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30 years ago a job in IT was something for a nerdy guy who watches Star Trek and can't get a date for Saturday night. Whereas now, it is something for..... er, ah, ahem, nevermind.........Russian women
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Now we know how those Golden Globe winners feel when they are so afraid they will leave someone out of their thank you's. The thoughtful, intelligent, educated and concerned replies are trully overwhelming. Left to our own devices we probably would have screwed this up but by carefully considering everyones point of view believe we have landed on the right square.
We believe our decision will allow us to continue as a loving caring family, allow Dasha to get a great education that will lead to great career opportunities. We believe she'll be in the right place at the right time with the right credentials.
Here's what we're going to do: (drum roll please)
Dasha will be moving to St. Petersburg and enrolling in St. Petersburg State University School of Economics. We are extremely confidant she will be admitted. She was the gold medal recipient in her secondary school and as a result of her associates degree from the US will only have to pass exams in math and a foreign language. (her English is better than mine and she aces her calc and stat classes)The other exams will be waived. Chances are very good she will be a scholarship student so there will be little if any cost. Friends of hers attentd the school and they did not perforn nearly as well as she did at the scendary level. Limited research indicates the school is excellent. They have partnerships with other great schools in Europe and she has agreed to pursue part of her studies at the partner schools which we think will be great experience for her. She will finish a 5 year program that is the US equivalent of a masters degree. She will be attending a tier one Russian school vs a tier two state school in the US. We're not sure if all of her credits will transfer but aren't real concerned if she loses a few and has to stay in school an extra semester or two.
Because they own their flat her basic cost of living will be insignificant for the rest of her life. Her career and salary resulting from this education should not only be adequate but considering the cost of living she will be borderline affluent.
In addition to carrying 21 credit hours she will be working part time from now through May or June. Once she has saved $2,000 we will pay her way to Russia. She will then assume responsibilty for 50% of all her costs as long as her savings last. She has also promised to work part time. (probably teaching English.......can you help us with opportunities Phil d'?)Once she has proven serious in all this we take over all the costs and continue to pay as long as she keeps her nose to the grindstone. Marina will be going with her to initiate her enrollment and also establish contacts that will allow us to monitor her progress.
She has agreed that Pasha (the boyfriend) will not move in with her and understands all bets are off if he does. Marina and her mother from Mariupol, Ukraine will each make two or three trips a year to Russia. The 12-14 weeks per year should give us pretty conclusive evidence of whether she is holding up her end of the bargain.
One of the biggest factor's in our decision was empirical examination of Dasha's decision making. While often a typical teenage girl, when making decisions regarding her education and future she has been remarkably mature and concientious. We also applied the fact that 10's of thousands of young people leave home in their late teens to pursue their own dreams. In our case she's just travelling a few more miles than usual. As she joyously observed, she's not leaving home..........she's going home.
In conclusion. We tried it our way and it didn't work. So, now we're going to take a shot at doing it hers.
Thank you again,
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