KIMEP Times October 2014

NEVER BACK DOWN

LETTER FROM GRAZ

Inspirational story about Chynara who collected money for her participation at Global Village by fundraising

Our reporter, Tomiris Orozoeva, is turning into Grazian and shares her Erasmus program exchange experience

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FALL IS TIME TO FALL IN LOVE

ANIMAL LAW Maria Baideldinova: “Animals, just like human beings, are capable of emotions and moral behavior”

Wait for the new “Vlyub­ lennaya Alma-Ata 3” movie by Madi Aitimov in coming January

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Independent student newspaper

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#5 (��4), October 20�4

KIMEP Times Since �995

High-ranking guests from South Korea share their best business practices On October 2 and 3 the Kazakhstan-Korea Business Forum took place at KIMEP University. Representatives of successful companies from South Korea held lectures about business in­ novation, shared their best practices and showed how they could be applicable to the Kazakhstan realities.

T

he forum consisted of three presentations. The first was about key success factors in Korean business management. The second presentation gave a clue about five management methods presented on the basis of case studies of Samsung, Homeplus and Tesco companies. The last ses­ sion covered the great economic boom of South Korea the role the government played in this time and advice, how these methods could be executed in Kazakhstan.

All in all, the event was a big success. More than �50 attendees gathered together for illuminating sessions given by expert speakers focused on business innovation.

Besides getting insights into Korean business management, many used it for socializing and networking. Ω

More than �50 business representatives from Kazakhstan and South Korea gather at Kazakhstan-Korea Business Forum at KIMEP.

Students neglect FTES According to the Office of Quality Assurance, only 53.3% of KIMEP students fill Faculty Teaching Evaluation Survey (FTES) in Spring 20�4.

Altynay Rais

F

TES , survey created by the Office of Quality Assurance, which students should fill at the end of each semester, started to work in the academic year 2004–​ 2005. The main goal of this survey is to get students’ feedback concern­ ing professors and their teaching methodology in order to improve learning process.

However, statistics provided by the Office of Quality Assurance

PAGE INDEX

show that half of all KIMEP stu­ dents skip the FTES. In Spring 20�4, �2,806 students were registered, and 6867 students or 53.03% filled the survey. The situation is slightly better that in Spring 20�2, when response rate was only 20.89%.

Starting from Fall 20�4, FTES became obligatory for each student who wants to access KIMEP student portal. From Fall 2004 till Fall 20�4 FTES was conducted only on volun­ tary basis. However such practice didn’t give expected results.

See FTES, page 2

Academics 2 KIMEP Inside Out 3 Travel 4–5

University Life 6 KIMEP Students 7 Time Off 8

Daniyar Zhakullinov

First business experience: students sell T-shirts

INSIDE

VISIT 23 COUNTRIES CHEAP WORK AND TRAVEL PROGRAM EXPERIENCE

Kristina Nikulina

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COMING TO AUSTRIA FOR EXCHANGE READ OUR TRAVEL SECTION! pages

Five KIMEP students created and started to sell “KIMEP University” branded T-shirts in order to get real business experience during the Summer II semester.

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yna Kebayeva , Selbi Ture­ sheva, Jeren Turesheva, Alex Tagaev and Ali Hamrayev are friends who recently also became business partners. During their three years at KIMEP they got a lot of theoretical knowledge but almost no practical business experience, they say. So, the five se­ niors decided to fill this gap during Summer II 20�4.

Searching for successful start-up ideas, students were thinking about something KIMEP students do not have but would like to purchase.

“We found out that in KIMEP we don’t have something that would show that we study at this university. T-shirts are the most

widespread in that category,” says Kebayeva, a BCB student majoring in finance.

She says that last year the KIMEP advising office distributed white T-shirts with “I love KIMEP” written on them to volunteers and freshman students during Orientation Day. Many people were wearing them for a week after.

“That’s why we came up with the idea that many people would like to buy stuff like that but of better quality and design,” Kebayeva says.

The cost per one T-shirt either Terranova or Bershka brand is 3000 tenge both for male and female models. Black, red, white, gray, and blue colors are available.

According to Kebayeva, the team has sold only half of those See T-SHIRTS, page 7

2 Academics

Now students have to make their choice of a sport discipline from those offered by the KIMEP Sport Center. Options include workout exercises like yoga, cardio, fitness or pilates, and a number of sports games—ping-pong, mini football, Kristina Nikulina (left and above) volleyball and basketball.

Keep fit,

government says

Following the Kazakh Education Ministry’s requirement, physical training classes are to be obligatory for freshmen and sophomore students of KIMEP University.

Opinions of students who are now taking Physical Education course vary extensively. Some of them, like Timur Azizov, a second-year BCB student, believe it is just a waste of money. “Eight credits is too much,” he says. Others think it is worth spending time, efforts and money. “I barely had any physical activity since high school, so I think it is a useful course,” says Alexei Yan, another BCB sophomore.

Safon Issak-zade

Students continue to neglect teaching evaluation survey FTES (continued from page one)

“I want to emphasize that it was not obligatory. We didn’t force anyone to fill the survey, because we wanted fair and objective results.

Unfortunately, it didn’t work. Now it is obligatory. And even in such way response rate is still low,” says Mansiya Kainazarova, director of the Office of Quality Assurance.

“I don’t understand students’ atti­ tude to FTES. It is their opportunity to express opinion about teachers, evaluate their professionalism and give a feedback to make learning process better. It is in their interests.” says Elmira Rayeva, project coordina­ tor of the Office of Academic Affairs.

Students acknowledge that fact that they ignore FTES. If some of them just don’t care about it, others don’t find it helpful.

Senior student, Zhamilya Akhme­ tova, is one of those who doesn’t think that FTES can help students.

“Even if I will spend 5 minutes in order to fill the survey, I don’t really believe that it can help to improve learning process,” says Akhmetova.

“I know that even if I will answer these questions, the majority of stu­ dents will not.”

However teachers themselves find FTES really helpful.

