Ukraine

Since 2022, EUA has been a member of the consortium that delivers the MSCA4Ukraine fellowship scheme.  MSCA4Ukraine provides support to displaced researchers from Ukraine by enabling them to continue their work at European institutions.

Visit the MSCA4Ukraine webpage

MSCA4Ukraine is led by SAR Europe in collaboration with EUA and the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation, and funded by the European Commission under the Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions. Following its launch in September 2022, the scheme supported 125 displaced researchers in its first phase, and a second call to support approximately 50 researchers was launched in summer 2024.

EUA’s Ukraine Task Force provides strategic advice to support Ukrainian universities, both individually and collectively. It aims to do so both during the  ongoing war, as well as in the eventual reconstruction and long-term development of the Ukrainian higher education system.

Based on the principle of academic solidarity, the group aims to provide input, recommendations and support on sector-specific issues. These can include but are not necessarily limited to: governance and leadership; learning and teaching - including digitally-enhanced and distance learning; quality assurance; research and innovation strategies; system restructuring; and strategies to counter ‘brain drain’ - a major concern for the Ukrainian higher education system.

Initially established in 2022 for a period of two years, the mandate of the task force was indefinitely extended in 2024. 

The group is chaired by Ivanka Popović, former rector of the University of Belgrade, Serbia, and EUA Vice-President, alongside members comprised of:

• Gerhard Duda, Former Head of the Brussels office of the German Rectors’ Conference (HRK), Germany
• Irinja Paakkanen, Head of International Relations, Partnerships and Strategic Engagement, University of Turku, Finland
• Jerzy Lis, Member of the Presidium and Head of the International Affairs Committee of the Conference of Rectors of Academic Schools in Poland (KRASP), and Rector of AGH University of Science and Technology, Krakow, Poland
• James Rodgers, Assistant Vice-President for Global Engagement, City, University of London, UK
• Jana Mojžišová, Rector of the University of Veterinary Medicine and Pharmacy in Košice, Slovakia
• Milena Králíčková, Rector of Charles University Prague, Czech Republic
• Mykola Trofymenko, Deputy Chair of the Union of Rectors of Higher Education Institutions of Ukraine and Rector of Mariupol State University, Ukraine
• Oleksii Dniprov, Rector of Kyiv National University of Construction and Architecture, Ukraine

Task force members were nominated by EUA’s collective members (national rectors’ conferences and national university associations), including the Union of Rectors of Higher Education Institutions of Ukraine.

Numerous governments, higher education institutions and organisations have also contributed to efforts to support Ukrainian higher education.

Learn more about how the EU and MSCA host organisations are supporting Ukrainian researchers

For example, the European Commission has allowed more flexibility for the Erasmus+ programme to welcome students and staff from Ukraine. 

The Commission has also adapted its EURAXESS network, which supports researchers internationally, so that it can assist Ukrainian scholars coming to Europe via the ERA4Ukraine initiative.

Finally, the NGO Science for Ukraine collects information about practical support provided by the global research community to Ukrainian researchers and students. You can visit their website and follow the hashtag #ScienceForUkraine on X.