On Thursday, 29 October, Uzhhorod University presented the members of the Supervisory Board and discussed the development priorities of the merged university. Among the key areas are training specialists for the defence sector, the development of cybersecurity and biotechnology, attracting investment, modernising infrastructure and preserving academic traditions. The Chairman of the Supervisory Board, Deputy Head of the Office of the President of Ukraine Viktor Mykyta, also met with the student community.
At the start of the meeting, Viktor Mykyta congratulated the participants on the completion of the merger of Uzhhorod National University with Mukachevo State University. He emphasised that the development of education in Zakarpattia is important for the region. According to Viktor Mykyta, the creation of the Supervisory Board should become another instrument for supporting the university and implementing its further plans.
The members are: Chairman of the Supervisory Board Viktor Mykyta; Deputy Chairman of the Board, President of the National Academy of Medical Sciences of Ukraine Vasyl Lazoryshynets; Secretary of the Board, Head of the Department of Neurosurgery at the P. L. Shupyk National University of Health Care of Ukraine Mykola Polishchuk; members of the Supervisory Board: Head of the Zakarpattia Regional Military Administration Myroslav Biletskyi, Mukachevo City Mayor Andrii Baloha, Commander of the Unmanned Systems Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine Robert Brovdi, Head of the Chateau Chizay winemaking complex Hennadii Hutman, Director of the Kvítka Polonyny sanatorium Pavlo Hanynets and Deputy Mayor of Uzhhorod Ivan Zavydniak.
Acting Rector Volodymyr Smolanka thanked the members of the Supervisory Board for their willingness to join the work of the university and expressed hope for long and fruitful cooperation.
He also presented the main indicators of the merged institution. The university currently has 18,462 students, 25 faculties and educational institutes, 3 colleges and 34 laboratories. The university offers 248 educational programmes and has 152 international partners.
According to Volodymyr Smolanka, the merger expands the choice of educational programmes for students, opens up new opportunities for academic mobility and international research cooperation, and also enables more efficient use of human and material resources.
The Commander of the Unmanned Systems Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, Robert Brovdi, who joined the meeting online, emphasised the need to systematise and preserve the experience Ukraine has gained during the war and to use it for the development of education and science.
In his view, this is not only about training engineers in unmanned systems. Ukraine also needs analysts and specialists who will understand how to increase the effectiveness of defence technologies and develop the military tech ecosystem.
Among possible steps, he named the creation of a university programme, department or other educational platform that would help train such specialists. At the same time, he emphasised, this requires not only a formal structure but also a team of people ready to develop the field.
Supervisory Board member Mykola Polishchuk also spoke about the importance of the university for the region. He noted the importance of a classical university education, which combines different fields of knowledge and gives young people more opportunities not only for professional development but also for personal growth.
Another area of discussion was cooperation between the university and business. Viktor Mykyta spoke about plans to implement biotechnology projects in Zakarpattia with the participation of the company Biopharma.
Among the university's main priorities are improving the quality of education and science, developing innovation, international integration, attracting grant resources, modernising infrastructure and strengthening cooperation with the region and business.
The merger of Uzhhorod and Mukachevo universities has created a broader educational and research base. The next task is to use this potential for new educational programmes, research and projects that are important for Zakarpattia and Ukraine.
After the official part, the members of the Supervisory Board familiarised themselves with the results of the implementation of Uzhhorod University's international projects and its modern educational infrastructure. In particular, they were presented with the WeVaRe project "Introducing Monitoring of Wetlands of International Importance in the Carpathian Region", which provides for research on the state of wetlands, the creation of digital maps and the implementation of modern environmental monitoring systems. The participants also viewed the results of an energy efficiency project, under which university buildings and a dormitory were modernised, and the STEM laboratory at the Faculty of Mathematics and Digital Technologies. It was opened on 6 October 2026 as part of the cross-border project STEMLab Synergy, aimed at developing STEM education, robotics, 3D modelling and working with data.
Viktor Mykyta also met with students. The conversation covered employment prospects in Zakarpattia, the development of the regional economy and new opportunities for young specialists.
Viktor Mykyta emphasised that after the start of the full-scale war, hundreds of enterprises moved to the region, some of which are developing new production and technological areas here. In his opinion, this creates opportunities for the university to cooperate more closely with employers, adapt educational programmes to the needs of the labour market and train specialists who will be able to realise themselves in the region.
"Human capital is important for business. It is you — the people who will work in these areas," Viktor Mykyta said to the students.
The meeting was an opportunity to outline the shared priorities of the university, government and business: the development of modern education and science, the training of specialists for new sectors of the economy and the creation of conditions in which young people can realise their potential in Ukraine. Uzhhorod University should become one of the centres of these changes — preserving its academic traditions while at the same time opening up new opportunities for students, researchers and the whole of Zakarpattia.
Hanna Feltsan,
Information and Publishing Centre
