When she got the call, Liliya Makhynko had already given up hope of being accepted to FLEX, the Future Leaders Exchange Program.
She had been checking her phone throughout the day with an increasing sense of resignation.
“By evening, I had given up,” she said. “I was disappointed and was eating dinner and didn’t even look at the screen when they called. I assumed it was my mom and said ‘Hi, mom.’ Then the person on the phone said, ‘It’s not your mom, it’s FLEX.’ I couldn’t believe it and started screaming.”
This year marks the 25th anniversary of FLEX, which since its inception has sent 6,635 high school students from Ukraine — and nearly 20,000 more from other Eurasian countries — to the U.S. for a year on a full scholarship.
The program was created by ex-U.S. Senator Bill Bradley to foster mutual understanding. It is funded by the U. S. State Department and administered by American Councils for International Education, a non-profit organization based in Washington, D.C.
The program seeks participants who demonstrate potential to help their home countries.
“We want them to see as much as they can, to try as much as they can and to bring that knowledge back to Ukraine and to use it in their local communities,” said Joseph Bilz, who manages FLEX operations in Kyiv.
Prominent alumni include Ukraine’s ambassador to Canada, Andriy Shevchenko.
Highly competitive
Each fall, program staff travels to 33 test centers across Ukraine to conduct testing and admissions interviews. Successful candidates must make it through a three-stage selection process.
First is a short English test. Those who make the cut then return the next day to write essays. Those who pass on to the third round are called back for yet more testing and essays, an admissions interview and an activity to assess how they work in groups.
Although basic English proficiency is required, it is not the primary factor.
“We’re looking for applicants who are eager to learn about new things, who are outgoing and flexible and excited to try as much as they can during their year in the U.S.” Bilz said.
The program is extremely competitive. This year just 248 out of 11,104 applicants made it, a lower acceptance rate than even American Ivy League universities.
Still, the prospect of an all-expenses paid year in the U.S. draws massive crowds of applicants, well over 500 in some cities, to the first round of testing.
To show there is no bias, applicants are assigned a random number rather than being identified by their actual names.
American living
Successful applicants go to towns across the U.S., where they study in local schools and live with volunteer host families. Most live in small towns in rural areas, although a lucky few wind up in big cities or exotic locations such as Hawaii.
Although students go through a pre-departure orientation to prepare them for cultural differences, they are in for a shock once they arrive to the U.S.
Alumni said many things were different in the U. S. Most were impressed by the greater diversity and the higher acceptance of different religions, races and sexual orientations. Others mentioned Americans’ individualistic attitudes, casual approach to living on credit and their level of political engagement.
“I think Americans are a bit more open,” said Kyrylo Korol, who spent the year in Washington D. C. “This has advantages and disadvantages. They want to be friends with everyone, but it means this friendship is not real friendship.”
Unfortunately, participants often find Americans are ignorant about Ukraine.
“Many of them didn’t think of Ukraine as a country,” Korol said. “They thought it was part of Russia and asked questions like ‘Is it winter all year? Are there bears? Do you drink vodka?’”
In part, the program is meant to tackle ignorance on both sides through exposure to people of other countries.
Diversity in admissions
The program strives to include students with disabilities and those from Russian-occupied territories. “We really want to include students from all parts of Ukraine, including Donetsk and Luhansk Oblasts and Crimea,” Bilz said.
Program staff arrange testing sites as close as possible to the war zone and try to accommodate applicants who travel there by, for example, conducting the first two rounds of testing on the same day. All students, including those from Russian-occupied Crimea, travel to the U.S on their Ukrainian passports.
Yuliya Basarab, who is from Kostyantynivka and spent a year in Iowa, has limited movement in her left arm and leg due to cerebral palsy. Her year abroad showed her that people with disabilities can be better integrated into society. “Americans have more understanding and tolerance toward people with disabilities than we do in Ukraine,” she said.
Her host school had accommodations for students with disabilities, brail signs and teachers who accompanied blind students. “There was even one blind student who had a (service) dog at school,” she said.
She said her host school was generally more inclusive — both on an institutional and cultural level — than her school at home. “Disabled students were involved in everything at my American school, even sports and drama,” she said. “Everyone was nice and always asking if they needed any help.”
Life-changing time
Spending a year abroad as a teenager is a life-changing experience. Beyond becoming fluent in English, participants grow more independent and gain a wider perspective on the world.
“It was a great and unforgettable experience for me,” Basarab said.
But there are downsides.
Although there are no precise statistics, many alumni report gaining anywhere from 5 to 20 kilograms during their year in the U. S. Some have before and after photos to prove the point.
“The food portions were enormous,” Makhynko said. “At first, I would order a salad and not be able to finish it. But eventually I got used it.”
Will Cohen is a Kyiv-based freelance journalist.