Associate Vice-President of Ac­ ademic Affairs, David Landis, who also teaches Academic Reading and

Writing and Academic Speaking courses at KIMEP, says that he regu­ larly checks the results of the FTES. “It is interesting for me to read the feedback of my students. So, reading their feedback, I can make my classes more interesting,” he says.

However Landis cannot hide the fact that FTES scores might be not objective. “FTES results don’t give us a clear picture. For instance, I taught Academic Speaking class. 20 stu­ dents were registered, and �0 of them filled FTES. It is only 50% of the class.” he says. “Also, there might be connection between students’ grade and their feedback,” he smiles.

Nevertheless, there are students at KIMEP who find FTES important.

Aizhan Baimukan, junior eco­ nomics major student, says that she always fills FTES, and that it is her opportunity to thank her instructors.

“I usually spent several minutes to FTES. I think it is important. This survey is a chance for me to express my opinion,” Baimukan says.

Even though the half of students do not aware about the importance of FTES, Quality Assurance office will continue such practice.

“We know that only half, some­ times less than a half of students fill FTES but even 50% matters for us,” says Kainazarova. “And surely we would be happy if more and more students will be interested in what we are doing.” Ω

Animal Law course makes students think differently Maria Baideldinova became one of the initiators of Animal Law course at KIMEP because she believes that animals have feelings, just like human beings.

Lauriza Abildayeva

B

aideldinova , Assistant Professor at the School of Law, also serves as a legal consul­ tant for several animal protection NGOs in Kazakhstan. A member of the Global Animal Law Consortium, she has become one of the initiators of Animal Law course at KIMEP. The new discipline suggests examining the problems that our four-legged friends face in modern society from the legal point of view.

Animal law is a relatively young field of study in the world—and totally new for Kazakhstan. This elective course has been available for L. L. B. students of KIMEP from 20�3 Spring semester and is going to be offered again in 20�5. Students denominate Animal Law classes as a “view-changing experience”. It cov­ ers international legislative practices used to overcome problems, in which social and ethical issues get tightly intertwined, like the problem of stray animals in urban areas.

For instance, Italian courts can sentence irresponsible owners of do­ mestic animals for abandoning their pets with one year of imprisonment.

Sounds harsh? Yet, it is not simply about being merciless towards

Maria Baideldinova, Assistant Pro­fessor at KIMEP Law School and lawyer for the NGO “KARE— Zabota” (KARE—Kazakhstan Animal Rescue and Education) Photo: Nikita Svetlichny

animal abusers—more importantly, it works as a preventive measure against many social ills that stray cats and dogs cause, from sanitary to security. “Law is a dynamic sub­ stance,” explains Dr. Baideldinova, “and if there are loopholes and contradictions in the animal-related legislation, it has to be adjusted and improved for the common good.”

Can we deem domestic animals as members of the society? How

shall our legislation determine the furry beasts that we let live with us—a property? Or a subject of law, juridically entitled to some sort of special treatment? The course invites students to venture into discussions and studies that change the way they think about many things. “Animals are sentient beings—they feel pain and psychological suffering, they are capable of emotions and moral be­ havior,” Dr. Baideldinova says. “Once we realize it, we have to assume responsibility.”

Dr. Baideldinova argues that economic well-being of the country is often a prerequisite for the devel­ opment of moral and ethical values; the more prosperous an economy, the greater is the society’s commit­ ment to protect those, who are most vulnerable to discrimination. Per­ haps, this is one of the reasons why Animal Law courses are currently offered in more than �50 law schools worldwide, compared to only one almost forty years ago. In �977, the Law School of Seton Hall University was the first college to start teaching this discipline as a part of its legal training programs. KIMEP is now in a family of top law schools that do care about animal law, including Harvard, Stanford, Michigan and many others. Ω

KIMEP Inside Out

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NUMBERS SPEAK LOUDER

694 kg Average daily amount of food served by the Grill.

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93.3 %

New teachers who became members of KIMEP faculty in Fall 2014 semester. Three, Adil Nurmakov, Gautam Bhattacharya, and Gulnara Karimova, are in the College of Social Sciences and two, Nicolás Zambrana-Tévar and Sergei Sayapin, in the School of Law.

KIMEP 2007-2012 graduates who are employed, according to Career and and Employment Office’s data.

171,699,632

813

KZT

Students who were enrolled at KIMEP University for Fall 2014 semester.

Of these, 242 are master degree students and remaining 571 applied for bachelor programs. This is by 31 students fewer than the enrolment a year earlier.

Money spent on dormitory renovation work. The estimated overall cost of renovation of the dormitory facilities (including new furniture) is KZT 189 million. Renovation of dormitory's second and third floors facilities is expected to be in 2015.

What is it like to be pregnant while studying at KIMEP University? Thanks to being a reporter at the KIMEP Times, we were given a great chance to find it out. Meters of elastic bandage, a few towels and a few failed trials and, accept our congratulations— you are owner of a fake belly, which is hardly differentiated from a real one with a growing baby inside. Enjoy people’s reactions.

Altynay Rais

A little bit pregnant Dr. Ken Harvey, Associate Professor at the Department of Mass Communication

Ice Bucket Challenge— now at KIMEP A professor got cold water poured on his head right in the center of KIMEP University.

Aleksandra Korenkova

Lauriza Abildayeva When you are provided with an opportunity to be part of this “unmarried and pregnant student” experiment, there is no way you could refuse. It is interesting to look at reactions of people whom you see almost everyday—students, faculty, staff.

Surprisingly, the average students’ attitude was neutral—like what can be more natural than being pregnant at the university? I liked that. I mean, when it comes to such personal things like pregnancy, it is everyone’s own choice, and you have to accept it as it is.

The unpleasant part of this experiment was being subjected to some people’s negativity.

I had some issues with one of the administra­ tive departments of KIMEP. When I came to its office, full of women, and when they saw my big belly, I felt like I was dipped in a sea of prejudice.

