Gulmira Yermakhanova

Hi everyone! My name is Gulmira. I am from Kazakhstan, a developing and independent country in Central Asia. My undergraduate degree is in medical care, and I have a Master’s degree in Public Health. Both degrees were completed in my country in 2004 and 2008, respectively.

In 2013, I received a scholarship from my government to study English at VCU. Therefore, in 2014, I came to Richmond and studied at the ELP at VCU for 6 months. I began at level 2 in the spring semester and advanced to level 3 during the short summer semester. At the beginning of the ELP, my level of English was very poor. The ELP classes helped me to improve my language skills, especially my oral communication skills. Thanks to the ELP, I have attended many events and conferences in the US and have been able to present poster presentations, which bolstered my confidence in using English.

Furthermore, my ELP experience helped me to achieve my academic and professional goals. After 6 months of studying at the ELP, I participated in a 10-month internship in healthcare policy and research at the VCU School of Medicine. Thanks to the ELP, it was easy to take part in lectures, seminars, and workshops, because I could easily understand often complicated concepts and participate in discussions. I even gave a poster presentation in the Global Health Symposium Showcase at VCU and received first prize for the award, “Best Poster –Research”.

I am so grateful for the ELP. Not only did the ELP improve my English, but it also opened my mind and increased my knowledge. Moreover, I had a chance to meet many wonderful people from different countries. I am also very thankful to the well-trained ELP teachers. They helped me to understand my weak points and encouraged me not to be afraid of making mistakes. They constantly motivated me to keep improving the language.

Currently, I work as the head of the clinical trials sector at the Medical Center Hospital of the President’s Affairs Administration of the Republic of Kazakhstan. And, I can definitely say that the English language is very important in my career development.