Testimonial by Xinyi Wei

My summer with ASPIRANTUM’s Persian program has been a fun and productive experience.The classes and structure of our classes are very flexible. Dr. Vardan Voskanyan, our Persian instructor, is especially happy to include materials that we are interested in. In his classes, we read scholarly articles, short stories, poetry, and historical sources. He is also generous to give additional sessions to those interested in materials beyond the class schedule. For example, he has given extra lectures on the Shahnameh, Turkish loaned words from Persian, as well as in-depth discussion on primary sources such as Rashid al-Din. Moreover, Dr. Voskanyan is also an encouraging instructor. With an hour of speaking practice in class each day, I feel that my spoken-Persian has also improved. 

Yerevan as a location offers surprisingly more opportunity for me to practice speaking Persian than what I had previously imagined. During our visits to the Blue Mosque, my fellow participants and I met Iranians who were generous with their time to help us improve our speaking. These encounters also provide incentives for us to explore and enjoy the city.

The weekly activities that ASPIRANTUM organizes for us are the highlight of my summer. Khachik Gevorgyan, the director of the program, arranges all kinds of cultural activities that allow us to learn and enjoy the history and beauty of Armenia. Dr. Voskanyan also join us on these trips, making the outings a mobile classroom. 

Overall, I’ve truly enjoyed my summer with Aspirantum, and I am especially grateful for my fellow classmates who made it memorable.