At the defense itself, which was held within the framework of the double diploma program, Karsten Drebenstedt, director of the Mining Institute of the Freiberg Mining Academy, was present as a member of the grading committee and supervisor of the student on the German side. This shows once again that the academic environment remains an effective platform for the exchange of experiences and free access to knowledge.
Lukas Liebscher grew up in the small German town of Dieppoldiswalde, 15 km from Europe's largest silver deposit and the oldest mining and metallurgical university in the world, the Freiberg Mining Academy. While still at school, the young man, together with his class, repeatedly descended into the famous research mine "Reiche Zehe", which is open for excursions and gives an insight into the centuries-old history of mining in Saxony. The choice of the future profession was obvious.
Upon entering the academy, the young man learned that his alma mater has a long-standing partnership with the St. Petersburg Mining University that includes academic exchanges, summer schools, and dual-degree programs for students. The latter involves the deepest and longest immersion of young people in a new linguistic, cultural, educational and scientific environment. That's why Lucas chose it. In September 2021, after graduating from the specialty in Freiberg, the young man went to St. Petersburg, where he was enrolled immediately in the fifth year.
"For German specialists, your country's experience in the field of exploration and mining is of great value. I was given a year and a half to improve my knowledge and competence while studying under the guidance of Russian scientists. In Germany the emphasis is on the universality of the educational program. In Russia, on the other hand, from the long list of fields you are offered to choose a specific field that you will thoroughly study. So I chose "open pit mining". Due to foreign policy factors, I had to study one of the three semesters I was allocated - from February to September 2022 - remotely. However, a clear plan drawn up by St. Petersburg professors allowed me not only to meet the overall schedule, but also to complete a six-week industrial internship in Germany. I worked as a mining apprentice at a brown coal open-pit mine near Leipzig," says Lukas Liebscher.
At the beginning of the new academic year, the German student returned to St. Petersburg to complete his thesis project. The topic was formulated jointly by professors from the Russian and German sides. The work is devoted to the open-pit development of the Chuquicamata copper ore deposit in Chile.
The result of Lukas Liebscher's trip to Russia was a diploma from St. Petersburg Mining University. After his return to his home country, the newly minted specialist will also receive a diploma from the German academy. He is sure that this will increase his chances that the employer will choose him among young engineers. In the future, the young man plans to work not only in Germany but also abroad, particularly in Eastern Europe and the former CIS countries, where his knowledge of Russian will be a competitive advantage. To date, the student already has an agreement to work with the mine construction company Redpath Deilmann, which leads projects around the world.
"Studying here has been a great honor. My path is a clear example that education and science are beyond politics. For me personally, it is the diploma from Russia's oldest technical university that means full completion of higher education in the field of mineral resources development. The university is world-renowned as an institution of high-quality education in the field of mining, and no external circumstances will be able to change that. I am convinced that potential employers will appreciate the fact that their future employee has done more than is necessary for their own development," Lucas concluded.
More than 600 international students from Africa, Latin America, Asia, the East and Europe, including Serbia, the Czech Republic, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia, are currently studying at St. Petersburg Mining University.
