40 first-year students studying geophysics, geoinformation systems and hydrogeology at School of Subsurface Resource Management had their first field internship at the INRTU in Chernorud (Olkhonsky District).

Summer internship in Chernobyl is the first real contact with their future profession for the majority of students who have chosen to major in geology. The internship organisers tried to make the programme of the event as intensive as possible. Immediately after rising (at 7.30) and breakfast students actively joined in the work: carried out field tests at the site, went on survey geological paths, got acquainted with the latest models of geophysical and geochemical equipment, listened to lectures of famous experts. Practical training was supervised by senior lecturer of the Applied Geology, Geophysics and Geoinformation Systems Department Natalia Egorova.

As Yuriy Davydenko, Director for Marketing and Project Education of Siberian School of Geosciences, noted, this was the first time during the practical training when under the guidance of experienced teachers first-year students had an opportunity to conduct a geochemical survey of the area adjacent to the base and immediately conduct an express analysis of the data obtained.

"In the first days of practice, a group of geologists and geochemists from Siberian School of Geosciences came to the base," says Yury Davydenko. - They brought a X-ray fluorescent analyzer, which allows us to determine more than 50 chemical elements, and set up a geochemical survey on the polygon with a grid of 100 by 20 meters. Thus, students could not just see, but also take part in real field research: they took samples, processed them, packed them, properly signed off, took part in rapid analysis, and later analysed the data obtained. I would like to note the most important thing: there were no indifferent trainees - everyone got involved in the work. How our students' eyes lit up when they were lucky to see in action a new development of Sigma-Geo - a station for magnetotelluric sounding and equipment for probing by formation of the field Fast Snap. A group of researchers under the guidance of Maxim Sharov held a class for the children: they showed how the system works, told us about their profession. We did not even expect that all this will cause such a lively interest among our students: most of those present did not leave the equipment - they asked questions, discussed, communicated with experts"

Yuriy Davydenko also lectured to the students on electrical prospecting. Alexander Parshin, scientific head of the Siberian School of Geosciences, and Olga Kachor, head of the geoecology department at INRTU, came to Czernorud specifically to talk to the trainees. They told about geoinformation systems and ecology, introduced the students to the principles of radiometric equipment operation, and conducted an aerogamma survey at the polygon adjacent to the base.

The most popular activity at the Cernorud base in the short leisure hours was a volleyball court battle. Several times students went hiking on the shore of Lake Baikal (about 5 km). And in one evening the conference hall was turned into a cinema - they watched a film "Territory about geologists' work.

At the end of the internship the majority of its participants made their first conscious choice, connected with the direction in their future profession - someone signed up in geochemistry, someone in geophysics, someone decided to become a specialist in the field of geoinformation technologies, etc. In addition, the volunteers went to the very real field work after the internship, after which they will be able to become employees of Siberian School of Geosciences.