Int'l Students Frustrated After Being Told to Return to Ukraine to Take Final Exams

Asian and African students who left Ukraine after Russia invaded the country on February 24, 2022, have been told they should take necessary tests in Ukraine, a request that has caused frustration among students.

There were more than 70,000 international students in Ukraine before the war, many of them drawn by medical programs offered at Ukrainian institutions. Most of them left Ukraine in the early days of the war to seek safety in other countries.

Last month some of those who enrolled in medical courses at Ukrainian universities were required to return to the country destroyed by war to take the Krok 2 exam, the final assessment for professional-oriented disciplines that correlates to the training program for professionals in the medical field, Erudera.com reports.

Media reports say that some students from Kyiv Medical University who had to return to Ukraine in March to take exams noted that the institution told them they would be responsible for their life and safety while in Ukraine.

A medical student from Yemen studying at Donetsk University who took the test in Kyiv told Euronews that the exam was stopped eight times due to the missile attack sirens.

"The room was cold and there was almost no light. The exam lasted from 9:00 to 16:00 because of different interruptions and all the 50 people who took the exam with me failed it,” the student said.

Another student from Ghana pursuing medical studies online at Sumy University told the same source that remote studies are not a sustainable solution, adding that students are drained emotionally, mentally, and physically.

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After the war, many of Ukraine’s international students faced difficulties getting admitted to European universities. One of the students said that international students were unable to apply for scholarships because grants were only offered to Ukrainian students.

On April 5, 2023, Ukraine’s Ministry of Healthcare issued a statement saying that Ukrainian and non-Ukrainian students outside the country during martial law can take the Unified State Qualification Exam (UEQE) at their place of residence.

According to the ministry, students who will take the KROC 1 and 2 exams outside Ukraine must offer details about the educational institution they are studying in and from which country they will take the exam.

The Testing Board of the Healthcare Ministry said that students who don’t pass the test could retake it within three years.

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