The third stage of the international student practice that ended in the JINR University Centre on 24 September gathered in Dubna students from Belarus, Serbia and the Republic of South Africa. On the day of the defense of educational and research projects the 437th lecture-room of the UC  could hardly accommodate 42 students, professors of universities of the RSA, who arrived the day before to become acquainted with the Joint Institute and the student practice, and supervisors of educational projects from JINR laboratories. Educational projects of FLNR and FLNP were the most popular among participants of this practice; they were attended by 18 and 13 students, respectively. Also, students chose projects of LRB, LIT, and BLTP. UC Director S.Z. Pakulyak presents the results of the accomplished practice course:

– The third stage of our summer student practice ends today.  The practice was traditionally attended by students from the RSA and Belarus, and this year they were joined by students from Serbia which is the JINR associated member. Students of this country came to our practice for the first time. This practice was attended by over 40 students, most of who are from the RSA, 8 from Belarus, 4 from Serbia. The practice was organized in a traditional way: at first there were excursions and lectures on the JINR fields of research, and then the guys worked on research projects in JINR laboratories. Today they report the results of their work and, on the whole, presentations demonstrate a high level of students’ training. We hope that some of them will establish scientific relations and will continue to work with laboratories or in the frames of the summer student programme, which has started this year (it will continue next year), or they will come here to work.

It is a second year during the student practice when we invite professors from RSA universities. This year, six professors came from several universities of the Republic. They will be acquainted with the organization of the practice, so they could select students to participate in the practice more purposefully. Yesterday they visited JINR laboratories, today they listen to reports of the students, and I hope they will get a correct understanding of tasks that the practice completes and opportunities that are offered to students. With regard to this particular practice, it already has at least two concrete results: guys found scientific leaders in LIT and FLNR who are ready to continue cooperation with them. One of the young men who carried out project in the fields of information technology, met Alexander Ayriyan and he is going to come here for him next summer in the frames of the summer student practice. And one student was so inspired by the excursion to FLNR and a lecture A.G. Popeko on the synthesis of super heavy elements that he wants to do his PhD thesis on this subject. We want to have more such examples, but even if there are several of them, it is still good because it means that the practice has achieved its results.

Olga Tarantina (JINR weekly newspaper "Dubna: science, community, progress")