- Wednesday, February 25, 2026
A large-scale program of advanced training courses for scientific-pedagogical personnel has finished in Yuriy Fedkovych Chernivtsi National University. It lasted in January and February. The program united around 220 teachers and became a complex institutional initiative aimed at strengthening academic culture, innovational pedagogics, digital transformation, and the University’s grant capacity.
Each course lasted for one week and was structured by integrating strategic, educational, digital, and project-grant components.
"Innovative practices as a development tool for the potential of participants of an educational process", the first program, was launched by Ruslan Biloskurskyi, the University’s rector. He outlined the concept of academic culture being a human-centric ecosystem, in which the teacher is the key driver of transformations. He highlighted the importance of strategically aligning individual professional objectives with the University’s priorities.
Natalia Filipchuk developed the topic of academic reputation and the teacher’s position in the educational environment further and presented instruments for forming an HR-brand and curating the professional identity.
Tetiana Fedirchyk, vice-rector for scientific-educational work and educational activities, and Natalia Nikula showed models of individual trajectories of advanced training and innovative approaches to professional development.
The matter of modernizing the educational process was presented by:
• Inna Prokop – regarding the implementation of innovative technologies in education;
• Vitalia Didukh – regarding practical cases of the implementation.
The participants who spoke in a section on developing soft skills and mentorship are as follows:
• Liubov Vodianka – on the topic of partnership interactions and motivating students regarding HR-management;
• Svitlana Romaniuk and Alina Predyk – on implementing social-emotional learning (SEL) for increasing resilience and engagement of students;
• Iryna Kushnir and Tetiana Ravliuk – presenting the role of soft skills in forming competitiveness of both the teacher and the student.
Separate attention was drawn to practical activities:
• Olena Yaroshenko – on implementing generative artificial intelligence in teaching;
• Ihor Vinnychuk – on using Microsoft Teams effectively in the educational process.
The first week ended with group presentations of innovative practices, which marked a high level of engagement and readiness to implement new solutions.
The “The University’s grant ecosystem: from strategic planning of the scientific work to participating in international consortiums” course was focused on developing grant culture and international integration of the University. Yuriy Khalavka, vice-rector for scientific work, presented a model of aligning the teacher’s individual scientific trajectory with the University’s strategy and the country’s priorities in science funding.
Ruslan Zaplitnyi, head of the Scientific and Organizational Department, explained the structure of the MSEC’s competitions in detail and the criteria for expert evaluation of the applications. Iryna Osovska, vice-rector for scientific-pedagogical work, international and humanitarian activity, revealed the potential of academic mobility projects KA1 and Jean Monnet.
Anastasiia Omelchenko, leading specialist of the International Department, presented the practical aspects of Key Action 2, working with Programme Guide and the Funding & Tenders portal. Iryna Horokholinska, manager of NCP «Horizon Europe. Culture, Creativity and Inclusive Society», emphasized the mechanisms of participating in international consortiums and preparing Partnership Inquiry.
A practical unit on a logical-structural approach (LFM) was carried out by Mariia Fedoriak and Oksana Zarochentseva. They demonstrated the algorithm of crafting a complete grant application.
Dmytro Fedortsov, vice-rector, and Natalia Kobitovych, head of the Planning and Finance Department, presented a complex algorithm for budget planning, calculating expenses, procurement procedures, and financial reporting in Erasmus+ projects.
Writing and presenting a collective grant application before an expert commission consisting of the University’s leadership became the courses’ culmination. The members showed:
• proficiency in the logical-structural matrix;
• understanding the criteria used for evaluation;
• budgeting skills;
• effective teamwork.
Participants of the “Practical English for scientific-pedagogical personnel” course could improve their language skills, enhance the usage of English in professional communication, get acquainted with modern approaches to academic writing and presenting results of scientific research, and become more prepared for participating in international educational and scientific projects.
Advanced training courses became a strategic investment in the University’s human capital. A holistic model was formed: «Academic culture → Innovative pedagogics → Digital transformation → Grant capacity → International integration».
We thank all speakers and the audience for a high level of professional interactions, openness to change, strategic thinking, and readiness for implementing innovations into daily academic practice. The University is forming a steady development culture which complies with modern European challenges and priorities thanks to shared work, interdisciplinary dialogue, and the scientific-pedagogical personnel’s activity. There are new projects, partnerships, and grant opportunities ahead. They will be a logical continuation of the transformations that have already started.
