University Resilience: How to Be a Source of Hope?
On June 3, 2025, Taras Dobko, Rector of the Ukrainian Catholic University, was elected in Leuven, Belgium, as a member of the Board of Directors of the General Assembly of the European Federation of Catholic Universities (FUCE). This fact is yet another testament to the role our University plays on the international stage.
But what made this day truly special was not only the new role of the UCU leader, but also his address to the participants of the meeting – “Resilient Universities: Navigating Between Survival and Growth” – which clearly articulated the challenges facing Ukraine today. It also offered reflections on how, despite the war, Ukrainian universities are becoming centers of hope, social responsibility, and innovation. Today, we invite you to join us in analyzing these conclusions – not only about the threats, but also about the opportunities that times of change can bring.
The Challenges of War and the Demographic Abyss
Taras Dobko began with a diagnosis of the current reality: “Uncertainty has ceased to be just a feature of our time – it has become its very essence”. Full-scale war, economic instability, brain drain, and the decline in young people’s academic preparedness are putting unprecedented pressure on Ukrainian universities. He paid particular attention to the demographic crisis that threatens the very existence of higher education. According to a CIA report, in 2024, Ukraine ranked first in the world in mortality and last in birth rate. Mortality was three times higher than the birth rate. In 2024, only 240,000 children started first grade – down from 400,000 just three years earlier. In 12 years, the number of potential university applicants could fall to 100,000 – and it remains unknown how many of them will be able to access higher education.
This demographic abyss is deepened by the outflow of talent: every third high school senior plans to study abroad due to concerns over safety, uncertainty, and the risk of mobilization. In 2024, the number of applicants for bachelor’s programs dropped to 189,441 – one-third fewer than in 2023 – the lowest figure in the past nine years. Faculty are also leaving universities, moving to industry or international organizations due to financial hardship.
In addition to the demographic crisis, other challenges include:
- Lack of resources: The reduction of public funding forces universities to seek market-based mechanisms.
- Knowledge gaps: According to PISA 2023, 38% of Ukrainian 15-year-olds failed to reach the basic level of mathematical literacy, and many younger students lack experience with traditional schooling.
- Social mission: Universities must explain Ukraine to the world, decolonizing Russian-centric narratives, and become sources of hope.
“As a university community, we have learned several lessons when confronted with a major crisis in Ukraine and in the world:
emphasized the UCU Rector.
1. Resilience matters.
2. People matter.
3. Quality matters.
4. An entrepreneurial spirit matters”,
The Power of Resilience: On the Role of Values in Resisting Chaos
Resilience is more than bomb shelters or fuel reserves. It is a spiritual strength that enables one to overcome fear and panic. Values and principles are its key sources during trials. They provide the foundation to stand firm, recognizing that there is something more important than one’s own life.
“To have values means the ability not to fixate on survival, but to dedicate oneself to the victory of Good”,
added Taras Dobko.
UCU has integrated the experience of war into its academic programs to help students find answers to questions about loss, justice, and the future. Solidarity Service Learning has become a key tool enabling students and faculty to address real issues facing society. For example, students of University produce camouflage nets, power banks, drone batteries, candles, and heaters. They also monitor damage to cultural heritage and counter Russian disinformation. In addition, they organize charity events to support wounded soldiers. These are people of Dignity.
The speaker also quoted UCU alumna Liubov Kurtiak: “We have learned to live in such a way that we are not afraid of death”. These words reflect how Dignity, born in dialogue with God, gives strength to resist Evil. Furthermore, Solidarity Service Learning makes teaching meaningful: a faculty member designing such a course becomes an agent of social change, collaborating with civic organizations or local communities so that knowledge acquires practical value.
Resilience depends on Mission. UCU engages in scholarly diplomacy, promoting the transformation of East European studies and the development of Ukrainian studies abroad. Partnerships – such as the Alliance of Ukrainian Universities – are critically important, because “competition is good, but collaboration is essential”. For instance, Stanford’s budget for 2023-2024 amounted to $8.9 billion – more than the combined budget of all Ukrainian universities. Only through joint efforts can breakthroughs be achieved.
“UCU must be a university that serves, not merely survives”,
the speaker concluded the first part of his address.
