Despite the ongoing war and brutal attacks by the Russian military, the Kyiv School of Economics (KSE) has remained steadfast in its mission. We have continued to support the Ukrainian government and contribute to our nation’s resilience through education, research, and vital projects focused on defense and rebuilding policies.
This year we are happy to report that:
• KSE University witnessed a remarkable 3.5-fold increase in enrollment, rising to 750 students, alongside the launch of 8 innovative programs.
• Students raised over $2M for medical evacuation helicopters, delivering 2 so far and 3 more on the way.
• The KSE Foundation gathered nearly $50M for humanitarian support in Ukraine, a 20% increase from the previous year.
• KSE Institute undertook significant government projects supporting the economy, obtaining international fundings, and advancing and preparing Ukraine for EU integration.
• KSE Business School expanded, tripling MBA student numbers, engaging in consulting projects, case studies, academic research, corporate programs, and fostering an entrepreneurial ecosystem, with initial investments in alumni and student companies.
Degree programs. Despite the challenges posed by the war, in 2023 KSE university has not only sustained its commitment to academic excellence but has also expanded its programming.
In 2023, university tripled its admission rate, increasing admission to the core programs and also launching new undergrad and graduate programs. Both MA in Economic analysis and MA in Business and Finance Economics admitted twice more students than the previous year. Undergrad programs in economics tripled their admissions.
Beyond supporting current programming, KSE University launched new degree programs. The goal was to address the most crucial issues during the war: how to rebuild destroyed areas, deal with trauma, make sense of the war and get justice, build new technologies in security? Based on these strategic needs for the country, KSE University has launched the following new programs:
• BA in Law
• BA in Cybersecurity
• BA in Applied Mathematics
• BA in Psychology
• BA in Artificial Intelligence
• MA in Memory Studies
• MA in Social Psychology
• MA in Urban Studies
All new degree programs feature visiting international scholars and recognized Ukrainian practitioners. E.g. Yulia Ilchuk (tenured prof in the history of Ukrainian literature, Stanford, visiting in Memory program) and Nobel prize winner Oleksandra Matviychuk (visiting in Law program).
Support of science and education in Ukraine and beyond. In 2023, KSE University has partnered with the International Centre for Mathematics in Ukraine. We co-organized a conference featuring keynote lectures by two Fields Medal laureates, Maryna Viazovska and Terence Tao.
In 2023, KSE Charitable Foundation supported 150 Ukrainian talents in science, education, art, entrepreneurship, and civil activism. Among others, the grants were awarded to leading Ukrainian scholars as physicists Denys Sheka and Serhii Sharapov, biophysicist Semen Yesylevskyi, chemist Yurii Khalavka, biologists Nana Voitenko, radiobiologist Olena Pareniuk, microbiologist Olena Livinska, mathematicians Taras Banakh, Olena Karlova, Kateryna Terletska and Bohdan Rublev, historians Natalia Yakovenko and Ihor Serdiuk, sociologist Yevhen Holovakha and demographer Ella Libanova.
Alliance of Ukrainian Universities. In partnership with five key universities in Ukraine, KSE has launched a new collaborative project “Alliance of Ukrainian Universities” (KSE, UCU, KNU, Sumy State University, Dnipro Polytechnic, and the National University of Water and Environmental Engineering in Rivne).
International Programming. In 2023, KSE University continued its joint MA education in public policy with the Munk School at U of Toronto, admitting five new Ukrainian students in Canada (joint KSE-Munk program). We also executed new exchange programs with our partners:
• Exchange program with Bocconi University: three 2-year students and two 3-rd year students are taking part in 1-semester mobility.
• Exchange program with University of Massachusetts in Amherst: four 2-year students are taking part, two coming for a semester, two, for a year.
International partnerships and visits. In 2023, KSE University strengthened its global impact through international teaching, academic research, and media presence. KSE faculty offered courses about Ukraine and regional studies for students in Northwestern, Virginia Commonwealth University (will be repeated in 2024), U of Toronto.
EU-CIVICA+. KSE University has joined the EU-CIVICA+ alliance which unites top European universities in social science. KSE has already initiated student exchanges and secured funding for joint research in cooperation with some of the CIVICA members.
In Spring 2023, KSE rector Tymofii Brik visited our key partners in the US, Canada, and Mexico to sign memorandums, participate in events, conferences, and faculty meetings. Among others, he visited Northwestern University, U of Chicago, U of North Carolina, Duke University, U of Pittsburgh, George Washington University, UMass Amherst, Stanford University, U of Wisconsin-Madison, Columbia University, Yale University, Houston University, and Instituto Tecnológico Autónomo de México (ITAM).
This trip was possible due to the generous support by the Roberta Buffett Institute for Global Studies at Northwestern. KSE rector Tymofii Brik was appointed as Roberta Buffett Visiting Professor of International Studies in the Department of Sociology at Northwestern, where he taught two classes about Ukrainian society and the sociology of religion.
International funds for research. In 2023, KSE University was granted institutional support from the European Research Infrastructure (ERIC) to conduct the European Social Survey in 2024. Under the framework of the European Commission, KSE has been approved to participate in ‘ValEUS,’ a collaborative project led by our partners at Viadrina University and supported by the European Commission. The project’s aim is to develop educational materials about Ukraine. Additionally, KSE secured funding alongside Södertörn University and Stockholm School of Economics for research on socio-economic changes in Ukraine.
