Jonah Helwig and R.A. Bloomfield studied abroad on the Policy and Conflict program in Kyiv, Ukraine with SRAS and Novamova in Spring, 2020. SRAS is deeply grateful to both for speaking out here about their time abroad as LGBTQ+ individuals.   Did you meet local members of the LGBTQ+ community while in Kyiv? What was […]

Jonah Helwig has been studying Russia, Eastern Europe and Eurasian history for two years at Stetson University in Florida. He studied abroad with SRAS and Novamova in Kyiv on the Policy and Conflict program. Jonah hopes that the knowledge he gains about conflicts and possible solutions will assist him in a future career in the […]

My arrival in Kyiv can be summed up in two words: CULTURE SHOCK! Driving into the city from the airport I saw dozens of Soviet-style apartment buildings. Rundown and leftover from the Cold War, they were 20-storey-tall, real-life pieces of history that I had only ever read of in books and seen in pictures. I […]

The first step to studying abroad is choosing where to study abroad. It’s not a simple decision! I struggled a lot in this aspect, but landed on Kyiv because it seemed like a unique place, and I thought I could really improve my Russian language. It didn’t hurt that Kyiv is pretty cheap compared to […]

What is life in Kyiv really like? Very often when people in the West think of cities in Eastern Europe, they think of cold, grey landscapes and shortages of basic goods. Kyiv today, however, is a vibrant, colorful place overflowing with street culture, great food, and a global assortment of goods. To help you stay […]

“Travel is the most intense mode of learning”- Kevin Kelly, executive editor of Wired magazine   Eight months ago, my year of studying abroad began. I arrived in Tbilisi, Georgia as part of the Policy and Conflict in the Post-Soviet Space (PCON) program. Over the course of the following fall semester, I travelled all across […]

The past semester with SRAS’ Policy and Conflict program has been full of amazing adventures, a lot of Russian practice, travel throughout four countries (Georgia, Armenia, Moldova, and Ukraine), delicious food, and certainly several moments of pure culture shock. There were a few times I learned some lessons the hard way, but I ultimately survived […]

When I was preparing to study abroad, one of the hardest decisions I had to make was where I was going to live: with a host family or in the dorms. This was a topic that I pondered over for weeks, trying to weigh the pros and cons of both options. Several of my friends […]