Master's degree students from the Faculty of Agricultural Technology of S. Toraighyrov Pavlodar State University had a research internship at the University of Food Technologies in Plovdiv, Bulgaria.

Founded in 1953 as the Higher Institute of Food and Flavor Industries (HIFFI), the University of Food Technologies now combines a half-century's experience with modern methods and dynamic approach to teaching and research.

Botagoz Manarbekova and Nurlybek Katkenov, Master's degree students in Biotechnology, had a research internship at the invitation of Professor Stefan Dragoev. During this internship, they learned about the methods of using modern equipment, worked in research laboratories and used the resources of the University library to collect information for their Master's theses.

“We used this internship to systematize the knowledge we had gained over the years of studying at PSU. One of the most essential features of any research internship is its practical orientation, i.e. the ability to apply one's theoretical knowledge in practice,” said Nurlbek Katkenov.

“We worked closely with Professor Stefan Dragoev, Vice-Rector for International Cooperation Nikolai Menkov and Professor Albert Krstanov. We presented the results of our research, discussed some problems relating to our theses and received valuable advice for further work,” said Botagoz Manarbekova.

At the end of the internship, students received certificates. Members of the receiving university noted a high level of PSU students' language proficiency and topicality of their research. Moreover, they expressed their intention to provide assistance to PSU Master's degree students in entering PhD programs in Bulgaria.