Faculty, research, and teaching. From November 2022 to November 2023, our faculty published 32 peer-reviewed papers. These publications were chiefly supported by the UMass fellowship for non-residential scholars, joint projects with the KSE Institute in agricultural economics and decentralization fields, and EU-CIVICA internships. Additionally, three special edited volumes are underway, spearheaded by KSE staff for European Societies, the Journal of Comparative Economics, and the Journal of Public Finance and Public Choice.
The faculty count, including both core and visiting members, has significantly increased owing to new programs, on-site summer schools, and workshops. The undergraduate programs now have 38 full-time teaching faculty (3 holding international PhDs), while the graduate programs boast 29 full-time instructors (10 with international PhDs). Our new faculty members range from industry professionals like IT managers and law practitioners to academics with international PhDs. Athena Small, formerly of the University of Virginia, has relocated to Kyiv to join our core faculty.
Summer schools and workshops. Jason Stanley, the Jacob Urowsky Professor of Philosophy at Yale University and author of ‘How Fascism Works?’ and ‘How Propaganda Works?,’ visited KSE in the summer. He taught a summer course on Colonialism and Fascism, attracting over 500 students who attended his lectures both offline and online.
Furthermore, Jeffrey A. Sonnenfeld Senior Associate Dean for Leadership Studies & Lester Crown Professor in the Practice of Management at Yale University, provided a special workshop to the KSE students.
A significant addition to the curriculum was the ‘Global Recovery and Reconstruction’ course, which was organized together with Dr. Jennifer Murtazashvili from the U of Pittsburgh.
The course has attracted international scholars who shared their knowledge on development economics, political science, and international law, thereby enriching KSE students’ learning experience and extending our academic reach to a wider audience. The visiting faculty who visit KSE in person from Sept 1 to Dec 21 were
• Jennifer Brick Murtazashvili (University of Pittsburgh)
• Scott Gehlbach (University of Chicago)
• Charles Kotuby (University of Pittsburgh)
• Graeme Robertson (University of North Carolina)
• Sebastian Galiani (University of Maryland)
• Domitilla Sagramoso (King’s College London)
• Yoshiko Herrera (University of Wisconsin-Madison)
• Magyar Bálint (Central European University)
• Andrew Kydd (University of Wisconsin-Madison)
• Dan Honing (Georgetown McCourt School of Public Policy)
• Louis Bickford (Columbia University)
• Svitlana Maksymenko (University of Pittsburgh)
Beyond academia. Helping Ukraine trough policy making and building international dialog.
In 2023, KSE University was proud to welcome international leaders and global policy makers. They discussed most salient global policy issues with our students.
The KSE Foundation gathered nearly $50M for humanitarian support in Ukraine, a 20% increase from the previous year.
• Students raised over $2M for medical evacuation helicopters, delivering 2 so far and 3 more on the way.
• The “Donate To Evacuate” initiative, launched by KSE students brought together the First soloist of the English National Ballet Katja Khaniukova and benefactors. A special concert and auction raised funds for the purchase of medevac helicopters.
Svitlana Denysenko, the Head of the KSE Charitable Foundation, received recognition for her achievements through the prestigious ‘Golden Heart’ award from the President of Ukraine, and was honored with Forbes Ukraine’s ’30 Under 30′ award.
KSE Business School expanded, tripling MBA student numbers, engaging in consulting projects, case studies, academic research, corporate programs. Among others, KSE Business school has engaged in projects dedicated to fostering startups with a special focus on de-mining.
KSE Institute, chaired by Nataliia Shapoval, together with World Bank and the government of Ukraine, launched a new Center for Advancement in Restoration and Modernization Capacity. This center will empower and educate thousands of local leaders who will become managers of post-war reconstruction.
KSE is at the forefront of education and research in Ukraine, especially in AI. In Spring 2023, it initiated the first nationwide Ukrainian prompt challenge for pupils, with 117 participants from 14 schools. Additionally, in December 2023, KSE is set to organize its inaugural AI summit.
We are also grateful to our fantastic International Academic Board members, who have demonstrated their support for Ukraine and KSE through their involvement in our initiatives. The International Academic Board, which is chaired by Nobel Laureate in Economics 2007 Professor Roger Myerson of the University of Chicago, includes Associate Dean at the Stony Brook College of Business at New York State University Dmytro Holod (KSE’2000), Associate Chair of Duke University’s Economics Department Charles Becker, Professor at School of Business and Economics Humboldt University of Berlin Michael Burda, Quantedge Presidential Professor of Economics at University of California, Berkeley Yuriy Gorodnichenko (KSE’2001), Professor at the University of Houston Paul Gregory, Associate Professor at the University of British Columbia in Vancouver Viktoria Hnatkovska (KSE’2000), KSE President and Associate Professor of the University of Pittsburgh Tymofiy Mylovanov (KSE’1999 and former Minister of Economic Development, Trade and Agriculture of Ukraine), Eugene M. Isenberg Chair in Integrative Studies at Isenberg School of Management, University of Massachusetts Amherst Anna Nagurney, Professor at Yale University Larry Samuelson, and Professor at the University of Chicago Konstantin Sonin.
Dear partners and friends, thank you for your continued support and dedication to KSE. We are grateful for your commitment to improving the lives of those affected by the war in Ukraine.
Consider supporting Kyiv School of Economics at the following link https://bit.ly/kse_donate Your donation to KSE supports students affected by the war and shapes them into Ukraine’s future leaders.