It was not what I expected. I thought that women solidarity would come into play, but it did not, and it was quite disappointing.

My fake pregnant belly is easily removable, but it may not be the case with the ignorance of those who think they can judge me or any other girl who does not act in accordance with their moral principles.

It was fun to see the shocked faces of some of my previous classmates. The more doubts they had, the more mother-like I tried to behave.

No one asked a single question concerning my “pregnancy.”

The most positive part of this experiment was the reaction of one of my teachers, Federico Dal­ pane. He started to greet me with smile. Extreme cuteness *. * Urban dictionary: act of being cute.

Zhansaya Akberdiyeva It is quite easy to make a fake belly—just take a small towel and fix it on your stomach with two pieces of the bandage. To make it look real I put on hoodies and sweaters—because, unfortu­ nately, I couldn’t make it look really elastic and round. However, all the students who saw me during those days definitely believed that I was pregnant. Unknown people looked at me a lot longer but quickly looked away when I noticed it.

It was an especially funny experience with guys.

They felt really uncomfortable and confused being near pregnant girl. I was especially curious about how people familiar to me would react to the idea that I was pregnant. They certainly noticed my belly sticking out and several times looked directly at it but did not ask me about it.

After this experiment I revealed the secret to one “victim” and asked her about the reasons she did not show any interest. She said she just felt extremely uncomfortable asking me if I was pregnant and thought that it would be inappro­ priate. Only one girl expressed her thoughts in words and sincerely congratulated me.

But when I left the university to go down to the subway, I faced another reaction of people.

During these �0 minutes outside our university I felt much more uncomfortable than during two days of experimentation inside KIMEP. Two young girls coming out the Agrarian Uni­ versity stopped talking when they saw me. They kept stared at my face and at my belly and even watched me leaving them. The majority of other people in the subway and on the streets seemed to condemn the pregnant student.

Tolerance, you say? Well, there seems to be less outside of KIMEP.

Aliya Tapalova I have never thought seriously about preg­ nancy before this experiment. I knew basic con­ cepts those that are taught in biology classes and discussed among friends, but I have never faced this topic so closely. This time I had it all.

Although I was not actually pregnant, I felt how physically hard it is to have such a big belly in front of you. My walk changed and it became difficult for me to move. I became slow and clumsy.

During these days, I always feared that my towel baby would fall out, and everyone would see that I was only pretending. That’s why I felt just like a pregnant woman who had to visit the restroom every half an hour.

Certainly, people’s reaction was the most interesting factor in this experiment. Everyone who noticed my belly in the subway, supermar­ ket, KIMEP campus, Grill or Ground, first was surprised, but then started smiling and trying to help me whatever I was doing.

An interesting case in point took place when I was having lunch. I, as usual, went to buy a cup of latte, and the salesman asked me if I in my condition I would be better drinking less coffee.

I was confused, but then, to play it to the end, I answered that to drink a little coffee would not harm my baby.

At the very beginning of the experiment I wondered how people would look at a pregnant girl with my young face. It turned out that our society, especially within the walls of KIMEP, was more tolerant and kind than I expected. Ω

Photos: Kristina Nikulina

D

r. Ken Harvey , with the help of his students, joined the “Ice Bucket Chal­ lenge” campaign to support the ASL Association in the memory of his brother, who died from ALS, also known as “Lou Gehrig’s Disease.”

“My brother was world-famous agricultural scientist, a very good person and he died young from ALS, a terrible disease,” Harvey said.

“I will be sending money for the research. I will do the ‘Ice Bucket Challenge.’ ” He challenged his students to do the same.

KIMEP student Zhulduz Sanbayeva sup­ ported Harvey’s action. “I think it was cool, be­ cause he did not do it just for fun. He did it in the memory of his brother and also mentioned the disease, while many people do not even say why they are doing it. He also involved students, what is good.”

Although not many students accepted Harvey’s challenge, many Hollywood stars and politicians poured ice water on themselves to attract the attention to “Lou Gehrig’s Disease.”

Each person donated from $ �0 to $ �00 USD to The Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis Association (TALSA) for it to continue working on treat­ ment and provide service for people with ALS and their families.

“Ice Bucket Challenge” campaign raised $ 94.3 million in donations during one month— July 29 to August 27.

“The ALS Association has been given a great deal of money and with that comes tremen­ dous responsibility,” said Barbara Newhouse, president and CEO of The ALS Association.

This money will be spent for research and as­ sistance to people suffering the disease, which paralyzes muscles, more and more with time, and even may lead to death.

Although there are therapies and drugs to slow the progression of ALS, a cure has never been found. Ω

4 Travel

Tips for future Work-and-Travelers Every year hundreds of students desperately looking for adventures overseas decide to spend their summer in USA with the Work and Travel program. Many of them justifiably think that American experience may change their lives; yet, not all of them know what obstacles they can face on their way. students usually don’t get day-offs on Saturdays and Sundays. These unsophisticated jobs may seem easy, but they are very hard—imagine working �2–�3 hours a day in several jobs. Many students damage their health there and then have to invest a lot to get fit and back on track again. Watch your nutrition and save nerves.

Karimkhon Bukhadurov

W

ork and Travel USA is a summer exchange pro­ gram that allows students to go to the United States and work at seasonal jobs that do not require any specific skills—cashiers, waiters, food runners, cook assistants, life­ guards and so on.

In the beginning of every Fall semester, agencies offering Work and Travel opportunities launch their ad­ vertisements to seduce students with this program, but few of them would tell you the full story, preferring to cover its attractions only.

KIMEP Times’s investigation revealed some of the possible traps and twists—and resulted in a set of life-hacking tips, designed to help prospective Work-and-Travelers to escape troubles and disappoint­ ments, while enjoying their stay in the States.

�. Choose your Work and Travel agency accurately There are tens of such agencies in Almaty. You should conduct a market research and analyze each agency by scrutinizing reviews and accounts of the program’s previous participants, as well as its reputation, price com­ petitiveness and types of job offers that it has for the students.

