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What do you teach at Ca’ Foscari? What are your main research interests? 
My name is Luisa Ruvoletto. I completed my graduate and PhD studies at the University of Padua. I enrolled in the Modern Foreign Languages and Literature programme and studied Russian as my first language. I immediately became interested in Slavic philology and the diachronic study of the Russian language, areas where I conducted my research for my PhD dissertation. From ancient Russian, my interests extended to modern Russian and in general to Slavic linguistics in both diachronic and synchronic perspectives. Recently, I have been investigating topics such as deixis, categorisation and approximation and language interactions in the East Slavic area. At Ca' Foscari I teach courses in Russian language and Slavic philology.

Have you always known that this was going to be your path?
During my university years, I became passionate about the subjects I had chosen to study. After finishing my studies, however, I had to look for a job. This led me to various jobs, all related to my studies, even though in different ways. After a few years, however, the call of study and research was too powerful and I went back to university and started a PhD course. When I gave up a permanent job for a PhD, with a future of instability and uncertainty, some of my family and friends thought it was crazy. Afterwards, I had no doubts: I had made the right choice. Although the road proved to be long and difficult, the direction was right for me... and it still is!

What would you say to young people starting their university career?
The most frequently asked question to young people choosing a university course is: "What job can you do after your studies?". Young people usually know how to answer this question, because before choosing a programme they look for information and participate in orientation events. After graduation, things may turn out differently than they first imagined, because the opportunities that arise are often unexpected and sometimes exceed expectations. New circumstances, knowledge that is built up along the way, situations that develop inside and outside people make up a complex web where what looked impossible before becomes possible. In all this, the irreplaceable ingredients are passion and trust: what is passionate always bears good fruit.

Why Ca’ Foscari and Venice?
If we consider the mainland and the lagoon, Venice is a big city, but its greatness lies mainly in its history of being open to the world. The sea, which brings different shores closer together, has been the city's window on the world for centuries. Its young university bears the same imprint and actively pursues the goal of becoming international. There are many opportunities for study and research abroad for those who study or work at Ca' Foscari, just as there are many events involving scholars from all over the world. The humanities, art, languages, sciences, economics and more are the different faces of a university that makes Venice a hub of culture, as well as a city of great beauty.

What knowledge and skills should the university provide?
It is clear that this question has nothing to do with subject areas, where knowledge and skills know no limits: knowledge is inherently incomplete and skills evolve, adapting to ever-changing real-life situations. The important thing to focus on is not so much "what" knowledge and skills are best to acquire, but rather "how" they should be. The keyword here seems to be "flexible", as flexible are the tools that enable you to achieve different goals. The university should provide methods and tools for everyone to achieve their goals.