The Impact of Community on Healing the Wounds of War
At the heart of Resilience are people. “How can we mitigate the impact of war, strengthen resilience, and heal wounds?” – these are the key questions, according to the UCU Rector. The University has lost 35 members of its Community – students, alumni, and relatives of employees. UCU graduate Magdalyna Dymyd, whose brother was killed, said that her generation attends more funerals than weddings, and that we are seeking dignified ways to honor their sacrifice.
The University has launched mental health and care programs for 38 employees and 118 students who are waiting for loved ones to return from the front, as well as for veterans studying or working at UCU. It also offers veterans courses in Leadership, Business Basics, and Data Analysis, along with special initiatives for their employment, adaptation, and professional development.
Legal Clinic at UCU has handled over 300 cases, providing legal aid to military personnel and war-affected individuals, in cooperation with local rehabilitation centers for war victims. UCU has also joined a Consortium of five universities under the National Mental Health Coordination Center, contributing to the reform of psychological support in higher education institutions.
War brings the risk of cynicism and bitterness. Putin seeks to sow fear and undermine Ukraine from within. Universities must defend against this by filling hearts with hope.
“Hope is a strategic security asset that can protect society from collapse”,
stressed Taras Dobko, calling for social programs that will transform the country.
When Educational Quality Becomes a Competitive Advantage
“Despite the war, the quality of education must not be compromised. Quality is the only path to victory”,
with these words the University’s leader opened the third part of his address.
Knowledge gaps among youth threaten the future: as mentioned earlier, 38% of teenagers failed to achieve basic mathematical literacy, and many schoolchildren lack experience with traditional learning. “Universities must motivate students”, emphasized the Rector, advocating for flexible educational pathways based on the Liberal Arts and Sciences model and the use of Collaborative Online International Learning (COIL) for virtual mobility.
International collaboration strengthens quality. In the “RAI for Ukraine” project with New York University, 33 students from 10 Ukrainian universities are researching Responsible AI under the mentorship of scholars from top institutions (Eindhoven, Washington, Edinburgh, Oxford, etc.). “Joint projects give Ukrainian researchers a competitive edge”, noted Taras Dobko. He also proposed engaging international faculty in postwar Ukraine through a “Peace Corps”-style initiative to study global issues such as recovery, transitional justice, or migration governance.
Entrepreneurial Spirit: When a University Becomes an Agent of Change
“To be an entrepreneurial university without turning into a university-run enterprise”,
this is how the speaker shared his vision with the audience.
The Ukrainian Catholic University has a Board of Trustees with real authority, a Chief Financial Officer, an HR department, an Office for Innovation, university funds, and an Investment Council – setting an example for others. UCU also participates in the Ministry of Education and Science of Ukraine’s academic Leadership development program, which trains 1,000 academic administrators in strategy and management.
UCU students create defense-related startups – from drones to electronic warfare systems and information analysis tools to counter propaganda. But “often, faculty cannot keep up with the students”, the speaker noted.
An entrepreneurial ecosystem requires:
- Programs taught by real entrepreneurs
- Incubators and innovation centers for testing ideas
- Business-funded grants for student projects
- Collaboration with businesses for mentorship and funding
- Hackathons and government campaigns for networking
“In other countries, businesses fund student incubators because it’s profitable”,
Taras Dobko remarked.
Universities as Sources of Hope
Ukrainian universities have already proven their ability to be centers of Resilience, Humanity, Innovation, and Hope – even in the hardest times. Despite shelling, losses, and turbulence, they remain living institutions that not only survive, but move forward: supporting their communities, adapting educational approaches, building new partnerships, serving society, and thinking strategically.
Today, they face an equally significant challenge – to sustain this momentum and turn temporary mobilization into long-term transformation. The question is no longer only how to endure the war, but how to lay the foundations for a new academic culture capable of shaping the generation that will rebuild Ukraine – with dignity, responsibility, and global thinking.
Universities are called to be not only places of learning, but also spaces of service, remembrance, recovery, and future-making. If we manage to preserve human dignity, the pursuit of quality, a culture of collaboration, and belief in the meaning of education – we will not only survive this war. We will win it. And we will emerge stronger than we were before.