Some agencies are new to the market and have little choice of jobs.

Some provide poor service that does not match the price. Others may turn out to be fraudulent—they take students’ money and disappear.

Agencies offer two options for Work and Travel USA: independent and placement. Independent option does not provide you with a job,

KIMEP Student organized a protest after being not paid for a month by Dunkin Donuts. so you have to find it for yourself.

It is cheaper, but there is no guaran­ tee that you find a workplace that the U. S. Embassy consular office would endorse before issuing an American visa to you. Placement means that agency commits to provide you with certified job offers. This option is more pricey, yet it is much safer, too.

2. Don’t expect going to a big city Most agencies’ promotion mate­ rials advertise life in big posh cities like the NYC, LA or San Francisco.

This is not true. The majority of job offers originate from rural areas and sad little towns with a population of �0,000 or so. Life there can be killingly boring, but you can travel to larger cities on day-offs and holidays.

3. Don’t expect to make big

Yana Azimova

bucks, unless you work in several jobs Most job offers imply working 40 hours per week at a minimum wage, which is around $ 320 per week. Deduct nearly $ 50 for taxes (depends on state), pay $ �00 for rent and reserve $ 30 for food. In the end, you will be left with only $ �00 to $ �50. Therefore, in order to be able to travel around the States before going back home, many students seek several employments and save money.

4. Be ready to work at nights and on weekends An average Work and Travel job usually has two or three shifts. If you work at a grocery store, you’ll be ex­ pected to work in all shifts, including night shift. It is very boring, tiring and can be stressful, too. Weekends are the busiest time of the week, so

5. Fight for your rights Some unconscientious employers literally use Work-and-Travelers— they don’t pay on time, cut hours in the paycheck, and may even fire you for no reason. There were cases when employers refused to hire students due to “excess” of exchange students in their companies, and frustrated youngsters were forced to look for new jobs—alone in the mid­ dle of foreign country. Sometimes it can take two or three weeks to find a minimum wage job, and not neces­ sarily a decent one.

If you find yourself in trouble like these, immediately contact your visa sponsors. If they don’t help, call police and the labor department’s hotline. If none of those authorities is useful, go on protest and demand protection of your rights.

6. Travel with a friend or with a group of people Traveling on your own is very ex­ pensive. When in a group, it is easier to find housing and the payment will be split between all flatmates equally. At the end of the program participants start touring around the U. S. “Lone wolves” choose bus or train, while a small crowd can rent a car, share costs and have an unfor­ gettable road trip, which is safer and much more exciting. Ω

Europe is famous for its gorgeous architecture.

Herzoghof building in Graz, mostly known as the “painted house,” portrays Greek and Roman Gods engaged in a rendez-vous.

The building was first painted in �600 by the Baroque painter Johann Mayer.

From East to West and back again Traveling without money sounds absurd?

Not for Hyeong­Jae Kim, a Korean exchange student, who visited 23 countries this summer.

Daria Iugai

H HyeongJae Kim, exchange student from the Seoul National University and a great traveler. Balzhan Bekenova

yeongJae came from the Seoul National University and studied at KIMEP for nine months before he decided to spend his summer travelling through as many countries as possible.

In spring, he had developed an ambitious plan to travel across Eu­ rope and Central Asia, and on May �4 he took off to visit Ukraine, Moldova, Turkey, Bulgaria, Bosnia-Herze­ govina, Serbia, Croatia, Austria, Slovakia, Poland, the Czech Republic, Germany, the Netherlands, France, England, Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, Russia, Armenia, Georgia, Kyrgyz­ stan and Tajikistan. HyeongJae spent $ 5000 in total.

He planned part of the trip by himself and outsourced another part to a travel agency. HyeongJae says 20 days that had been organized by the agency were the most expensive, intense—and yet the most unforget­ table. “I ate my breakfast in the Neth­ erlands, in Belgium I had lunch, then I made it through France only to get

onboard of a ferry to London, where I had my late dinner,” HeongJae tells.

He adds that travelling in groups, compiled by agencies, gives you very limited time for seeing different places. That was one of the reasons HyeongJae liked it more to organize his routes by himself.

“When I was travelling on my own, I did not book any hostel in advance.

I would just go to booking​.com, find the list of cheapest hostels and pick the one that had rooms in availabil­ ity,” says HeongJae. He also made use of couchsurfing​ .com, the online community for low-budget travellers offering rooms to each other in numerous parts of the world. “It provides an amazing experience in understanding new cultures from your local hosts—free of charge!” says HeongJae, who has tried couchsurfing in Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia and in Russia.

HyeongJae considers this trip the best time in his life, full of new knowledge and feelings. He says everyone should try it—and money is not a problem, if you are bold enough and keen to learn. Ω

10 FACTS

FROM HYEONGJAE’S TRIP Tomiris Orozoeva

1. The country HyeongJae liked the most—Croatia, for its virgin nature.

2. The longest bus ride—a 55 hours journey from Russia to Armenia.

3. The most enjoyable part—meeting new people and hanging out with them.

4. The worst challenges on the way—language barrier and lack of cash.

5. The most shocking experience— Sex Show and drug muffins in the Netherlands.

6. The most important advice from HyeongJae—put a little lock on your bags.

7. The most expensive city—London, especially transportation.

8. The cheapest countries for backpackers—Armenia and Georgia.

9. The most unique person he met—the Australian girl that hitchhiked from India to Estonia having just one backpack, tent and yoga mat.

10. The most touching moment—​ a complete stranger invited him to his house and they spoke, mainly with body language.

Local Bank “Sparkasse” organized a fu Moment photos are good memories fro

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unny action in terms of their promotion program. om Aufsteirern festival.

Below. The Hauptplatz (main square) and the town hall are the heart of the Graz.

At the centre of the Hauptplatz stands the Archduke Johann fountain.

Letter from Graz:

Cloudy with a chance of Aufsteirern This is a special report for KIMEP Times from Graz, Austria, where Tomiris Orozoeva is currently on her exchange semester via the Erasmus Mundus program.

