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This interview between Claire O’Donnell and Oleg Obolensky discusses Oleg’s journey from Russia to the United States in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania to complete postdoc research for one year on a J-1 visa. After he returned back to Russia, Oleg then traveled back to Pittsburgh to continue his research with an NSF NATO funded grant opportunity. In Pittsburgh, Oleg had his first son; then, he returned to Russia after one and a half years after his grant expired. After four months in Russia, Oleg moved to Frankfurt, Germany to work at the Frankfurt Institute for Advanced Studies. After remaining in Germany for a few years and having his second child, once Oleg’s first son reached school age, his family moved to permanently settle in Rockville, Maryland, where he currently works at the National Institute of Health. By mapping and sharing his immigration journey, Oleg describes assimilation into the United States compared to Germany and living through the collapse of the Soviet Union. Throughout this discussion, Oleg discusses how he received each work opportunity as being based on “luck”, presenting a theme of things happening to him by chance. Oleg’s story offers insights into how after the Fall of the Soviet Union, scientific collaboration between scientists in Russia, the United States, and Germany worked together to bridge research. In turn, these insights reveal how each scientific endeavor influenced Oleg’s immigration story.
This interview was conducted as part of an undergraduate final project for the University of Maryland, College Park course IMMR400 (Spring 2024). This course was led by Professor Colleen Woods of the Department of History, College of Arts and Humanities, and was sponsored by the Center for Global Migration Studies.
