Russian freshman wants to play China's stories to the world

At the opening ceremony of East China University of Science and Technology on Sept 12 in Shanghai, Russian freshman Kozhukhova Kseniia, majoring in business administration, took the stage as the international student representative. 

Known by her Chinese name Lin Mohan, the young woman impressed the audience with her fluent Mandarin and a poetic metaphor drawn from her love of the guqin, a traditional seven-stringed zither with a history of more than 2,000 years in China.

"A single string produces only a monotonous note; only when each string vibrates with its own timbre and echoes the others does a complete melody is born," Kozhukhova said, elaborating on her interpretation of the Chinese concept of hehe gongsheng, which means harmonious coexistence.

"We are different, yet together we create something beautiful."

Kozhukhova is among more than 1,100 international students currently enrolled at the university. These students come from over 100 countries. Degree-seeking students make up 67 percent of the cohort, pursuing bachelor's, master's, and doctoral programs. 

As a key research university in China featuring distinctive disciplines and a balanced curriculum of science, engineering, materials, computer, economics, management, arts and law, it attracts international students come from six continents. 

Kozhukhova's journey to Shanghai began with a fascination for Chinese characters. She was struck by how the character for "harmony" (he) combines symbols for "grain" and "mouth" suggesting a world where people share both food and their voices. To her, learning Chinese was never just about mastering a language but about understanding a worldview. 

Choosing the university, she said, is a "long-term investment". She believes that the world needs more young people who are capable of speaking the Chinese language as well as being skilled at management. She was drawn to the university's reputation as a hub for international education, particularly its role as a key destination for students from the Belt and Road Initiative countries and its extensive partnerships with global institutions.

After graduation, Kozhukhova plans to return to Russia to manage a Chinese language school.

"If every Chinese teacher is a string, I want to be the tuner," she said. "I want to help more strings vibrate together and play China's stories to the world."