Tomiris Orozoeva

A

lmost one month has passed . Party hard, study hard, new people and diverse cultures, enormous amount of new informa­ tion—all mixed up in a heap. Here time flies so fast that I did not even notice the moment when we turned into Grazians and started looking at foreign tourists on the city’s main square indulgently. To start this transformation into a local you need to wear a scarf, ride a bicycle and drink alcohol sporadically.

My friend, Aike Ismailova, also from KIMEP, and I were lucky enough to go abroad together. We share one room and both speak Russian, which makes us feel like home. Although you are supposed to go abroad to have intercultural experience, most stick to the crowds of compatriots.

Now we only have intensive German language courses. That’s quite a challenge for beginners. If you want to study in Austria or Germany,

Graz is small city fully equipped with bike lanes. Almost everyone here use a bike as a main transport to stay healthy and keep safer environment.

my recommendation is for you to attain basic skills in Goethe’s language.

That said, here we meet people, who speak zero German and have poor English, too—and yet they feel okay. Being flexible and open-minded often saves the day. People in Graz are generally helpful, and rare alien passer-by with embarrassed face would not be immediately attacked by at least one kind denizen offering help.

There are also things we found negative. For example, no supermar­ ket works on Sundays, so you have to plan your nutrition in advance.

The weather in Graz changes many times a day—a typical September day may start with a sunny summerlike morning, then suddenly cold rain erupts in the afternoon and you get chilled as if it were winter, and later it turns into an average autumn night at sunset. Umbrella is, thus, a daily must-have accessory for Grazians.

People here drink alcohol very often. The Aufsteirern festival that we attended in Graz is a celebrated like a national holiday in Styria, the sunny south-eastern part of Austria, to which Graz is a capital city. The main square was literally overwhelmed by various spirits. Several years ago Austria was the world’s leader in alcohol consumption, but since then it has fallen down to 2� st place in the rating.

Yet, students from Erasmus Mundus program have far more ways to socialize and spend time together. Ω

6

university life

Eat food in neighborhood “There is no love sincerer than the love of food,” George Bernard Shaw said. Judging by the number of amazing dishes out there, he was right.

There is not only Coffee Inn, Panini and Grill which are available at the campus, but there are also dozens of other food places near KIMEP Uni­ Blinnaya European food versity. We have investigated 2� Abay St. several cafes and restaurants Work hours Monday–Saturday �0 a. m.–8 p. m. and ranged them by its food Approximate serving price quality, prices, service, inside KZt 2000 décor and atmosphere.

Text and photos by Amina Sugirova

This small and cute café has been working since the 90­s! The food quality is extremely good and tasty, and the serving size is big enough to feel an empty stomach! Also the prices of meals are surprisingly affordable.

They have a very nice stuff, and guests do not have to wait for hours to get their food served. The inside decora­ tion and the whole atmosphere are taking you back to old days, just like you are at your grandma’s house. For good or worth, Wi­Fi is not available, which means you need to really com­ municate with people you come with.

It is a nice way of gathering all friends together and enjoying your meal.

Nedel’ka

BarFly

European food

Balcon

Eastern and European food

American and Japanese food

�9 Abay St.

Dostyk St., Kazakhstan Hotel, 26th floor

�76 Furmanov St.

Work hours Monday–Thursday, Sunday �0 a. m.–�2 p. m.

Friday–Saturday �0 a. m. till � a. m.

Work hours Monday–Saturday 6 p. m.–5 a. m.

Sunday 6 p. m.–3 a. m.

Work hours Every day 7:30 a. m–� a. m.

Approximate serving price KZt 2000–5000

Approximate serving price KZt 4,000–�0,000

This is one of the most interesting places near KIMEP. What a nice pres­ ence it has with all the flowers around the café, and the candles that adminis­ tration lights up every evening! These all builds a very romantic atmosphere and a heart touching view! It’s a won­ derful place to come with a love one or with friends and family. There is Wi­Fi provided as well.

Speaking about food, all dishes are very tasty but a good quality takes time, so you might have to wait for a while for your order. People keep coming every day and by the evening it is usually all packed.

BarFly has a good menu, with lovely steaks, excellent wine and soft cocktails. Unfortunately, there is not a big variety of different dishes, but the quality is outstanding. Prices are higher than average, but it definitely pays off for itself. BarFly is a perfect place for a night out with friends or a date. The stuff works fast, and guests do not wait for their order for a long time. There is even a strict dress code rule, no casual look allowed. The lounge­bar has the most amazing view from the windows on the 26 floor!

The whole city is seen just like on the palms of your hands. Plus there is a lovely music playing there.

Coin in my shoe

Why it was so bad?

The KIMEP Pie and seven other KIMEP student organizations started perhaps a new tradition at the university in September by host­ ing a joint recruitment party at the Union Pub.

Alexandra Mutskaya

T

Zarrina Mulloboeva

Alexandra Mutskaya

2 a. m. I want to sleeeeeep.. Nothing bad will happen if I sleep for 20 minutes.

5 a. m. What time is it????!!

6 a. m. What if I say that my computer broke down right after I’d finished my final paper?

Cool idea. And I still have time to learn some­ thing for the exam.

7 a. m. When did we learn this stuff?? I’m see­ ing this topic for the first time in my life!

8 a. m. “You shall not pass!”

9 a. m. It isn’t too late, it’s never too late: “Hal’ava pridy!!!!!!” Plus �0 points for luck.

Done. What else? Let’s google it: “How to pass exam without any preparation?” Put coin in my shoe? Done. Sit on my student record­book.

We don’t have this at KIMEP. Well, ID card is OK. Done. Now, I’m ready to go. �0 a. m. Thanks God, it’s multiple­choice!!!! Ω

T

he organiZations decided to go beyond the usual the usual club fairs and recruitment efforts to introduce themselves to students. The purpose was to show the human side of organizations. It was the first time the student organizations had united on one such event.

