Maritime universities in the occupation: how to get an education and will there be any training

USM found out how domestic maritime educational institutions affected by russia. We tell you whether it is possible to get a maritime education in universities located in the occupied territories.

Ukrainian higher education institutions of the maritime industry have been training qualified specialists for many years. Students of universities and lyceums currently in the occupied territories are already receiving diplomas in other regions. But the russians also offer their “documents”, which the maritime community will not recognize.

Mariupol

Azov Maritime Institute

The Azov Maritime Institute (structural division of the NU “OMA”), which worked in Mariupol, now operates on the basis of the National University “Odesa Maritime Academy”. Details and necessary contacts can be obtained here.

It is worth saying that in the 2020-2021 academic year, 240 full-time cadets completed their internship on the vessels of domestic and foreign shipowners, and more than 100 cadets – on the “Mechanic Ponomarenko” vessel. In total, the institution had almost 500 budget places for future bachelors and masters, and the total number of students exceeded 1000 people.

OMI students also have the opportunity to continue their studies at the Danube Institute of NU “OMA” in the city of Izmail.

It is known that the occupiers have already started illegitimate admission campaigns at two other Mariupol universities, there is currently no information about the maritime institute and its condition.

Mariupol Maritime Lyceum 

The lyceum was also temporarily moved to Odesa. The students completed their studies at the partner institution – Odesa Maritime Transport Lyceum. The programs in the institutions are different, but this did not become a problem, since Ukrainian students have the right to receive education on the same level as all others.

In Mariupol, lyceum students received not only secondary education, but also a maritime work diploma as a ordinary seamen. Therefore, bachelor graduates (95 lyceum graduates) have already received diplomas in Odessa. The admissions campaign for applicants continues.

In March, the adviser to the mayor of Mariupol, Petro Andryushchenko, wrote that Vyacheslav Miroshnychenko, the head of the Maritime Lyceum in Mariupol, became a collaborator and “Minister of Education of the DPR in Mariupol”, who “independently offered his services to the enemy.”

Kherson 

Kherson State Maritime Academy and college  

The Kherson Maritime Academy and its Maritime College “moved” to the basis of the Odessa Agrarian University.

The occupation authorities offer students to continue studying at the academy offline. But the maritime community will not recognize the diplomas that the self-proclaimed “pseudo-academy” plans to issue. Such documents will be legitimate only in russian federation.

The current leadership of the academy emphasized that the admission campaign is ongoing, and left contacts for admission that will not harm future specialists.

It should be noted that the academy has more than 400 teachers and scientists, as well as about 5,000 students. The college, in turn, has 2,381 budget places.

Another institution, the Kherson Maritime College of Fishery Industry, was evacuated to Izmail to the Danube Institute of Water Transport.

The teaching staff of the college was almost completely preserved, but Roman Negruts temporarily performs the management duties. He said that training will be conducted exclusively remotely.

In the meantime, the invaders have already created a russian website of supposedly “college cadets”, where Kostyantyn Stasyuk (former director of the college) is the head of the institution in the lists of employees. There are currently no mentions of him in the lists of collaborators and media publications. In the end, the documents that the invaders will issue to students will be valid only in russian federation, so students are urged not to enter such institutions, but to study in real Ukrainian universities and colleges.

There are 2,032 places for state employees in this institution, but over the entire period of operation, the college has graduated more than 25,000 specialists, including shipmasters and mechanics of the industrial fleet.

Information on studying at the Kherson Educational and Scientific Institute of the Makarov NUK is also not there yet. During its existence, the institute has trained more than 7,000 (7,495 as of 07/01/2022) shipbuilding engineers, machine builders, programmers, economists and welding specialists, as well as more than 6,000 bachelors in the relevant areas of training.

Mykolaiv

Admiral Makarov National Shipbuilding University

The main building of the university was almost completely destroyed as a result of the russian missile attack on Mykolaiv. National Shipbuilding University was founded more than 100 years ago, and until now it was one of the leading universities in the country, where you can get a specialty in “engineering” or electrical engineering”.

Currently, the university is carrying out repair work, they want to “cut off” the destroyed part of the building from the building.

The management of the higher education institution, against all odds, recruits applicants, all information about the admissions campaign is published on the website of the admissions committee. According to preliminary data, training is planned to begin on September 15.

In total, about 8,000 students study at the university, of which 1,200 are foreign students.

Vocational College of Shipowners of the Makarov National Technical University also continues to work, in total there are 95 places for state employees in this institution.

What will the training be like?

It should be noted that higher education institutions have not yet made a final decision on the format of education. The Ministry of Education of Ukraine assumes that the form will be mixed (offline and online). The final decision will depend on the willingness of universities to provide shelter to students. And to determine its safety is the responsibility of special commissions, which will include local self-government bodies and the State Emergency Service.

Admission campaigns are still ongoing. Those applicants who did not have the opportunity to pass the NMT (national multi-subject test) can enter some universities, such as the National University of Ukraine, after an individual interview and according to budget quotas.

It should be noted that the maritime industry of Ukraine is currently undergoing a large-scale reformatting: the war forces it to accept new challenges almost every day. Shipping and shipbuilding existed in a “frozen” state for almost six months. After the war, however, the market would require significant renewal and replenishment, and this would apply to both the fleet and the crews of civilian vessels. The degree of demand for marine specialists of all areas will grow exponentially, and the demand will be able to be met by those who are currently receiving the appropriate education. River transportation on the Dnieper will need to be restored as soon as possible, the activities of sea and river logistics centers and stevedores will also require repairs and modernization. Not to mention Ukrainian sailors, who will have to re-choose leadership positions on the global labor market.

Therefore, the relevance of specialized maritime education is especially important now, during the war. And, fortunately, domestic universities are ready to continue their activities – regardless of geography, local risks and regular attacks from the russians.