In a time of economic uncertainty, choosing where and what to study takes on added importance.
In a time of economic uncertainty, choosing where and what to study takes on added importance.
Picking the right course at the right university is crucial to making sure you secure the job you want after graduation.
And just studying your subject won’t be enough, experts warn, as you’ll need something extra to make you stand out from the crowd – such as fluency in a foreign language or well-developed team skills.
Picking the right degree, be it bachelor’s or master’s, is an important first step towards a rewarding and lucrative career. But it’s not always an easy decision.
“You have to pick what to study carefully,” said George Logush a Ukrainian-American business executive who for years headed food giant Kraft Group’s Ukraine operations, and recently moved to become vice president at London-listed MHP, Ukraine’s top poultry producer.
To increase your chances of employment and solid remuneration, Logush suggested avoiding sectors that are demographically related.
“The birth rate is dropping, so being a school teacher isn’t a great idea,” he said.
Logush said he also sees a glut of lawyers, so his advice is to avoid law school.
“We have periodic overproduction of lawyers who end up being employed in other kinds of jobs,” he said. “I’ve seen highly qualified lawyers working as secretaries and super-junior brand managers.”
Logush tipped expanding branches of the economy, especially agriculture and business. Students should arm themselves with a master of business administration (MBA) if they want to land a job in a top firm.
Joop Allers, founding partner of Clarus Eastern Europe, a recruitment agency specializing in filling middle management and executive positions in Ukrainian-based foreign companies, agrees.
The birth rate is dropping, so being a school teacher isn’t a great idea, – George Logush a Ukrainian-American business executive who for years headed food giant Kraft Group’s Ukraine operations.
“Marketing, consulting and human resources are the star industries of today,” he said.
It seems that more young Ukrainians are listening.
MBA Strategy, an agency with offices in Kyiv and Moscow that specializes in preparing students for entry into the world’s top MBA programs, has seen the number of applicants for its services grow by 10-15 percent over the past three years.
The next question for students is where to study. Experts agree that reputation is the key factor.
For those hoping to study abroad, well-respected annual publications include QS World University Rankings and The Times Higher Education World University Rankings.
For Ukraine, there is the Compass ranking, established in 2008 by System Capital Management, the holding company of Ukraine’s richest man, Rinat Akhmetov.
The ranking gathered assessments of universities by graduates and employers to show which institutions lead to the best employment prospects.
The top five universities on Compass list are in Kyiv: National Technical University of Ukraine, Kyiv Polytechnic Institute; Kyiv National Taras Shevchenko; Kyiv National Economics University Vadim Hetman; National University “Kyiv-Mohyla Academy”; and Kyiv National University of Construction and Architecture.
It is also possible to combine a foreign program with studying in Ukraine, for example with the University of Sheffield’s Executive MBA program and the Edinburgh Business School, both in Kyiv.
“It’s a possiblity to study at a top-ranked British university while being in Ukraine,” said Vasyl Buzhak, Sheffield’s country administrator for Ukraine.
While the lure of paid employment may be great, students should also be willing to stay at university longer or return to study after a few years in the workforce.
Valeriyia Radko, project manager at MBA Strategy, points out that one of the common factors among those who are offered an MBA place at prestigious overseas universities is having more than a bachelor’s degree.
Kyiv Mohyla Academy graduate Andrii Kiril says building up a resume of extracurricular experience is crucial to impressing employers.
Logush said education beyond a bachelor’s degree is more important than ever.
“Knowledge has developed so rapidly that a bachelor’s degree isn’t enough,” he said. “In the old days, high school was thought to be all you needed. But every subject you learn in a bachelor’s needs to be gone over again, mastered in depth.”
Mastery of English is also another crucial component of a modern resume.
Anders Ostlund, director of recruitment agency Stella100, said candidates’ English is constantly improving. “We are seeing more candidates with fine English than four years ago,” he said. “If you want to work in management or communication then you will need to speak English at a high level.”
Ostlund suggests that anyone who can should head overseas to improve their English either through study or work. “International experience is important,” he added, “and these people do well in Ukraine.” He mentions, by way of example, the U.S. State Department’s Future Leaders Exchange (FLEX) Program, which offers students from ex-Soviet republics, ages 15 to 17, the chance to live with an American family and attend a U.S. high school for a year.
Someone reaping the rewards of polished English is recent graduate Andrii Kril.
Having just graduated with a bachelor of laws from Kyiv Mohyla Academy, he is about to start a master of laws at the University of Pittsburgh in the U.S. with the help of a World Wide Studies scholarship funded by the Victor Pinchuk Foundation.
“From my perspective, English is a must for any young professional in Ukraine at the moment,” Kril said.
Experts said it’s important for students to find a way to gain skills beyond their studies, such as by getting relevant work experience while studying. Ostlund pointed out that, unlike students in countries such as the U.S., most Ukrainian students do not work during their university studies.
“This leads to a situation at graduation where they have no international mindset or experience, no group skills or multitasking. Employers don’t like that,” he said.
Vasilij Savin, a Stockholm-based IT consultant and part-time university lecturer, also stressed that the challenge for Ukrainian students is to improve their “soft skills.”
While Ukrainians often have very strong technical skills, Savin said, students should also focus on skills and demonstrable experience like teamwork and project management, which are attractive to employers.
For recent law graduate Andrii Kril, it’s all about standing out from the crowd.
“You have to have something in your resume that distinguishes you from hundreds of other applicants,” he said. “Relevant work experience or participation in extracurricular activities such as moot courts or international competitions will definitely make your resume look better.”