The idea of the “Union Party” was intro­ duced by KIMEP PIE’s Editor­in­Chief, Azat Asanov, and the initiative to the members of KIMEP PIE. “All of us wanted to show how we may deal together without any competition and misunderstandings,” said Asanov.

The KIMEP PIE, KIMEP Friends, KIMEP Swag, KIMEP Fashion Industry, KISA, EA Group, KADA and KASD all participated in this project.

KIMEP Times Editor-in-chief Kristina Nikulina Managing editor Daria Iugai

Follow @kimep_times on Instagram!

Get the most up-to-date information about your university’s newspaper.

Balcon is situated a little bit further then other cafes but last is not least!

If you would like to have an American feeling, you should go there. The menu is set by American standards and the portions are big enough just like in the USA. The most delicious meals are pizzas, steaks, desserts and the prices are not very expensive. The stuff is very welcoming. Wi­Fi is avail­ able, and the atmosphere is pretty relaxing for quite talks. Ω

Eight organizations one party:

Just like Night’s Watch guardians are waiting for the attack of Wild­ lings, KIMEP students freeze in an­ ticipation of midterm exams.

he last WeeK before the midterm break is the special time of semester.

It is a kind of Christmas, when even skeptical people start to believe in miracles.

For some of us, the miracle is just the chance to pass the exam.

Here is the night before an exam of an aver­ age KIMEP University student: �0 p. m. Well, tomorrow I should submit presentation, final paper of marketing plan, and take a midterm exam. It’s �0 p. m., I have around �4 hours to do all my work, and it’s more than enough for me. Let’s start with the presentation. But first, I should go to the store and buy an energy drink. �� p. m. Well, what is written on the L­drive?

Oh! I have one message on Facebook: Did you prepare presentation for tomorrow? No, dude, I haven’t even started yet... �2 p. m. Hmm.. Jennifer Lawrence is pretty.

I should delete my photos of my B­day party from iCloud. � a. m. I think 5 slides is enough for my 20­point presentation. Let’s add a few photos— ideally. Should I prepare a speech for it? Only improvisation—only hardcore! Done!

Approximate serving price KZt 5000–7500

Reporters Lauriza Abildayeva Zhansaya Akberdiyeva Karimkhon Bukhadurov Daria Iugai Sitora Khaldarova Aleksandra Korenkova Zarrina Mulloboeva Alexandra Mutskaya Tomiris Orozoeva Altynay Rais Amina Sugirova Aliya Tapalova Meerim Tashtanova Alina Tuleugazy

Parties are not a big deal at KIMEP, but never in the history of KIMEP have student organizations united on one project. Usually, organizations have each conducted their own event. The KIMEP PIE was responsible for the main organizational efforts, but the other teams were able to make presentations about their organizations.

Since it was the first Union Party in history, no one knew what to expect. Would it be the best party because more people were involved?

Or the worst one for the same reason? Partic­ ipants’ opinions, inclined more to the worst than to the best. The site was too small, the music was bad and the only people who had fun were the ones who drank.

“The only thing that didn’t meet my expec­ tations was the place. Union Pub is a good idea, but not when there are so many people,” said Madina Saulenbayeva, the President of KADA. Organizers said, one of the mistakes was that each organization focused only on its own tasks and they didn’t have enough time.

“For the first union event it was very good because it was our first experience, but I am sure that in the future we will do much better.

Now we know our mistakes and we will work on them,” said Symbat Kenessova, the presi­ dent of KIMEP Friends. Ω

#5 (��4), october 20�4

Supervising editors Ken Harvey Adil Nurmakov Photographers Balzhan Bekenova Ivan Martynenko Infographics Nurzhan Berkimbayev Layout design Alexander Konovalenko, www.tonkayagran.com Editor’s email kristina.nikulina@kimep.kz

State license #1689-A, January 13, 2001. Registered by the Ministry of Culture and Information of the Republic of Kazakhstan Printed by Asia Poly Press.

Almaty, ul. Muratbayeva, 61.

Tel. (+7 727) 397-84-62.

Order #1089 Circulation 2000 copies Previous issue archive kimep.kz/kimeptimes

Follow us online: fb.me/KimepNewspaper vk.com/kimeptimes instagram.com/kimep_times

KIMEP Students

7

Fall is time to fall in love New love story by Madi Aitimov The premier of Vlublennaya Alma-Ata 3 is planned for this coming January and Madi Aitimov’s new project is a romantic comedy called Hello, Fall. I have so much to tell you... (Привет, осень. Мне нужно тебе столько рассказать.)

Zarrina Mulloboeva

E

ven though the new movie retains the same title, the scope of the project and the Aitimov’s role is going to change significantly.

Aitimov, the graduate of KIMEP University also known as M. A. Cre­ ative, is a person who believes in true love, works full-time for Coca-cola but dreams of becoming a professional film director.

“During the summer, we live our lives differently. We fall in love, meet new people and bring lots of memo­ rable moments to our ordinary life,” says Aitimov, “and here comes the fall, when we usually take time to ‘digest’ all of this.”

In August Aitimov announced the

contest for the script and �0 authors sent their versions of scenario. How­ ever, only Temirlan Ilyasov’s version will be used for the shooting.

The title of the movie “Hello, fall.

I have so much to tell you...” is actu­ ally Erzhan Aldabergenov’s quote from his famous VK public page “korzhik*” (коржик*). The quote, according to Aitimov, totally corresponds to the feelings he has for this fall.

Aitimov says, the Vlyublennaya Alma-Ata 3 crew will spend October editing the scenario, recruiting more people and searching for the social project or the sphere of social respon­ sibility that could be supported by the future movie revenue.

Later, in November, the shooting will take place. According to Madi, shooting is usually a really fast

other gain; we just did what we like and had fun,” says Madi.

However, for the new movie things are going to change. Madi is se­ rious about taking his movie production to the next level; to make a fulllength movie with pro­ fessional cameramen and financing. The thing that is going to remain anyway is the social aspect of the project..

