International Students Testimonials

Daodao Yang, China

National Research University – Higher School of Economics

I was influenced by Russian mathematics

I am originally from Dali in southwestern China and graduated from the Beijing University of Posts and Telecommunications with a degree in Communication Engineering in 2014. In 2016, I received MSc degree in Mathematics in Higher School of Economics in Moscow.

 In high school I became interested in topology after reading a book by the Soviet mathematicians Vladimir Boltyansky and Vadim Yefremovich. Thus I was already influenced by Russian mathematics. When I applied to Master’s programmes, I received offers from HSE, New York University, and the Berlin Mathematical School. Ultimately I decided to go to HSE because I found an advisor who I wanted to work with.

A number of excellent mathematicians work at HSE. More importantly, these mathematicians are very kind and willing to spend time with students. On average, I met once a week with my advisor, Professor Vassiliev, who was patient and very helpful. Over the course of the program’s two years, he has spent more than 200 hours meeting with me outside of class to help me understand the modern language of mathematics.

The academic atmosphere at HSE is quite nice. Both undergraduate and graduate students are very active in class discussions and ask many interesting questions. It’s exciting and inspiring to study with such smart peers.

I was surprised to see so many undergraduate students performing research under the academic supervision of excellent mathematicians. A number of young students have made significant achievements and it is rare for undergraduate students to receive such high-level research training – which is an excellent Russian tradition.

In my opinion, the math education and research training methods at HSE are among the most successful in the world.