One year of war marks one year of aid to Ukraine

February 24 marks the anniversary of Russia's invasion of Ukraine. As a sign of solidarity, the Ukrainian national flag flies in blue and yellow at the main building of the University of Applied Sciences Mittweida - a symbol also for the commitment of the university for affected students and scientists since the beginning of the war.

In the first weeks, the main focus was on providing material and psychological support to the Ukrainian students of the university and to the students and scientists who came here as refugees. This continues, but it will also be flanked by a medium-term perspective for the 80 Ukrainians or so who have found a temporary academic home at the university and would like to continue their studies and scientific work here.

The university is committed to providing both, quick start and acclimation support as well as academic programs.

Rector Volker Tolkmitt on the occasion of the anniversary: "With the commitment of many people involved in the university, we live solidarity with our partner universities in Dnipro and Odessa, as well as with the whole of Ukraine. This is a long-term task. We are doing our part to ensure Ukraine has the young academics it will need to rebuild the country when Russia respects the sovereignty of its neighbors again and finally ends the war."

After initially opening up study courses to Ukrainian students mainly in English language, Mittweida University of Applied Sciences is now enabling students to continue and successfully complete their studies regardless of location with the "Ukraine digital" project funded by the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD). In the project, the university prepares teaching materials digitally, mainly on economic topics. Students at Mittweida's partner universities in Odessa and Dnipro use these documents anywhere in the world via a virtual platform.

Daryna Karpiuk (26), works in the "Ukraine digital" project alongside her master's degree in Industrial Management. She first came to Mittweida last year with her then one-year-old daughter. Her husband followed. She was already at Mittweida University of Applied Sciences for an exchange semester in 2017. She says: "It is very important to me to do something for my university in Odessa and the students in Ukraine in these difficult times. The digital preparation of teaching materials in our Ukraine digital project makes it possible for Ukrainian students to continue studying despite the war, no matter where they are. I'm also always thinking about the future of my country after the war."

Currently, 73 Ukrainian students are enrolled at Mittweida University of Applied Sciences. More than 200 Ukrainians are currently preparing to study in German at the Studienkolleg at Mittweida University. No other Studienkolleg in Germany cares for more young Ukrainians.

In addition to the students, Ukrainian academics have also come to Mittweida, six of whom have found a temporary home at the university. For them, the Prorectorate for Research had obtained a one-year research grant from the Volkswagen Foundation at very short notice.

These various activities, which give students and scientists at Mittweida University of Applied Sciences an academic perspective, were prepared and are still accompanied by practical and financial support for life in the university town. The university and the city administration work closely together. One example for this is the joint information center "T9" that became a counseling center for Ukrainians and an exchange for offers of help from the people of Mittweida.

Students and employees of the university had jointly and pragmatically started numerous activities soon after the war began. They organized apartments for Ukrainian students, scientists and their families. The staff of the International Office helped with administrative matters. The student council organized the furnishing of the apartments with furniture and household items, which were financed by donations - as well as the living expenses, until support from the Foreigners' Registration Office and then the Job Center began. The student union helped with "free tables" in the cafeteria. The university arranged scholarships, including a German scholarship (Deutschlandstipendium) for 12 students from Ukraine, financed in part by supporters from the university town. The university's Institute for Competence, Communication & Languages (IKKS) organized German language courses. The Faculty of Social Work and the International Office organized a Ukrainian cultural evening together with the socio-cultural center Müllerhof e.V. All refugees can participate in the university's leisure and sports programs free of charge.

Mittweida University informs students and scientists from Ukraine about support offers on its website. Anyone who would like to help personally can also find information here.