Madi’s interest in pro­ ducing videos and movies started while he was a stu­ dent at KIMEP University.

First, he starred in three movies produced by his friend and founder of the DigiDog student organiza­ tion, Dair Karakeyev. Then Madi realized that more than being an actor he likes to create movies.

“Everyone could have some problems. People find different solutions, escape in different things.

Madi escapes from all of his problems when he is shooting.

Ivan Martynenko I can always escape from my problems filming. six stories, which turned out to be process. During the last two movie I take camera, concentrate on the confusing for some people. Madi says shootings Madi’s team truly showed screen and all my problems just disap­ pear,” he says. that he takes criticism very seriously, its multi-functionality.

So far Madi’s portfolio consists of and therefore the new movie is going Madi smiles and explains, ”Actors, to be feature-length and combine only approximately 40 projects, big and right after the scene they played, small. From just a hobby, his interest four stories. would immediately become camera­ men or decorators and work this way in filming became part of his job and Previous movies were supported until they again become actors” essential part of his life. And he hopes by pure enthusiasm and Madi’s own The last movie, “Vlublennaya his dream of becoming a professional money.

Alm-Ata-2”, was a short and combined director will come true soon. Ω “We didn’t chase the fame or any

Never back down There are a lot of things that we dream of, but sometimes we have no financial power to fulfill them. A KIMEP student has a recipe to get things done.

Alina Tuleugazy

Young businessmen thought that it would be nice to have something to show that we are from KIMEP.

T-shirts open the way to real business T-SHIRTS (continued from page one)

50 T-shirts so far, mainly because three of the five team members left KIMEP for their exchange and master pro­ grams abroad. The majority of the T-shirts so far have been bought by exchange students and faculty members.

“Our starting capital was our own cash,” says Ture­ sheva, also majoring in finance,” and, for now, we are just getting back the cash that we invested. We haven’t completely covered our initial expense yet.”

The students invested approximately 25,000 tenge per person. For this money they bought 50 Bershka and Terranova T-shirts of different sizes and colors and made the “KIMEP University” print on them.

Young businessmen admit that they did not have any real business plan. They did not aim to make any profit; they just wanted to feel like real-world business people.

“Some faculty members advised us to continue to develop our idea,” Turesheva says. “Alessandro Frigerio, for instance, suggested we create designs using the department divisions such as BCB and CSS.” However the students do not plan anything for the future of the project rather than to finish selling the remaining T-shirts.

“If students want to have different clothes and other things with the KIMEP University brand, they should start organizing it themselves,” says Turesheva. “No one is going to do that for them.”

Last year students from Korea were ordering jackets with the “KIMEP University” on the back side from Korea. The cost was around �5,000 tenge. Many Korean regular and exchange students were seen wearing these jackets.

Until 20�� the activity of producing KIMEP-branded clothes was undertaken by the “Proud of KIMEP” proj­ ect founded by members of the KIMEP Entrepreneurs’ Club.

They suggested that the KIMEP community to buy their double-​branded “Proud of KIMEP” T-shirts, polo shirts and hoodies at reasonable prices, which varied from 4000 tenge for the T-shirt to 9000 tenge for the hoodie. Those who buy should be driven by their devo­ tion and pride from being a part of KIMEP. Their product was of Old Navy America brand and was widely criticized because of the high prices, even though members of the Entrepreneurs’ Club claimed that their prices were lower than those of the same brand sold in MEGA shopping mall. Ω

Alexander Konovalenko

Ayna Kebayeva

C

hynara Erkulova , a thirdyear KIMEP University student from Kyrgyzstan, got an op­ portunity to make her dream of going abroad come true. She says that this chance could easily pass by if she didn’t step in and fought for it.

Being impulsive and persistent, Chynara, 20, wanted to travel overseas to gather knowledge from all over the world, and in 20�3, she made it through to the Global Village for Fu­ ture Leaders of Business and Industry, a program hosted annually by the Le­ high University in Pennsylvania, USA. Being oriented on young and motivated people, it combines meetings, lectures, study tours and group projects. In 20�3 the program brought together �07 students from 52 countries and united them under one common goal.

Chynara, being raised in a big family, decided not to burden her parents by asking them to sponsor the trip. She got financial support through the U. S. government’s FLEX program but still needed money to cover her transportation expenses.

However, she is not the one who gives up dreams when faced with difficulties. Instead, she came up with an idea of crowdsourced fundraising.

FLEX helped her by posting Chynara’s request for help on their website, but the rest of the work was her own.

She was writing to all friends and ac­ quaintances around the world, asking them to contribute. Citizens of foreign countries, seminar organizers and Peace Corps helped Chynara in her endeavour.

“I visited nearly 40 Kyrgyz compa­

Don’t give up dreams when you face financial difficulties. nies, asking for support, but only one heard me out and donated $ 600,” says Chynara. She gathered $ 700 more online, and was very surprised to receive $ 300 from a U. S. citizen, whom she has never known in person.

Positively shocked by such empathy, Chynara expressed her gratitude by sending a postcard to each of her crowdfunder.

First fundraising success embold­ ened Chynara to start a new one—this time, to study her exchange semester in Singapore last Spring semester. She created a web-page indiegogo​.com and repeated her campaign step-by-step.

She asked friends to share the link and spread the word on her behalf. This time Chynara asked for less, making it easier for the people to donate. By now, she has already collected $ �350 online and $ �200 offline.

“In fundraising it is very important to show gratitude to those, who made a contribution, even the smallest one.

Every bit counts,” says Chynara. “My advice is: Never back down!” Ω

8 Time Off

The chronicle of week­days & drunkends

K

ate Padyukova , fourth year Journalism student from KIMEP Uni­ versity, enjoys every day of her life. Whatever she enjoys becomes a topic for her cartoon drawings. The characters of the cartoons are her friends, family and everyone she meets during her weekdays and so-called drunkends. “I think those situations in which I find myself everyday are un­ usual and I don’t want to simply forget everything. I save that special fleeting joy in my cartoons,” she says. Kate always has a notepad in her bag so as not to lose a single idea.

