The conference is part of the initiative “V4 Road Show in Ukraine” agreed by the V4 Deputy Foreign Ministers in Lviv on October 7, 2014 with the aim, first, to share reform experiences of the V4 countries with Ukraine in the selected policy areas, and second, to enhance coordination of the V4 assistance to Ukraine.

The V4 countries agreed on their specific roles when it comes to sectorial focus of their assistance to Ukraine in its reform process related to the implementation of the Association Agreement with the EU. The Czech Republic led event will focus on education reform. The conference in Chernivtsi will be held under the auspices of Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Czech Republic and aims to facilitate sharing the V4 experience with Ukrainian partners in the field of implementing the education reform, specifically the model of financing of the education and research institutions (VET, HEI and science institutes) which is a complex and unresolved issue that still lingers, as well as determines, a broad possibility of the reforms implementation.

Introduction of the Law on Higher Education triggered changes in a wide range of critical issues in the higher education system of Ukraine. Fundamental things like quality assurance system, student centered learning, internationalization, are tackled by the reform. The changes in progress reflect a general direction of the Ukrainian higher education towards the European Higher Education Area. It is hardly conceivable to Europeanize the education and science system without a complex overhaul of the financial underpinning. An obsolete Soviet system of the “state order” is not only disconnected from the current labour market conditions, but is also detrimental for the state budget and the country’s long-term development.

Changing the financing approach of the education and science is a challenging task, but it has to start, first and foremost, from a clear vision of a desired system. There is an evident lack of understanding and consensus among the Ukrainian stakeholders on a needed model. This is exactly an issue, where the international experience is of utmost importance, especially from the countries that have experienced a similar transition process. The V4 + Ukraine conference on education and science funding should cover, for instance, such facets as a shift from the state order system: experience of the V4 countries, sources of funding (statelocal budget, private investments), formula for the costs and expenditures calculation, distribution of state funds among the universities (criteria, indicators etc.), possible introduction of vouchers/loans systems, calculating costs and benefits of the tax funding, introduction of grant system in the science funding, financing VET institutions etc. Learning from the practices, success stories and pitfalls, of the V4 countries is crucial for Ukraine prior to launching comprehensive systemic changes in the education and science funding model.

Date and time

Tuesday, October 13, 2015
8.00 – 18:00

Location

Chernivtsi Yuri Fedkovych National University
Chernivtsi
Ukraine

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Organizer

Visegrad Group

In cooperation with

AMO, Czech Development Agency, International Visegrad Fund