Ukrainian higher education is on the verge of a virtual cleanup: dozens of universities are closing, and hundreds more are under threat of liquidation. The Ministry of Education and Science explains this as optimization – they say that the country cannot afford to maintain such a large number of universities, especially since the quality of education in many of them is questionable. However, behind these arguments lies another reality: teachers are losing their jobs, regions are left without access to higher education, and future students are left with no choice.
Another “optimization” from the Ministry of Education and Culture: to break – not to build
On March 1, during the “Question Hour for the Government” in the Verkhovna Rada, Minister of Education and Science Oksen Lisovyi emphasized, that the optimization of higher educational institutions is a necessary step taking into account the demographic situation in the regions. Preliminary data indicate that at least seven university mergers are planned for 2025, but the final plan has not yet been approved. According to MES experts, most students prefer universities in big cities, and therefore, regional universities have fewer and fewer chances to recruit applicants. At the same time, the ministry emphasizes that it does not impose a decision on the unification of universities, but rather gives the regions the opportunity to independently determine the best options for the development of higher education.
Deputy Minister of Education and Science Mykhailo Vynnytskyi indicated on demographic data, which indicate that 15 years ago there were 630,000 school graduates in the country. This year, their number will be slightly over 300,000. According to forecasts of the Ministry of Education and Culture, there will be a further decrease to approximately 250,000 potential students. Since the network of higher education institutions was designed for 600,000 applicants, it must be optimized. On average, European universities have 10,000 students, while Ukrainian universities have 5,700 students, which indicates a significant difference.
Such decisions are supported by special programs of the World Bank, which provide for the allocation of 1.5 million USD for each accession for the purchase of scientific and educational equipment, which should contribute to increasing the research potential of these universities.
Lviv became the first city where the process of reorganization of higher educational institutions was completed. The Ukrainian Academy of Printing was attached to the Lviv Polytechnic, and the Institute of Physical Optics named after AT. Vloh – to the Lviv National University named after AND. Frank In addition, the University of Veterinary Medicine and Biotechnology will soon be renamed the University of Veterinary Medicine and Nature Management. In May 2024, the MES announced plans to optimize universities in Kamianets-Podilskyi and Uman.
The reform has its arguments, because in Ukraine there really were a number of universities that functioned only on paper, artificially keeping students and budgetary places. But along with the “ballast” institutions that provided education in regions where there are almost no alternatives also fall under the knife. As a result, it turns out that the chance to get a diploma will become a privilege of residents of big cities, while young people in small towns and villages will have to either look for money for studying in megacities, or refuse higher education altogether.
Higher education in Ukraine: from the 90s to the challenges of war
At the time of the collapse of the USSR, there were 143 higher educational institutions and 742 technical schools and colleges in Ukraine, where a total of 1.6 million students studied.
During Soviet times, Ukrainian universities trained specialists not only for the needs of the country, but also for other union republics. Institutions unique to the USSR worked in Ukraine, such as the Institute of Oil and Gas or the Institute of Shipbuilding. The increase in the number of higher education institutions began after 1991, but this was mainly due to the reorganization of regional university branches into independent educational institutions, and not through the creation of new state institutions.
Since the beginning of the 1990s, two main trends have formed in Ukraine: a sharp reduction in the number of vocational and technical schools and technical schools that trained specialists in technical fields, and a rapid increase in the number of private higher educational institutions. Therefore number universities and institutes increased from 149 in 1990 to 349 in 2010, and the number of students increased from 881 thousand to 2.139 million. Experts note that the mass opening of private universities has negatively affected the quality of higher education. It has deteriorated significantly over the last 20 years, and only a few universities in the country still provide a high level of education. Due to low salaries, many qualified teachers, including professors, have left the field of education, moving into business or moving abroad.
The number of higher education institutions grew uncontrollably – it seemed that any educational institution with premises and a stamp could become a university. Diplomas began to be bought, and not only by students, but also by officials. Knowledge receded into the background, instead everything was decided by connections and money. But even in these conditions, there were enthusiastic teachers who, for a meager salary, tried to prevent education from finally slipping into the abyss.
