Tatiana Alexandrova, Pericles' May Student of the Month, symbolizes the twin desires for diversity and excellence that we at Pericles prize. Tatiana is a first year student in the Pericles LL.M. program, and has proven herself by achieving all A's in her very first term at Pericles. This feat is so rare that we choose to honor her as Student of the Month.
Tatiana's professional history reflects her constant desire to learn and succeed in today's challenging, ever-changing environment. Tatiana originally graduated from unviersity in Kazakhstan with a degree as a music teacher. She quickly recognized that in order to be better equiped for the future, and to help her family, she needed more education and better language skills. She worked hard studying English, and in 1996 started to work for the United States Agency for International Development (USAID).
At USAID, Tatiana worked on the Trade and Investment Project, aimed at assisting the government of Kazhakstan to join the World Trade Organization (WTO); more importantly, her work on the project put her in a legal environment and led to her eventual legal education. Tatiana worked directly with a number of international attorneys on projects that ranged from modernizing Kazakh codes and bringing them into compliance to international standards, to organizing seminars for government officials on the WTO. During this time, she studied law, and in 2000 graduated from the Adelit High Law School in Kazakhstan and began work as a project attorney for USAID.
In 2004, Tatiana decided to move to Moscow to work on the Customs Modernization Project, a project funded by the World Bank aimed at doing a comparative analysis of the Russian Customs Code and the Revised Kyoto Convention. The project was headed by a WTO lawyer, Stephen Creskoff, and it was Mr. Creskoff who first informed Tatiana about Pericles. She had always wanted to take an LL.M. program, but time and money considerations had restricted her. Tatiana did not feel quite ready to enrole in an LL.M. program, but instead took a one-year graduate course at Moscow State Legal Academy in order to better prepare herself for practicing law in Russia.
After the Customs Modernization Project terminated, Tatiana began to work at the Russian Retail Firm, Maratex. Her job requires dealing with complex international legal issues and a high level of skill. Tatiana had been dreaming of an LL.M. for eight years, but had never had the opportunity. She joined our program at Pericles to gain a high quality advanced legal education, without the need to leave her family and career for a year. Since joining the Pericles LL.M., she has been promoted to head of her legal department. Her future goals include taking part in Pericles' USD exchange program next year, and perhaps international consulting in the farther future.
Besides being a proven professional, we at Pericles believe she is a model to all who dream to learn and achieve more. Tatiana has balanced career, education, family, and difficult choices and changes with a level of success others dream about. Her first semester A's are just another indication of excellence.
