A huge number of Indian students fly abroad every year on student visas, and a big chunk of it heads for Ukraine. Internationally, India is the 2nd biggest source of students enrolling in foreign universities, riding the wave of global aspirations of its students from an increasing number of middle-income families.
Ukraine, for many years now, considered to be a popular international higher study destination for Indian students. In this article, we’ll address a few important questions regarding studying in Ukraine that’ll give an insight into why Indian students are increasingly deciding in favor of Ukraine.
We have answered key questions foreign students might have regarding Ukraine student visa-
1 - Is Ukraine a good place to study?
Ukraine has distinguished track records in terms of quality Higher Education Institutions, effective teaching methods, and internationally recognized scientific achievements. The strength of Ukraine’s higher education system lies in its conformity to European Higher Education standards.
Ukraine is a member country of the European Higher Education Area (EHEA), which is a group of 49 countries and the European Commission that has formed the famous Bologna process to ensure uniform academic degree standards and quality assurance standards through mutual cooperation and exchange programs.
As part of the Bologna Process, the member countries of the EHEA follow the three cycles of a higher education system that lead to Bachelor’s degree program in the 1st cycle, Master’s degrees in the 2nd cycle, and Doctoral degrees in the 3rd.
The post-Graduate program combines Masters and Doctorate courses and is backed by a higher level of professional training, both in the specific discipline and in inter-disciplinary areas (applicable in the Master’s courses) that improves competencies in a professional or academic field.
Another great aspect that makes higher study programs in the EHEA system unique and rewarding is the introduction of ECTS credit points (European Credit Transfer and Accumulation System): By this standard, one course or module is worth the same at any university across the EHEA, and students can study and live in different European nations during their study period of time.
2 - Are the degrees from Ukrainian universities accepted in other countries?
Ukrainian degrees are recognized globally (even by UNESCO, WHO, European Association of Universities, and European Union) and accepted as equal with degrees of other EHEA countries such as Germany, France, Netherlands, Norway, Finland, to name a few.
Many of the medical universities in Ukraine are also approved by the MCI (Medical Council Of India), which means that Indian students after obtaining MBBS from an MCI approved university in Ukraine may choose to come back and make their careers in India, although this requires them to appear at a screening test.
3 - What is the average cost of higher education in Ukraine?
The cost of higher education in Ukraine is significantly lower than in most other European countries. Let’s take a glance at the tuition fees for the non-EU/EEA students in some of the EU and EHEA countries to prove this point.
Foreign students from countries outside the European Union/ European Economic Area are called Non-EU/EEA students (Indian students to be treated as non-EU/EEA students), who have to pay at the below-mentioned rates during their educational period.
| 5000 – 30000 Euro/year | Bachelor’s programs in France |
| 6500 – 26000 Euro/year | Bachelor’s programs in Germany |
| 6000 – 15000 Euro/year | Bachelor’s programs in Austria |
| 5000 – 13000 Euro/year | Bachelor’s programs in Finland |
| 1000 – 4500 Euro/year | Bachelor’s programs in Ukraine |
Let alone the other European countries, studying in the Ukrainian universities has a cost advantage over many Indian institutes as well.
4 - What are the different types of student accommodations in Ukraine provided by the Educational institution?
The universities in Ukraine in general offer hostel accommodations to Indian students. The living costs include rent for a hostel room can vary between $40 and $100. The room can be shared between 2 or 3 students.
Though living in a university hostel is the best option for Indian students, especially in the 1st year due to convenience and safety reasons, they can choose to rent a private apartment outside the campus from the second year onwards.
There are multiple types of private accommodations to choose from, the price of which depends on factors such as district, number of rooms, and facilities such as water, heating, gas, electricity, and the Internet. The annual rent for a private apartment in Kyiv may be between $650 and $5550, depending on the facilities and features.
Also, there is the option to stay with a family as a paying guest, which may cost between $150 and $650 per person.
5 - Work and study opportunities
Work and study in Ukraine for international students is allowed by the Ukraine labor laws. If you have a work permit in Ukraine as an international student you can opt for some part-time jobs, for a maximum of 40 hrs. a week.
The work permit can be easily obtained by an international student because what is necessary to have the work permit is the ‘’temporary residence permit’’ which every international student usually gets by default with a study permit. However, it must be noted that only an employer can file for a work permit on behalf of the student.
There are plenty of semi-skilled and unskilled part-time jobs available in Ukraine that may be of some help to the international students to pay off their cost of electricity, daily rent, hostel fees, extra expenses and also earn valuable experiences besides having opportunities to mingle with the community, language, and culture.
6 - Student visa
An essential part of the whole process of ‘Studying in Ukraine’ for Indian students is obtaining the ‘Ukraine student visa.’ This is a non-immigrant long-term visa issued by the embassy of Ukraine in India that allows Indian students to pursue their education in Ukraine. You must receive your student visa before you travel to Ukraine for your higher education from the top highest-ranked university.
But is it difficult to get a student visa for Ukraine?
It’s rather on the contrary. The process & visa requirements of student visa for study in a Ukrainian university has been made convenient and straightforward by the Govt. of Ukraine in comparison to other western countries. As per an article published in March 2020 Ukraine study visa success rate is 59.70% and the Ukraine student visa refusal rate is 40.83%. The main cause for the refusal rate can be attributed to a lack of proper documentation like a birth certificate, degree certificates, and good financial status.
The steps involved in acquiring a student visa for Ukraine are:
- Select your preferred university in Ukraine and submit the necessary documents over the Internet to receive the “Invitation to Study.”
- Apply within 180 days from the date of issuance of the “Invitation to Study” for a student visa type D to the Ukraine Visa Application Center in your nearest metro city in India with a unified fee for the entire processing along with the consular Interview.
- Appear for the consular interview. Visit this blog for sample consular interview questions or Ukraine student visa interview questions.
The Govt. of Ukraine has made the dispatching of visas much faster now, within 10 days, which was a minimum of 30 days initially.
The unified fee for the entire process of Visa has also been reduced, much to the relief of the students.
There can be many other questions that may come upon the minds of students and their parents about studying in Ukraine. At EEC we welcome students’ queries and publish relevant content to satisfy their concerns.
If you have any questions regarding the cost of living in Ukraine, fee structure of universities, hostel feel, eligibility criteria, travel health insurance, admissions form, or visa application form for studying in Ukraine, feel free to get in touch with our experienced staff to guide you with any queries you might have regarding study & work in Ukraine.
