Практикум 1 курс - устные темы

aim is to develop international transcontinental freight and passenger transport, and to create a common rail transport space in Eurasia.

Questions for discussion:

1.What made railways establish international railway organisations?

2.What did the UIC work out?

3.What does the UIC promote?

4.What does the Community of European Railways and Infrastructure Companies promote?

5.What does the International Rail Transport Committee implement?

6.What are the primary tasks of the Union of the European Railway Industries?

7.What are the international air rail organisations responsible for?

8.When was the European Conference of Ministers of Transport established?

9.Why are Russian railways important for Europe and Asia?

10.What is the main aim of OSLD?

Text 10: The Community of European Railways

The Community of European Railways is the leading European railway organisation and a part of the International Union of Railways. It was founded in 1988 with 12 members and now brings together 72 railway undertakings and infrastructure companies – private and state-owned, large and small.

European Railways recognize that their future depends on the international dimension.

At the international level the railways are relatively free to apply the most appropriate models in the common interest. The development of international train networks is accompanied by recognition of the need to adapt future services to the technological opportunities offered by high speeds and vehicle design and to the

67

principles of service marketing.

The governance structure of CER rests in three main bodies: the General Assembly, the Management Committee and the Assistants Group.

The General Assembly is the decision-making body of CER. All member companies are represented by their chief executive or director general.

The Management Committee prepares the decisions of the General Assembly. It consists of CER Chairman, three ViceChairmen and further members elected by the General Assembly. The size of the Management Committee is limited to a maximum of 14 members.

The Assistants Group helps to facilitate the continuous exchange of information between CER and its members. CER members are represented by their international/European affairs managers.

The goals of CER are: 1) to represent the railway’s interests, 2) to aid the development of the railway transportation and policy in the European Union, 3) to develop the partnership between the members of the European Union.

European Railways concentrate their efforts on effective speeds between economic centres, quality control and transit reliability, information systems and modal flexibility.

The development of high-speed lines and technology adds a new dimension to inter-urban opportunities for railway development. Nowadays European high-speed lines link economical centers and open opportunities for technological development of railway signaling, train construction and trading all over the world.

Questions for discussion:

1.What is the Community of European Railways?

2.What are the advantages of European Railways` cooperation?

3.What is the development of international train networks accompanied by?

68

4.What are the governance bodies of CER?

5.What is the decision-making body of CER?

6.What is the role of the Management Committee?

7.What is the Assistants Group responsible for?

8.What are the goals of CER?

9.What do European Railways concentrate their efforts on?

10.Why is the development of high-speed lines important for the future of the railways?

Appendix

№ 1: CURRICULUM VITAE (CV).

A Curriculum Vitae (CV) is a document which describes your education, work experience and skills you have already had. The purpose of the CV is to attract the employers’ attention. Therefore you need a good and well-structured CV.

A good CV should:

·Attract attention;

·Create a positive impression;

·Present your skills and qualities clearly and concisely.

Your CV has to be word processed and should be no more than one page long. A CV must be free of typographical and grammatical errors. The structure of a CV must follow a certain order. It is common to see the phrase CURRICULUM VITAE written in the centre of the page.

1. Personal data

Personal details should be shown at the beginning: name, family name, date of birth, address, marital status, phone number, e-mail.

2. Education and qualifications

List of educational institutions you attended (specifying the dates); subject areas you studied and degrees you got. List qualifications in full.

3. Work experience

Mention your present job first and work backwards, descriptions of

69

what exactly you did and were responsible for.

4.Relevant Information .

Any information which could be helpful (computer skills, languages you speak, driver’s license, hobbies, interests).

5. Referees

Give at least 2 referees: a former employer, a teacher.

Always be honest. It is possible to be creative, but not to lie. Remember, the first impression is the one that matters, so, your CV needs to be perfect!

№ 2: Sample

CURRICULUM VITAE

Education and Qualifications:

2009 – 2013 - Moscow State University of Railway Engineering: The Institute of Rail Operations and Information Technologies. Diploma of Specialist

2011 – 2012 - Linguistic Centre of the Institute of Humanities. Moscow. Fluent English. Basic knowledge of French.

