The President of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelenskyi, signed a law that strengthens the position of scientific activity in the system of higher education and creates conditions for the involvement of practitioners in teaching. About this reported Ministry of Education and Science.
The document envisages a reduction in the training load for scientific and pedagogical workers: instead of the previous 600 hours, the rate will be from 460 to 480 hours per academic year. In addition, the law increases the weight of scientific work in the structure of employment – at least 30% of an employee’s time must be devoted to science.
At the same time, institutions of higher education will have the right to involve in teaching activities specialists-practitioners who are not obliged to engage in science. The law establishes a new category of teaching staff for this purpose. The document gives universities more autonomy, allowing them to independently determine the norms and scope of scientific activity in accordance with their own strategic guidelines or priority directions.
The MES emphasizes that the law strengthens the role of university employees as scientists, giving a choice between a focus on science or practice. The new requirements do not provide for mandatory dismissal if the employee does not fulfill the norm of scientific activity. In such cases, the administration will be able to transfer him to the category of teaching staff.
Institutions themselves will decide the question of what exactly is considered a scientific activity. Probably, the types of work will be fixed in individual load plans.
“The changes are aimed at improving the quality of education, which is a key criterion for accreditation. The involvement of both scientists and practitioners can increase the competitiveness of programs. The law does not have a direct impact on the volume of state procurement.” – explained in the Ministry of Education and Culture.
The law will enter into force at the beginning of the 2025-2026 school year.
