Ukraine is preparing a three-year bachelor's degree programme: when will it start?

This was announced by Mykola Trofimenko, Deputy Minister of Education and Science for Higher Education.

Ukraine is preparing to launch a three-year specialised senior school, with full implementation planned for 2027.

The first graduates of the pilot programme will complete their studies in 2029. They will be able to enrol in universities under the new conditions.

For such applicants, higher education institutions may introduce a new format of study – a three-year bachelor's degree.

Although the full implementation of the three-year specialised senior school will start in 2027, a pilot enrolment of senior school students is planned for 2026.

The Ministry of Education and Science has already held a working meeting with university representatives on how to organise the transition of experimental enrolment graduates to higher education.

The introduction of 12-year school education should complete the reform of general secondary education and bring the Ukrainian system closer to the models in place in European Union countries.

In most EU countries, school is completed at the age of 18.

The profile reform of senior secondary education provides for in-depth study of individual subjects and better career guidance for students.

That is why universities plan to review the duration of bachelor's degrees for those specialities where school education will make it possible to shorten the duration of study.

The Law on Higher Education already allows for three-year bachelor's degrees, and now the Ministry of Education and Science plans to gradually implement this model.

According to Mykola Trofimenko, the implementation will take place in two stages.

The first stage will start in 2029.

Then, a three-year bachelor's degree will be available as an option for graduates of the pilot specialised secondary school if they demonstrate a sufficient level of training in the chosen specialisation, which they studied in grades 10-12.

If the level of preparation is insufficient, applicants will be able to study under the standard four-year programme.

The second stage is scheduled to begin in 2030.

For most specialities, they plan to introduce a basic model: 12 years of school + 3 years of bachelor's degree + 2 years of master's degree.

At the same time, some specialities will retain four-year bachelor's programmes.

This applies primarily to fields where professional standards or the complexity of training require it, in particular engineering specialities.

If a student changes their field of study, special compensatory courses will be provided to help them catch up.

The Ministry of Education and Science expects that universities wishing to join the pilot programme will identify specialisations where a three-year bachelor's degree is possible, develop appropriate educational programmes and prepare an updated academic design for teaching.

The reform also plans to more actively involve university lecturers in academic lyceums.

This is expected to help strengthen the specialised training of high school students and, at the same time, prepare future applicants for universities.

According to Mykola Trofimenko, the workload for students in the three-year bachelor's degree programme will remain standard – about 60 ECTS credits per year, or 180 credits for the entire programme.

The ministry also emphasises that the transition to a three-year bachelor's degree does not mean an automatic reduction in university income.

This is a change in the structure of the educational trajectory – instead of the "4 years of bachelor's degree + 1.5 years of master's degree" model, the system will gradually move towards a "3 + 2" format.

The Ministry of Education and Science plans to devote the next three years to preparing the education system for this transformation.

Universities that are the first to introduce the new programmes may have an advantage during the 2029 admissions campaign.