Pre-departure Guide
STEPS TO TAKE BEFORE YOU LEAVE YOUR COUNTRY
- Apply for and receive a student visa at a Russian conssulate or visa center in your home country (single-entry visa; 90 days duration)
- Enroll for a health insurance plan valid in Russia or decide which medical insurance to apply for in Russia
- Get a medical certificate (download the form) signed and stamped by your physician in order to check into the dormitory
- Check in your application whether you need dormitory accommodation
- Request a buddy and get contacted by him/her
- Check directions to the HSE dormitory or any other place of accommodation
- Plan to arrive in Moscow in time for the Orientation session and the start of the semester
- Check that the date of your departure does not precede the start date of your visa
- Check Russian customs regulations and your airline luggage regulations
- Check the location of your faculty and other HSE buildings
- Check how to get to the city from the airport (Aeroexpress trains, taxi)
- Get acquainted with the Dormitory Internal Rules and Tenancy Agreement
- Check with your bank the maximum cash amount you can withdraw in Russia
- Check the Life in Moscow website for useful tips
- Make sure to have enough battery power on all your devices upon arrival to Moscow
WHAT TO TAKE WITH YOU
- Valid passport with visa
- Medical insurance +HSE health certificate signed and stamped by a physician (to check into the dormitory)
- Photocopies to have in your carry-on luggage: passport ID page, passport visa page, letter of referral from the Ministry of Education and Science (quota full-degree students), study contract (if applicable)
- HSE acceptance letter
- Ful-degree students only: legalized original diploma and transcript (Master programme students), letter of referral from the Ministry of Education and Science (quota scheme students), study contract (fee-paying degree students), all the translated documents you will be expected to submit at HSE
- 4 passport-size (3cm x 4cm) photos on a mat paper
- Contacts of your buddy
- Contacts of your programme manager / exchange coordinator
- Contact details for your embassy/consulate/diplomatic mission in Russia
- Copies of all the documents to put into your carry-on luggage