Ukraine – current information in the science and research sector

Information in German

Higher Education Conference adopts joint declaration of solidarity

All members of the Higher Education Conference – and thus the main representatives of the Austrian university and higher education sector – jointly declare their full solidarity with Ukraine, its population and above all with the Ukrainian academic community. 
Declaration of solidarity (in German)

Support available from the BMBWF

• Special grant for Ukrainian students and researchers - Ernst Mach Grant – UKRAINE
• Tuition fee exemption for Ukrainian students in force

Other support available for students and researchers

Support from the OeAD for participants in exchange and mobility programmes

The OeAD is Austria’s Agency for Education and Internationalisation. As such, it implements Erasmus+ and the European Solidarity Corps (ESC), the EU programmes for stays abroad and international cooperation. The OeAD therefore provides a comprehensive range of information, particularly when it comes to entry, residence, studying and grants.

The following applies to participants in Erasmus+ and ESC exchange programmes:

• Early termination and early return are expressly authorised for all those affected who are in Ukraine, Belarus or Russia and have to leave because of the current situation.
• Any additional costs incurred as a result of these early departures, last-minute decisions not to travel, cancellation costs or the like will be reimbursed via the Erasmus+ or ESC programme.

Further information is available in the dedicated Ukraine information hub, which provides all the relevant information as well as answers to frequently asked questions (FAQ).

These cover topics such as Erasmus+ and ESC stays, OeAD grants and funding, support for Ukrainian students, accommodation questions and questions about the extension of visas and residence permits for Ukrainian students and scientists. These FAQ are regularly updated, with new questions added as needed.

ERA4Ukraine – The European Platform provides an overview of  support actions  for Ukrainian researchers. 

The specific initiative „ERA4Ukraine“ wants to support researchers of Ukraine by providing them with an overview of all existing actions at European and national levels. It covers specific information about housing, job offers, contact details of the Ukrainian Embassies, recognition of diplomas and other services.

In Austria, the OeAD, the Agency for Education and Internationalisation, provides the national website EURAXESS AUSTRIA – ERA4Ukraine. For more information please contact the contact points in universities, higher education and research.

Joint European Information Hub for people fleeing Ukraine about education systems, educational paths and recognitions of qualifications:

The European Training Foundation (ETF) has set up a website with key information about the different education systems, educational paths and recognitions of qualifications as well as learning and employment opportunities in the 27 European member states.  

Support available from the Austrian National Union of Students (ÖH)

The Austrian National Union of Students (ÖH) provides a special emergency assistance package for all students affected by the war in Ukraine. Up to €1,000 is available per person, depending on social need. It also provides advice in Ukrainian and Russian and has set up a dedicated email address for this purpose: ukraine@oeh.ac.at

Assessment of higher education qualifications by ENIC NARIC Austria

ENIC NARIC Austria is the national information centre for academic recognition and as such carries out assessment procedures for qualifications from recognised universities and other higher education institutions around the world. More detailed information about how this recognition procedure works is available on the BMBWF website in German and English.

• Applications for recognition can only be made online at www.aais.at
• For general enquiries to ENIC NARIC Austria, please email naric@bmbwf.gv.at

This list is not exhaustive and is updated on a regular basis.

Support available from individual universities, other higher education institutions and research institutions

Universities Austria (uniko) is resuming its MORE initiative, which was launched in 2015. This initiative provides refugees with low-threshold access to lectures, courses and artistic study programmes. For more details, please visit https://uniko.ac.at/themen/more/angebot/.

In addition, many universities, other higher education institutions and research institutions offer their own support measures for Ukrainian students and researchers.

• Austrian Academy of Sciences (OEAW) – emergency call for researchers from Ukraine, under which 25 additional research stays at Austrian research institutions will be funded as part of the OEAW mobility programme “Joint Excellence in Science and Humanities” (JESH). Submitted projects will be selected through an accelerated peer review process.
• The Austrian Science Fund (FWF) enables Ukrainian researchers to be included in ongoing research projects in Austria in a quick and straightforward way. To this end, it is allocating one million euros as crisis support for scientists directly affected by the war in Ukraine. These scientists can be integrated into ongoing FWF research projects throughout Austria with immediate effect; for details, see https://www.fwf.ac.at/de/news-presse/news/nachricht/nid/20220314. Moreover, the FWF offers additional measures for Ukrainian researchers in Austria who have already received funding or are involved in a project; for details, see https://www.fwf.ac.at/de/news-presse/news/nachricht/nid/20220228-0
• University of Vienna – overview of all measures

This list will be continuously updated.

Ukraine: important contacts in the university, higher education and research sector

Ukraine FAQ: important questions and answers for students and researchers

Key questions and answers for students and researchers with regard to Ukraine will be available here shortly.

Link:

• Ukraine: current information for universities, other higher education institutions, research institutions and students – overview page