In the 2000s, another bias began – mass. Higher education was made as accessible as possible, and universities began to compete for applicants, opening dozens of new specialties. It has become easier to enroll, but finding a job after university is more difficult.
The introduction of VET in 2008 gave hope for fair admission, and the Bologna system brought European standards. But in practice, most universities have turned into conveyor belts for issuing diplomas. Corruption has not disappeared, bribes have simply become more expensive, and knowledge has become even more formal. As a result, graduates received diplomas that did not guarantee either a job or real skills.
Technical majors remained unpopular, but thousands of lawyers, economists, and managers emerged that the market could not absorb. Higher education lost its meaning as a way to get a profession – instead, it became a mandatory stage for those who simply did not want to go to work immediately after school.
Compared to 1990, in 2021 the number of higher education institutions increased by 2.59 times and constituted 386 universities.
A full-scale invasion in 2022 presented the education system with new challenges. Some universities were under fire or under occupation, thousands of students and teachers left abroad, and the rest had to adapt to studying in wartime conditions.
Online education has become the norm, but with it, the quality of education has fallen. Practical classes are reduced to a minimum, laboratory work becomes theoretical, and students often simply do not have the opportunity to study properly due to blackouts, sirens and constant stress.
Universities are surviving on international aid, but cuts in state funding are being signaled. Teachers, who already received low salaries, en masse go into business or go abroad. Education becomes less accessible, and its quality depends on random factors – whether there will be communication, whether the generator will work, whether a rocket will not fly into the student dormitory.
As of 2024 in Ukraine is functioning about 170 public universities, as well as 100 private and 40 communal institutions of higher education, most of which are relatively small. These statistics do not include affiliates. As a result of the reform, it is planned to reduce the number of universities to approximately 100.
Looking back at the path taken by Ukrainian higher education, from the chaos of the 90s to the pseudo-stability of the 2000s, we see that now it is once again forced to fight for survival. The war became a test of strength, which not all universities will be able to pass. Diplomas can become even more formal, and real knowledge – available only to those who have the opportunity to study abroad or independently seek alternative sources of education.
Education for the chosen ones
Officials of the Ministry of Education and Culture, as always, call it “optimization” and boldly undertake the reduction of what they consider to be underpowered universities, easily merging faculties and cutting funding. At first glance, everything is logical: concentration of resources, raising of standards, fight against dummy diplomas. But behind these theses is the reality, in which thousands of students lose the opportunity to get an education, and hundreds of teachers lose their jobs.
Obviously, large universities that survive the reform risk facing another problem – overcrowding. Competition for budget places will increase, groups will become larger, and an individual approach to students will turn into a luxury. Optimization risks turning into banal cost savings at the expense of quality. At the same time, young people from small towns and villages will be forced either to go to megacities, where education is more expensive, or to refuse higher education altogether. As a result, degrees will become even less affordable for those without the financial cushion or ability to relocate.
Another aspect of the reform is the reduction of the teaching staff. If a university closes, hundreds of scientists are out of a job. In the best case, they are transferred to larger institutions, in the worst case, they are forced to change professions or go abroad. In the conditions of war, when the country is already losing its intellectual potential, this trend can have long-term consequences.
The authorities assure that the reduction of higher education institutions is not only about saving, but also about improving the quality of education. But so far, in practice, it looks like a banal cost reduction, in which not only weak institutions go under the knife, but also those that simply ended up in an “unnecessary” place. Everything leads to the fact that if the reform continues at such a pace, it will become even more difficult to get a quality education in Ukraine in a few years. Higher education will become a privilege for those who have money and the opportunity to study in big cities. For others, there will be courses, self-education or the option of immediately looking for a job without a diploma.
This creates risks not only for students, but also for the entire country. Ukraine, which is already suffering from the outflow of young people and professionals, risks further reducing the number of qualified personnel. After all, if the education system becomes less accessible, it inevitably affects the entire economy.
The specialists of the Ministry of Education, Culture, and Science again forgot that the reduction of universities will affect what the country will be like in ten years: with its own specialists or with another wave of labor migration. And while officials report on “successful” optimization, thousands of students and teachers are already feeling its devastating consequences.