1999 – 2009 - Secondary school № 5, Moscow. A Certificate of Complete Secondary Education

Work experience

July 2010 - August 2010 – “Saratov Car, Ltd” Position - Sales Executive

Responsibilities: receiving customers and suppliers; Dealing with home and overseas enquiries

70

Relevant information

PC user, driving license (A)

Interests

Jazz music and travelling

Referees

Mr. A. L. Gradov

The Head of the Sales Department “Saratov Car, Ltd”

Saratov. Volzhskiy Avenue. 17

Dr. N. V. Matveeva

The Teacher of Foreign Languages.

Linguistic Centre of Moscow State University of Railway Engineering. Obraztsova st.

№ 3: Sample

Dear Sir/Madam

I would like to apply for the job (position) of a Sales Executive in the Sales Department, advertised in the Moscow Times on 15 May.

As you see from my CV, I’ve got the education required for a Sales Manager. I have had some working experience and the best results in the sales team, with good knowledge of Practical sales techniques. I am also developing my language skills. My English is quite good, and I am taking evening classes at the University Language Centre to improve my level. I am dynamic,

71

creative, easy-going and with a strong team spirit.

If you consider that my qualifications and personal qualities are suitable, I’ll be available for interview at any time.

Yours faithfully,

Gleb Petrov

№ 4: THE RUSSIAN FEDERATION

POLITICAL SYSTEM OF THE RUSSIAN FEDERATION

The Russian Federation is separated into eight federal districts: Central, Northwestern, Southern, North Caucasus, Volga district, Ural district, Siberian, and Far Eastern district. All those are governed by President’s representatives.

NATIONAL SYMBOLS OF THE RUSSIAN FEDERATION

The state symbol of the Russian Federation is a three coloured banner. It has three horizontal stripes: white, blue and red. The white stripe symbolizes the earth, the blue one stands for the sky and the red one symbolizes liberty. It was approved by the Federal Assembly in 1991.

The Russian anthem ‘Russia, the holy State…” is written by A. Alexandrov (music) and S. Mikhalkov (words). A new national emblem of Russia (The Arms of Russia) is a doubleheaded eagle, which first came into use in the 1490s. The Coat-of – Arms of Russia is Our Lady of Vladimir.

MOSCOW

Moscow is the capital of Russia, its political, economic, commercial and cultural centre. It was founded by Prince Yuri

72

Dolgoruky. Historians have accepted the year 1147 as the start of the city’s history. In the 16th century Moscow became the capital of the new united state.

The Coat-of-Arms of Moscow is Saint George killing the dragon. Moscow is one of the largest cities in Europe. It stands on the river Moskva. The city is divided into administrative regions with those, in their turn, dividing into districts. There are 10 administrative regions, including Zelenograd, and 124 districts. The main street of Moscow is Tverskaya and the longest one is Leningradsky Prospect.

Moscow has five airports and is the main rail hub for Russia. Its main means of internal transport is the Metro, opened in 1935 and still constantly extended. Now it has 200 stations and is almost 340 km long.

№ 5: HIGHER EDUCATION INSTITUITIONS IN RUSSIA

Nowadays there are three basic types of higher education institutions in Russia. These are Universities, Academies and Institutes.

Universities: responsible for education and research in a variety of disciplines; There are "classical" and "technical" universities with special attention paid to social sciences and humanities or fundamental and applied (engineering) sciences.

Academies: responsible for education and research. They differ from universities only in that they restrict themselves to a single discipline;

Institutes: multi-discipline oriented. They can be independent structural units, or part of a university or academy and usually specialize in one field. However pedagogical institutes are responsible for all spectrums of disciplines taught at schools.

There are a lot of Private Institutions. They offer degrees in the fields such as business, culture, sociology and religion.

Famous higher education institutions of Russia

73

1. Lomonosov Moscow State University was established by a decree of Russian Empress Elizabeth on January 25 1755. January 25 is still celebrated as Student`s Day in Russia. In 1940 it was named after Academician Mikhail Lomonosov (1711 - 1765), an outstanding Russian scientist, who greatly contributed to the establishment of the university in Moscow. It is one of the oldest and largest Russian institutions of higher education. It also claims to have the tallest educational building in the world.

