On November 24, the awarding ceremony of the prize-winners of the 2023 Student of the Year contest took place in the Assembly Hall, Bldg. 10.

It was organised by the Council of Undergraduates and Postgraduates, SSU. There were ten main nominations in total – Athlete of the Year, Volunteer of the Year, Journalist of the Year, Student Leader of the Year, Student Brigades Member of the Year, Creative Personality of the Year, Young Researcher of the Year, Mentor of the Year, Headman of the Year, and Freshman of the Year. In the correspondence stage, the participants had sent a video CV and portfolio, then made a self-presentation, and finally met in the finals.

The awarding ceremony began with a welcoming speech by Acting Rector of Saratov State University, Vice-Rector for Secondary Vocational Education and Social Work Olga Nesterova. ‘This competition has been held for the sixth time in a row, and it has become popular, students like it, and the large number of applications that were submitted to the competition proves it. Today, we will see the best – those who have achievements in some area, real leaders in twelve directions!’

Head of the Office for Research Olga Moskalenko awarded the Young Researcher of the Year nominees – Nikita Maisin, a student of the Faculty of Economics, took 3rd place, Pavel Brazhnik, a student of the Faculty of Law, took 2nd place. The winner was Dmitrii Nozhkin, a student of the Institute of Physics.

Next, the awards were presented to the participants of the Journalist of the Year nomination. 3rd place was taken by a student of the Faculty of Geology Polina Laiter, 2nd place was taken by a student of the Faculty of Law Maria Pokrovskaya, and 1st place was taken by a master’s degree student of the Institute of Philology and Journalism Daniil Pronin.

Head of the Education Office Sergei Udalov awarded the athletes of the year – Tatana Sharabarina, a student of the Faculty of Biology (3rd place), Artem Byoorodin, a student of the Faculty of Psychological, Pedagogical, and Special Needs Education (2nd place), and Polina Bobrovich, a student of the Faculty of Law (1st place).

The first-year students of the year were Konstantin Povarov, a student of the Faculty of Law (3rd place), Polina Zaitseva, a student of the Faculty of Biology (2nd place), and Artyom Romanov, a student of the Institute of History and International Relations (1st place).

Vice-Rector for Youth Policy and Organisational Work Anton Golovchenko congratulated the finalists of the Student Brigades Member nomination – a student of the Faculty of Philosophy Angelina Bogatova (3rd place), a student of the Institute of Physics Sergei Zakharov (2nd place), and a student of the Faculty of Psychological, Pedagogical, and Special Needs Education Anastasia Druzhinina (1st place).

The prize-winners of the Student Leader of the Year nomination became Nikita Pavlov, a student of the Faculty of Biology (3rd place), Anastasia Rezayeva, a student of the Faculty of Psychological, Pedagogical, and Special Needs Education (2nd place), and Snezhana Ivanova, a student of the Faculty of Law (1st place).

Vice-Rector for Administrative Work and Human Resources Management Andrei Stalmakhov presented the awards to the finalists of the Headman of the Year nomination. 3rd place was taken by a student of Geology College Suzanna Avdalyan, 2nd place – a student of the Faculty of Law Tatyana Shvedova, and the winner was a student of the Faculty of Geography Tamerlan Zhumashev.

The volunteers of the year were Ksenia Yerokhina, a student of the Faculty of Mathematics and Mechanics (3rd place), Anton Zuyev, a student of the Institute of Chemistry (2nd place), and Olesya Ulyanova, a student of the Faculty of Mathematics and Mechanics (1st place).

A student of the Faculty of Foreign Languages and Language Teaching Methods Anastasia Kuzmenko (3rd place), a student of the Faculty of Law Elena Konopleva (2nd place), and a student of the Faculty of Psychology Juliana Yegorova (1st place) became the finalists of the Mentor of the Year nomination.

During the awarding ceremony, a 5-minute voting for People’s Choice Award was launched in the hall. It was won by a fourth-year student of the Faculty of Law Snezhana Ivanova.

At the end of the event, Acting Rector of Saratov State University Olga Nesterova awarded the absolute winner of the 2023 Student of the Year contest. Snezhana Ivanova, a fourth-year student of the Faculty of Law, won the Grand Prix and this honourary title. ‘Thanks to the university for the opportunity, thanks to the Council for organising the contest, thanks to my beloved Faculty of Law and our management! Thanks to my team – our student council of the faculty. Seeing their bright-eyed faces, I understand why I am doing all this!’

Between honouring the prize-winners of the competition, the festive mood on the stage was set by creative teams and members of the SSU Student Club – the Singing team, SSU, a student of the Institute of Philology and Journalism Karina Utaliyeva with her dancing performance, a student of the Faculty of Mathematics and Mechanics Alexander Vaitsul with his singing performance, and others.

This year, more than 100 students from the different faculties, institutes, and colleges of SSU have applied for the SSU Student of the Year competition.