The story of Kristina Mikaviča is about more than a fellowship: it is a testament to motivation and perseverance. Her experience with InteRussia started with a brief line in an application form that could have gone unnoticed, but ultimately became the key to one of the program’s most inspiring stories. It is stories like these that shape the true value of international educational initiatives, transforming them from mere formal programs into a space for real human achievement and meaning.
My name is Kristina Mikaviča, and I’m a teacher of Russian and Serbian languages from Belgrade. Before the start of the fellowship, I was enrolled in a post-graduate program at Belgrade University’s Faculty of Philology. For the past ten years I have been giving private lessons of Serbian to Russian speakers and vice versa. My main motivation for applying was the desire to return to Russia and see the country I love again. I wanted to deepen my knowledge, work on a research article under the guidance of the Institute of Pushkin’s professors, and connect with colleagues from all over the world.
In 2011, I visited Russia for the first time. It was a long-awaited trip. Back then I was a third year student and I came to study at the Institute of Pushkin’s Summer School. I was incredibly impressed by the country, and, just as importantly, I met wonderful people. During the trip, I got to know an institute employee who took us on tours and excursions that were part of the program, and we started a friendship. Despite our age difference, we have been friends for fifteen years.
When I learned about InteRussia, I didn’t hesitate for a moment before applying. I was a little apprehensive during my preparations for the trip, scared that this time, my impression would be different and I won’t enjoy visiting Russia as much. Thankfully, that didn’t happen. Perhaps I’m just lucky, but during all these years of my deep connection to Russian language, culture and people, I’ve never had any bad interactions. For some reason, foreigners often think that Russians are guarded and uncommunicative, but my experience has been completely different. Russians can be reserved, but emotionally they are very deep. And if a Russian person accepts you as their friend, you’ll have a friend for life.
The fellowship was extremely well-organized. We attended classes on literature, methods of teaching various aspects of language, phonetics, spelling, and speaking, taught by outstanding professors and linguists. I was particularly impressed by the lectures on literature. In my department at university, this was a very intimidating subject, and passing an exam on your first try was difficult. When I attended those lectures during the fellowship, I realized that literature can be taught completely differently—with genuine warmth and feeling. Lectures don’t necessarily have to be daunting, and a student can and should feel like a person, not a machine whose sole purpose is to memorise facts and get graded on them.
Over the course of the fellowship we were supposed to write a research article under the guidance of an academic advisor from the Institute of Pushkin. I worked with a curriculum and phonetics specialist Yulia Naumenko, who suggested that I choose stresses in Russian and Serbian as my topic. I’ve always been interested in phonetics, but my university didn’t offer the opportunity to study it in depth. So, at first, I was apprehensive. But I received such overwhelming support from my academic advisor that I finally decided to take the project. I successfully completed the work, and now I’m waiting for its publication in a scientific journal.
Another thing that stands out in my memory is the event in honour of Alexander Pushkin’s birthday. A professor of the Institute, Elmira Afanasyeva, was preparing a couple of fellows for poetry readings, and I also decided to participate. I was preparing for several days, feeling nervous. I recited “Tatyana’s letter to Onegin” on a stage in front of the Bolshoi Theatre, and it felt like a dream.
The fellowship made my lessons more engaging. This is a kind of profession that requires more than knowledge. It demands many talents from you, like being well-versed in psychology, being an actor, and sometimes even a historian to answer all the students’ questions. I started using media, even cartoons, much more often in my lessons. Before, I was relying on classical principles of language-learning, emphasising grammar, doing exercises and translations. But students can find this approach boring after a while. Now I incorporate singing Russian songs, doing quizzes, competitions, studying culture, history and everyday life into my lessons.
The program made me feel that my ideas were accepted. That I, as a person with significant visual impairment, am accepted in this community, Institute and city. I’m beyond happy that the professors and teachers got to know and supported my love for Russian people, culture and language.
I advise my young colleagues not to overthink applying for InteRussia. This opportunity will broaden your horizons, give you a fresh perspective on your profession, and help you grow as a person. I urge you to not doubt yourself and submit that application! This fellowship will encourage you to learn new things and move forward.
The text is based on Kristina’s voice messages.
