can also rent a private flat via The St.Petersburg Times newspaper or Real estate agencies on your own but the rent price might be much higher. Please note that the use of telephone is usually not included when you rent a private apartment. You have to pay for the telephone on a monthly basis. However, all private landlords have agreed to accept important calls from your family, school, etc., and they have a system whereby you can pay for each call you make according to a meter connected to their telephone.

Once you have accepted the accommodation offered, you are responsible for paying rent for the rest of the period of your stay in St. Petersburg.If you want to move you must give one month's notice (i.e. at least one month before the planned move and always at the end of the month). It is important that this is done in writing.
 

Make sure, when you move in, that you are informed about the term of notice before you sign the tenancy agreement.

 

Two Dutch impressions (GSOM Exchange students)
The dorm where you will live is situated at the Vasilevsky Island . With a mini-bus (marschrutka) you are within about 15 minutes at the School of Management and you can take the metro one stop to visit the mainland where the main street of St. Petersburg is; ‘Nevski Prospekt'.
Our dorm is just renovated and everything looks (and is) new and clean. A room where you sleep is about 15 m 2 and there is a kitchen with a sink, 2 electric plates and a refrigerator. The bathroom has a sink, a toilet and a shower (see pictures).
Your sheets are changed regularly and they also clean your room (although we haven't found the regularity in that yet). There are no supplies accepted for two glasses, so buying it from the previous students or a visit to IKEA might be a wise idea. Other facilities you can use in the dorm are: a cafe, laundry and an Internet room. It is also possible to get Internet in your room, which costs about 20 Euro per month.
There are always guards at the entrance of the dorm so you don't have to be afraid of scary events. The only thing you might get scared of are your neighbours having a party again. This is one of the reasons living in the dorm is very nice. There is always something going on and you can meet a lot of Russian and international students.
Kind regards,
Margreet Goelema
Barbara van Baaren
The Netherlands