2.Saint Petersburg State University is one of the oldest, largest and most prestigious universities in Russia. Among the renowned scholars of the second half of the 19th century affiliated with the university were chemists Dmitri Mendeleev and physiologist Ivan Sechenov. It is disputed by the university administration whether Saint Petersburg State University or Moscow State University by Lomonosov is the oldest higher education institution in Russia. It has been in continuous operation since 1819, itself claims to be the successor of the university established on January 24, 1724 by a decree of Peter the Great.

3.Moscow State Institute of International Relations (MGIMO) was founded on 14 October 1944. It is the diplomatic school of the

Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Russia. It is the oldest and the most famous (renowned) school in Russia for preparing specialists in international relations and diplomacy. Nowadays many of its current students are from families of political, economic and intellectual elites in Russia. It is also known for having one of the best teaching team in Europe, many of whom were ambassadors or ministers. MGIMO is considered one of the top four leaderspreparing institutions representing three different political systems in the world: Harvard`s John F. Kennedy School of Government and Yale Law School Y in the US, Sciences Po Paris in France, and MGIMO in Russia.

4.Moscow State Linguistic University was established in 1804. It is the largest and the oldest university in Russia that specializes in linguistics and foreign languages. Education is available on 35 languages.

5.The Peoples' Friendship University of Russia was founded in

74

1960. It is an educational and research institution consistently ranked by the Ministry of Education of Russia as the country's third-best university after Moscow State University and Saint Petersburg State University.

6. Moscow State Technical University n.a. N.E. Bauman

(MSTU) was established in 1830 as Imperial Vocational School (Ремесленное училище,) by a decree of Emperor Nicolas I. Bauman MSTU is one of the oldest and largest Russian technical universities offering B.S., M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in various engineering fields and applied sciences (прикладная наука)

7.Moscow State University of Railway Engineering is one of the oldest and largest higher education institutions in Moscow and the leading largest higher education institutions in the field of railway transport in Russia. It was founded at 1896 on the command of the His imperial Majesty Nicolas II.

8.The Finance Academy under the Government of the Russian Federation is considered as the third best university in Russia and one of the oldest Russian universities preparing economists, financiers, bankers and financial lawyers. The history of the Finance Academy started on December 1918. In 2009 the Finance Academy celebrated 90 years of its history.

9.The I.M. Sechenov Moscow Medical Academy (MMA) is the oldest and the largest national medical higher educational institution in the Russian Federation. It was founded in 1758 as the faculty of medicine of Imperial Moscow University. From 1955 the Institute bears the name of Ivan M. Sechenov, the outstanding Russian scientist and physiologist. Moscow Medical Academy develops extensive scientific cooperation with medical research and training centres abroad. The I.M. Sechenov Moscow Medical Academy is rating among the best medical schools of the world. In 2008 the academy celebrated its anniversary – 250 years.

10.Moscow State Law Academy (MSLA) is the recognized leader in the Russian Federation in teaching and research in every branch of law. The Academy’s history goes back to December 1931. The Academy aims at preparing highly qualified lawyers to work in all walks of life: courts, prosecutors’ offices, law

75

enforcement and correctional institutions, state and administrative bodies, advocacy, public notary offices as well as in consultancy and advisory services.

№ 6: BRITAIN AND THE COMMONWEALTH

Britain is an active member of the Commonwealth, a voluntary association of 51 independent states which originated in the progressive dismantling of the British Empire after 1945.

The present members of the Commonwealth have many different styles of government. Some of the countries such as Canada ,are monarchies and recognize the Queen as their Head of State; others, such as India, choose their own Heads of State; some countries , such as the Falkland Islands, are British colonies rely on Britain for defence. All of the countries recognize the Queen as the Head of the Commonwealth; she is also head of State in 16 member countries. Consultation between members takes place through official meetings, as well as through diplomatic representatives and non-governmental organisations and other international discussions. Britain provides 30 per cent of the finances for the Commonwealth Secretariat and about 30 per cent for the Commonwealth Fund for Technical Co-operation, which provides expertise to all developing countries within the Commonwealth.

SYMBOLS OF GREAT BRITAIN

London is the capital of England. The national anthem of the UK is ‘God save the Queen.’

The symbol of the country is BRITANIA, the female embodiment wearing a helmet and holding the trident (the symbol of power over sea). The figure of BRITANIA has been on the riverside of many British coins for more than 300 years.

Britain’s flag is called the “Union Jack”. There are really three flags on the top of each other. The red cross is on the white background of St George for England. Saint George’s Day is

76