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Historical Silk Roads to Uzbekistan and Paths to Excellence at Karelia UAS, Finland

This is the story of five young courageous Uzbek students who decided to come to Karelia UAS, Finland, to study during the Covid pandemic. Despite difficulties, they finally succeed in adapting to Karelia UAS and to the Finnish society. This article hopefully inspires young people to seek their life excellences in Finland and at Karelia UAS.

Discovered by a Chinese diplomat, the Great Silk Road main routes unite the East and the West, passing through the territory of the present-day Uzbekistan. Uzbekistan was one of the places where the first civilizations emerged and developed (UNESCO 2022).

Although the history of Uzbekistan went by with many ups and downs, Uzbek people stay strong with their national characteristics. They are peace-loving and peace-seeking people in all aspects of life. Worldwide history witnessed how Uzbeks have always tried their best to reach better lives. They are excellence seekers. The history documents thousands of Uzbeks working very hard abroad to earn their livings and send money home to their families. The history also witnesses the high-level entrepreneurial spirits that the Uzbeks have in building their own lives, families, future and nation. The Uzbeks stand out with hard-working, family-oriented and peace-loving personalities.

There are thousands of Uzbek students abroad, and Karelia UAS welcomed five young students from Kokand who flew to Finland in the middle of corona pandemic in 2021. They are the most courageous excellent seekers who believe in their future ahead in Finland and at Karelia UAS.

With help of their mutual trustful, deep and professional partnership, members of international staff at both Karelia UAS and Kokand worked hard to prepare their students for coming to Karelia UAS in spring 2021. The curricula of both institutions were reviewed. Kokand accredits courses offered by Karelia UAS to their students’ curricula. After receiving admission letters from Karelia UAS, students from Kokand applied for their study permits. This shows the determination of these young students. Four Uzbek students received a positive decision from the Finnish Embassy. They immediately packed their suitcases and flew to Finland in the middle of a cold, snowy winter during the Covid pandemic. Their exciting life journeys started…

Similarly, many of us packed our suitcases and went to study abroad when we were young. We stepped out of our comfort zones and started the journey as excellence seekers. We met people from different countries and cultures, and people with different languages and personalities etc. We learned how to survive, adapt to new places and seek for life excellence. In spite of challenges which may hurt us, we recovered and grew even stronger than we had been before. More importantly, we learned to distinguish between good and bad, and definitely we need to be strong heading towards the good and nice paths of lives.

These life journeys help us to form diversified perspectives, mindset, tolerance, and openness towards differences among us.

The same applies to Uzbek students.

Four Uzbek students arrived in Finland in wintertime in the middle of a snowstorm. Karelia UAS assigned some members of their staff to welcome the students and took them to their new home, Karelia UAS. The fifth Uzbek student was also finally granted his permit. Even though he came to Finland almost a month after his peers, he finally made his way to Karelia UAS.

Adaptation at the beginning: difficult but exciting

The beginning period of five Uzbek students at Karelia UAS was full of difficulties.

The first difficulty they faced was the high level of digitalization at Karelia UAS, with advanced levels in research, innovation and development. For example, the President of Karelia UAS uses electronical signature systems and signs his documents when he is on business trips. Karelia UAS students receive their degree certificates online nowadays, and no paper is needed. Karelia UAS systems are all digitalized.

It was a huge jump from their own traditional university environment to the highly digitalized Karelia UAS learning environment. Students are required to have their own laptops and learn how to use Karelia UAS systems, adapt to teachers’ teaching approaches, etc. More importantly, innovative and creative thinking is encouraged among students.

It took the five Uzbek students some time to learn how to use all Karelia UAS systems and join their classes. However, young people learn to adapt quickly. They made it.

The second difficulty the Uzbek students faced was that Finland is a highly-digitalized society where meetings with public organizations like banks, the Digital and Population Data Services Agency, etc. require them to book the meetings online in advance and come to meetings on time. Otabek, one of the students, told us that he was shocked when he discovered that the Finnish banks in Joensuu do not receive customers with no scheduled appointment, and the appointments must be made in advance. On the contrary, banks in Uzbekistan have wider opening hours, and there is no need to make an appointment beforehand.

However, despite the longer process with booking appointments with the bank in Joensuu, all of the students finally got their own appointments and succeeded in opening their Finnish bank accounts. They also learned how to use the online systems of Finnish banks. They have succeeded in adapting into the Finnish digitalized society.

The third difficulty lies in the hearts of these young students. They miss home and their families. Growing up in the loving arms of their dedicated parents and surrounded by their relatives and friends, these Uzbek students have gotten used to their warm and safe circle of family and their own social networks. When they first came to Karelia UAS, they needed to start from the scratch to make their new circles of friends and their social network. In order to ease the home sickness, the Uzbek students usually post their activities in Karelia UAS in their own social network channels and receive “likes” from their familiar circles of friends and relatives back in Uzbekistan. At the same time, they start joining more outdoor activities here to make new friends.

In addition to having more friends, they have also found it easy or less hierarchical to discuss with Karelia teachers. They can ask for help when needed. More importantly, they have found their ways to part-time jobs which help to sustain themselves financially when studying in Finland.

Although the Finnish culture is different from the Uzbekistan culture and the Finnish weather is cold, these five young Uzbek students have realized how warm, nice, kind and professional Finnish people and Karelia UAS staff, in particular, are from the inside.

The warmness and kindness of Karelia UAS staff helps to strengthen these five young students’ belief that Karelia UAS is their right choice. Most of them have decided to continue and complete their international Bachelor’s degree programmes at Karelia UAS next year.

Life opportunities open for courageous excellence seekers

Where can courageous excellent seekers start their journey? Is it Finland, and why Finland?

The answers for this simple question can be found by keen readers in many websites all around the world. Personally, the author of this article spent almost five years of her life, working, studying and doing research in many countries ranging from New Zealand in the Southern hemisphere to Norway and Finland in the Northern hemisphere. Among many countries that she has been to, Finland is the best country in many aspects. She wished that someone nice and kind had told her to “Go to Finland” at the beginning of her life path seeking for excellences. She did not have to waste five years of her life to find out her final destination, Finland.

It is the author’s honor and happiness that she can share her own personal excellence-seeking journey to the students and everybody who is interested in it.

Why Karelia UAS? Our five young, smart students have also found their answers. We, Karelians, are so happy for them.

Warm congratulations to our five young, courageous, smart Uzbek students for choosing their excellent life opportunity path straight to Finland.

“When there is a will, there is a way.”

Karelia warmly welcomes all international students to come, study and stay.
For more information, you can read our website.


Author:

Kha Trinh (Katri) Truong, Global Education Officer, Karelia University of Applied Sciences