Ukrainian PhD Students in Berlin

In October–December 2025, third-level (educational and scientific) students majoring in Economics at Ukrainian universities, Mariia Zavodiana from the National University of Life and Environmental Sciences of Ukraine (NULES) and Anna Savelova from the Kremenchuk Mykhailo Ostrohradskyi National University (KrNU) completed an international internship at the Berliner Hochschule für Technik (BHT) as part of the DAAD PACK IT academic mobility programme. Their participation in these projects was an important step in their professional development and confirmed the high level of training of young Ukrainian scientists.

For two months, the postgraduate students took courses that combined modern data analysis methods, business analytics, and academic English: Statistical Computing, Business Intelligence, Presenting in English, and English for Study Abroad. University lecturers provided them with guest access to teaching materials, allowing them to revisit topics and deepen their knowledge even outside the classroom.

Meeting BHT professors and researchers was particularly valuable. Prof. Dr Steffen Wagner presented modern approaches to statistics and working with the R programming language, Dr Alexandra Sudhersan helped improve academic English skills, and Dr Alexia Shemien taught the art of presenting in English. Prof. Dr Aleksandr Löser introduced the postgraduate students to the world of business analytics, which combines economics with computer technology.

The internship also included participation in cultural and scientific events. Mariia Zavodiana and Anna Savelova attended a lecture by Prof. Dr Svitlana Smolenska entitled “The Lost Story of the 1930 International Competition for the Kharkiv Theatre”. The speaker gave a presentation and talked about the best projects for the State Ukrainian Theater of Mass Music for 4,000 seats in Kharkiv, reproduced from modern photocopies and illustrations in the architectural press of the 1930s, as well as the original preparatory drawings of the Kharkiv Theater by two German architects Hans Pelzig and Otto Kotz, which are stored in the Berlin Architectural Museum of the Technical University.

Thanks to an invitation from Prof. Dr Yasmin Olteanu, postgraduate student Anna Savelova took part in the Kyiv Investment Forum 2025: Berlin Platform, where innovations in energy and sustainable urban development were discussed. The forum became an important platform for dialogue between Ukrainian and German experts, businesses and investors.

The cultural component of the internship was no less significant. Anna and Mariia visited the Bundestag, Berlin Cathedral, Charlottenburg Palace, the Museum of Ancient Culture, one of the largest zoos in Europe, as well as the symbols of the capital - the Brandenburg Gate and the TV tower on Alexanderplatz. This contributed to their socio-cultural integration and helped them better understand the context of life in modern Germany.

The participants expressed their special gratitude to the programme coordinators, Prof. Dr Stefan Jungle and Prof. Dr Natalia Zaiets. It was their support, organisational work and constant attention to the students' needs that ensured a comfortable stay in Berlin, effective learning and successful integration into the international academic environment. Thanks to their efforts, the internship became not only an educational but also a truly inspiring experience that opened up new opportunities for Ukrainian graduate students.

The internships of Anna Savelova and Mariia Zavodiana have become a model of the successful integration of young Ukrainian scientists into the European academic sphere. Their participation in DAAD programmes has not only highlighted the prestige of Ukrainian universities, but also laid the foundation for new international research, partnerships and joint projects. For the faculties they represent, this is another step towards the internationalisation of the educational process and improving the quality of scientific research in the fields of economics, international relations and geoinformatics.