Sociology Week: Interview with Gulnara Ibraeva

April 16, 2013

Tell us a little about yourself

I was born unexpectedly for myself and that is why I wasn’t prepared to manage the impression. That’s what I can explain about drops and turns in my destiny. I have started my professional biography as a journalist, but then I realized that my destiny is sociology. At least the destiny of sociology is my destiny…I got it late, but tight. Since that moment, no one is able to convince me at least in the fact, that sociology has such destiny- and there is a place for me, too.

Why do you teach at AUCA when you could be teaching anywhere?/Is there anything special about AUCA?

I have already taught in all humanitarian universities of our city. AUCA is the best place where there are opportunities to move forward in intellectual and professional sense. In AUCA I can compare and take advantages from the two systems of education- old Soviet school and new American in the format of liberal arts, and the coefficient of meeting extraordinary students is higher.

You have won the award “Best Teacher of AUCA”, teaching excellence special award named for Dr.Dryer. What do you think made it possible?

Only loyal attitude of my colleagues, administration, and number of years, which I was able to devote for serving to the university and students

What kind of jobs can graduates of Sociology find?

Sociologists are demanded in any field I am aware of. We are equally in demand in business, state and civil structures. We are able to analyze, to research and to develop programs and proposals in sphere of politics, economy, culture, art, and science…Sociology has more importance than just professional knowledge and skills. It is a system of life knowledge, which allows being more effective and successful in any professional field, because sociologists understand the mechanisms of constructing of the phenomenon and processes. They have skills in multi variant analyses of all events and processes in human life.

What would you advice to prospective students of Sociology? What is necessary to enter this department?

The main thing for prospective student of our department is the possession of high motivation to learn, to be open to the new and non-obvious knowledge and experience, and the sociological imagination.

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