TASTY ISSUES

Austrian roasted pork Sitora Khaldarova

A

ustria is the motherland of famous composers whose names are familiar to all of us from childhood: Mozart, Haydn, Schubert, Liszt, Strauss, Mahler... Their musical masterpieces were created while eating gourmet food and drinking noble’s wine!

Do you want to feel that atmosphere? Turn on the wonderful composition “Requiem for a Dream,” prepare to eat something very delicious and enjoy it together with Christian, David and Andreas!

These Austrian guys know how to make “a holiday belly.” and they decided to cook their traditional Roasted Pork. The history of the Austrian Roasted Pork dates back as far as you cannot imagine.

It was one of the first foods that people had access to, especially on holidays.

Preparation

INGREDIENTS

Step �. The meat must be marinated 5 kilos pork meat 2 days before cooking. (For the marinade 1 kilo potatoes it is better to use all the spices and oil.

5 garlic cloves Mash the garlic cloves can give the dish pepper a unique flavor.) salt paprika Step 2. Put marinated meat into the powder caraway fridge. oil Step 3. �60°C is the perfect temperature to heat the oven.

Step 4. Before putting our meat into the oven, it is recommended to slice the crust. Also, if you will add some potatoes, the meat will look much more appetizing.

Step 5. After about 2 hours of cooking, the dish is ready. * Sauerkraut (sold at Interfood) can be served as a perfect addition.

Do not forget to turn on a composition of Mozart and...

Bon appetite!

Sitora Khaldarova

Christian Thaller, David Zotter and Andreas Hochradner, exchange students from FH Steyr, Austria.

LA POÉSIE О тебе

***

Упиваться твоей болью Я с готовностью буду первой — Чтобы не было пресно — солью, Чтобы не было скучно — стервой.

Мы зачастую ценим в людях то, Чего не можем сами дать. Ты уважаешь честных и отважных? А сам порой боишься правду принимать. Ты хочешь быть любимым? О чем ты небеса молил? А сам когда в последний раз ты

искренне любил? Ты ценишь их за личность? За то что прямо говорят? А сам людей боишься, И бесхребетно пляшешь в такт. Ты их за яркость чтишь? За то что светятся сердца? Ведь сам давно ты сер как мышь, И где теперь твоя мечта? Ты ценишь в них решительность и пыл, Ведь сам не сделав выбор, Ты руки опустил. Что говорить о чистоте

перед Всевышним, Коль ценишь ты людей святых, Уже деяний своих грешных Ни перед кем не утаишь. Ты ценишь искренних людей, Что улыбаются так от души? Ведь сам погряз по пояс В своей ты в искренней во лжи. Что? Больно слышать правду? Но так приятно ведь когда она в стихах. Так стань же тем, кто ценит Что он имеет на руках.

С нервов буду сдувать мыслинки, Протирать их с такооой лаской Да любить тебя по-старинке, Заливаясь и в 40 краской. Не напрасно так часто снишься. Безучастно в тебя верю. А от этого строки выше, Хоть и настежь открыты двери; Нараспашку мои окна — Сквозняком продувает город. Из того же метала соткан, Что и я. Благо, все еще молод. Мне давно не 20, ты в курсе. Минус �00 в городах-людях, Больно холодно в них, слишком пусто. Зарываясь в свои худи, Нервно курят со смехом на граунде. Валиханов пропитан дымом (Ведь, не зря там проходят фаунды). Минутку. Сейчас остыну. Так о чем я... ах да. Снова. О тебе. О тебе. Смачно. Мне б, как у Дорна наивное Лова-лова, Жаль, что я ничего для тебя не значу.

Нигина Муминова

Абай Амантаев

ZhasCamp’14 открывает двери! Молодежная [не] конференция ZhasCamp пройдет 25–26 октября в университете им. Сулеймана Демиреля в Алматы.

ЗДЕСЬ ОБСУЖДАЮТ общественные инициативы и лидерство, бизнес, new media и искусство В программе — Тренды в сфере молодежной и социальной политики.

— Лучшие зарубежные практики в решении проблем молодежи.

— Презентации проектов и идей региональных лидеров.

— Примеры социально-ответственного бизнеса и успешных стартапов.

— Обзор новых media-технологий и погружение в современное искусство.

— Конкурсы, вечеринки и новые знакомства. Формат [Не] конференция длится 2 дня, 25–26 октября, субботу и воскресенье, с 10 до 17 часов. В этом году Camp пройдет в загородном формате — в кампусе университета им. Сулеймана Демиреля, г. Каскелен близ Алматы. Для участников и гостей будут организованы бесплатные автобусы до места проведения (утром) и обратно (вечером). Как принять участие? Регистрация открыта на www.zhascamp.kz! Участие бесплатно и доступно для молодежи от 14 до 29 лет.

***

Организатор события: Молодежная информационная служба Казахстана (misk.org.kz)

Слова свинцовые застыли на устах, Душа томилась в поисках спасенья; И обретя желанное забвенье, Оставив жизнь как смерти подношенье, В спокойствии, что дарит вдохновенье, Поэт всю душу оставлял в стихах.

Место проведения: Университет им. Сулеймана Демиреля (sdu.edu.kz)

По всем возникшим вопросам, пожалуйста, пишите или звоните: Офис: + 7 705 675 25 03, zhascamp@gmail.com, vk.com/zhascamp, on.fb.me/1t1xcaZ, twitter.com/ZhasCamp_KZ

Олень Нигина Муминова. Illustration: Copyright 2013 Thomas Gehrke. Distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution–​NonCommercial–​ NoDerivs 2.0 License. flic.kr/p/eZF2bR Абай Амантаев. Photo: Maira Sarsembekova Олень. Photo: Assem Yerkenova

Данияр Бексултан, координатор региональных участников, + 7 705 675 70 70