Saskatchewan-Ukraine Relationships in Education: History, Current State, and Prospects

Abstract

For the last decade, the internationalization of higher education became a priority for both the Canadian province of Saskatchewan and Ukraine. Having historically strong ties, these two parties attempt to build equally strong educational relations. By analyzing educational partnerships and collaborations between the post-secondary institutions in Saskatchewan and Ukraine, the paper examines the history, nature, and development of the Saskatchewan-Ukraine relationships in higher education. The author analyses the case of the Saskatchewan-Ukraine cooperation in higher education by examining documents related to the Saskatchewan-Ukraine relations, those outlining Canadian federal and provincial policy initiatives, and Ukrainian state legislature. The paper also discusses the Saskatchewan-Ukraine educational cooperation as it is promoted on the websites of the universities involved in such cooperation. The author investigates different internship programs and initiatives between two Saskatchewan universities – the University of Regina and the University of Saskatchewan, and three Ukrainian public universities – Yuriy Fedkovych Chernivtsi National University, Ivano-Frankivsk National Technical University of Oil and Gas, and Ternopil Volodymyr Hnatiuk National Pedagogical University. The document analysis provides information of three major categories: the history of the Saskatchewan-Ukraine relations, the current state of such relationships in education, and the prospects of the Saskatchewan-Ukraine educational cooperation. Regardless of the strong governmental support of the Saskatchewan-Ukraine relationships in education, several challenges to the relationships appear in the light of the current political-economic contexts. The paper discusses these challenges and suggests recommendations for developing further Saskatchewan-Ukraine cooperation in the educational field.