Children from the Crimea and the Donbas will have additional opportunities for learning in educational establishments in Ukraine

More opportunities have been created for pupils studying in areas outside the control of the Ukrainian authorities in the occupied part of the Donbas and the Crimea, in order to obtain Ukrainian National Standard school-leavers’ certificates, and get admission to universities, technical colleges, and professional training in Ukraine. This was announced by Liliya Hrynevych Minister of Education and Science, at a press conference held at Ukrinform on 30 May 2016.

Liliya Hrynevych stated that in response to appeals by Mustafa Dzhemilev, Ukrainian MP, the Ministry has introduced an additional session for school-leavers who can not make their tests due to the fact that the so-called Russian “Unified State Exam” programme introduced by the occupation forces in Crimea only lasts until 30 June. The Minister stressed that such applicants from Crimea should notify regional assessment centres by 20 June where they will be registered for their intention to take external independent testing during an additional session.

In addition, those in the category of Crimean children who are not allowed take part in external assessment, will be able to attend one of ten university educational centres being created and named Crimea-Ukraine. The list of universities will be announced after registration with the Ministry of Justice of Ukraine, following the corresponding Order of the Ministry of Education and Science. "These centres will be opened in Kyiv, Dnipropetrovsk, Zaporizhzhia, Lviv, Mykolayiv, Kherson, and Kharkiv", added the Minister.

Liliya Hrynevych described how these educational centres of secondary education will conduct the final state certification for school-leavers of Crimea on Ukrainian language and history of Ukraine. Certification will be conducted in writing. Also, applicants from the Crimea will submit an “education declaration”, which will display the results of their study in the temporarily occupied territory. "If the applicants want to study at Ukrainian educational establishments, they must demonstrate their knowledge of the Ukrainian language and History of Ukraine and obtain a grade", explained the Minister.

The Minister stated that these Crimean children will enter universities according to a quota. After the State final certification at the education centre, this will form a basis for the entrance exam applicants, according to the discipline they have chosen to study. "Ten universities will provide almost the complete range of disciplines, other than those which are the responsibility of the Ministry of Defense and Ministry of Interior", added Liliya Hrynevych.

Liliya Hrynevych said that documents to apply for higher education funded by public spending,  for full-time study applicants from Crimea, for  the allocated quota, will be accepted up to 18.00 on 24 July, and the entrance exams will be held at the special education centres up to 26 July. Enrollment at educational establishments will take place no later than 12:00 on 28 July.

The Minister stated that applicants from the Crimea and Sevastopol have the right to receive a Ukrainian certificate of secondary education with grades for each subject, from fully-accredited sources within one year of study at Ukrainian schools.

Similarly, documentation from these educational centres will make possible student accommodation during the state final certification and entrance exams. Together with the Open Policy Foundation, there are to be developed step-by-step instructions for applicants in these categories.

For those school-leavers who live in the anti-terrorist operation zone (for authorities in the territory outside the control of Ukraine, as well as those who study in the no-go area), there will be also created additional opportunities for education. The list of populated areas will be clearly defined, and only school-leavers from those areas will be able to take advantage of additional opportunities to enter higher education using the entrance examinations model. Educational centres under a Donbas-Ukraine umbrella will be opened.

Educational centres will also be in operation for displaced persons from Donetsk and Luhansk region universities, and now located on Donbas territory controlled by Ukraine. The list of these establishments will be announced by the Ministry of Education. Donbas graduates can submit  their Education Declaration to these centres, which will constitute State final certification for the Ukrainian language and History of Ukraine, in order to take entrance exams. In contrast to the Crimea, such applicants will not be under a quota, and will apply to be funded from public spending. "On a competitive basis, and according to the results of entrance examinations, these applicants may then be admitted to educational establishments", said the Minister.

The creation of these additional opportunities for the right to education for children from Crimea and Donbas has been made possible through the joint efforts of the Ministry of Education and Science, the Ministry of Information Policy, the Open Policy Foundation and support by relevant initiatives by UNICEF in Ukraine.