Type of action: Aktionsplans Ukraine aufgelegte „Brückenprogramm Hessen-Ukraine“

Official webpage of the project

Completed projects with Philipps-Universität Marburg (Germany): EconBridge1 Project code number 56700250 Duration (months): 12 (01.01.2023 -31.12.2023) EconBridge2 Project code number 56700260   Duration (months): 12 (01.01.2024 -31.12.2024)

The main goal of the project:

The "Hesse-Ukraine Bridge" program responds to the challenges posed by the war in Ukraine and aims to provide support to Ukrainian students and scholars. The main goal of this program is to provide opportunities for quality education and scientific knowledge to Ukrainian students and scientists studying or working in Germany or Ukraine.

The overall goal of the program is to provide opportunities for Ukrainian students and scholars to learn and collaborate in an environment conducive to their personal and academic development.

The goals of the program include:

1. Expansion of information and consultation structures for refugees from Ukraine and creation of funds to help students who have fled or need help.

2. Creating and promoting courses aimed at Ukrainian students studying in Germany or in Ukraine. These courses can be available both remotely and on-site in the state of Hesse.

3. Funding for individual courses, course series, and programs that enable students to earn certificates of achievement.

4. Supporting cooperation projects between Hessian universities and Ukrainian institutions, as well as between teachers working in Hesse and Ukrainian academics.

Coordinators in projects from KNEU. V. Hetman is:

• Oleg Tereshchenko, Doctor of Economics, Professor, Head of the Department of Corporate Finance and Controlling
• Iryna Ivanets, Ph.D., Associate Professor of the Department of Corporate Finance and Controlling, guarantor of the program "Corporate Finance"

The coordinators of Philipps-Universität Marburg projects are:

• Elisabeth Schulte, Ph.D., Professor, Head of the Marburg Center for Institutional Economics (MACIE), Head of the Department of Institutional Economics

The main results of the implementation of the program "Brückenprogramm Hessen-Ukraine zur Förderung" during the war in Ukraine reflect the importance and need to support Ukrainian students and scientists in a difficult period. Thanks to its implementation of projects  EconBridge1 and EconBridge2 opportunities for obtaining quality education and scientific knowledge were provided to Ukrainian students and scientists studying and working in Germany and Ukraine.

Results of cooperation and implementation of projects:

1. Joint digitalized courses aimed at Ukrainian students studying in Germany and Ukraine have been created, which provide the opportunity to study both remotely and on-site in the state of Hesse.

We would like to express our special gratitude to our German colleagues from Philipps-Universität Marburg for creating joint courses, in particular:

• Professor Elisabeth Schulte, Head of the Marburg Centre for Institutional Economics (MACIE);
• Head of Management Accounting Research Group (MARG), Prof. Dr. Marc Steffen Rapp and his entire team; 
• the head and colleagues from the Behavioral Finance Research Group, led by Prof. Dr. Oscar A. Stolper.

2. Separately, we wanted to emphasize the important steps taken to strengthen the competencies of students and teachers in the knowledge of the German language. As part of the implemented projects, we organized German language courses, these courses, in particular, included 29 students in two groups at level A1, 15 students in group A2, as well as additional courses at level B1 attended through Sprachcentrum from the University of Marburg. Students had the opportunity to immerse themselves in learning under the guidance of a professional teacher from the Goethe-Institut, Teresa Fuchs, which contributed to their professional and personal development.

In 2024, we continue our work on organizing language courses for students and teachers with great enthusiasm and perseverance, in particular three new groups have already been formed in the summer semester: A1.1, A2.1 and B1.1, intended for those who want to improve their German language skills. It should be noted that fluency in the language opens the door to wider opportunities for academic and professional cooperation in the state of Hesse, since, in particular, KNEU has been cooperating with Philipps-Universität Marburg since 2008.

3. Some results were achieved thanks to the capabilities and utilization of the ILIAS training platform and the STATA program. Thus, the ILIAS learning platform provided a convenient and accessible tool for organizing the educational process, providing the opportunity to create interactive courses, post educational material, as well as interact between students and teachers through forums and BigBlueButton. At the same time, the STATA program has become an indispensable tool for conducting data analysis and performing statistical calculations within individual courses. With its powerful capabilities and wide range of statistical methods, STATA has helped in conducting comprehensive data analysis, identifying patterns, and formulating student research conclusions.

Over the past two years of project implementation, we have seen how students and scholars from Ukrainian and German universities have grown closer, developing mutual understanding and common goals. Our efforts have not only provided opportunities for quality education and scientific achievements, but also made it possible to support Ukrainian students and scientists in the difficult period associated with the war in Ukraine.

With the help of the Hesse-Ukraine Bridge project, we have confirmed that cooperation and mutual understanding are key components of success in the modern world. We sincerely believe that our achievements will be the beginning of new, even brighter opportunities for cooperation and development in Ukraine and the state of Hesse.