Western University investing $600K to support Ukranian students and scholars

As Russia continues its invasion of Ukraine, Western University says it will offer support to students facing disruptions and displacement due to the war. 

The university is investing $600,000 to help scholars start or finish their education at the London, Ont., campus. That's in addition to the university's ongoing support of international students from Ukraine, Russia and Belarus. 

The school is allocating $500,000 from that investment to provide direct financial support to current students, as well as those looking to start their education at the school, said Lise Laporte, the senior director of Western International. 

"We recognize that each student is going to come with a particular set of needs and so our approach is really to provide that tailored support based on their circumstances," Laporte said, adding that for some it will mean tuition, for others housing or access to mental health supports among others. 

The news has caused a bit of relief for Ukranian students feeling the burden of balancing the events taking place back home with their studies and their lives in Canada. 

"It's good that these options are becoming available," said Western PhD student Sergii Nevmerzhytsky, who immigrated from Ukraine in 2016. 

Nevmerzhytsky said he was planning on submitting his dissertation this spring, but the conflict taking place back home hasn't allowed him to properly focus on his studies.

"I go to sleep late at night because usually the bombings are at night in Ukraine, so in the day or evening here in Canada. I'm just trying to make sure that everything is safe ... I'm checking [the] news every day." 

"My parents, they had to relocate twice because of bombings, so right now they're staying in the very west of Ukraine — they used to live in Kyiv before the war. Most of my friends, many of them are volunteering and their kids and their spouses are trying to find a safer place." 

The constant worry without the ability to do much has left Nevmerzhytsky unable to fully commit to his studies. He said he will likely need an extra term to complete his dissertation. 

In additional to financial support, Western University said it's opening up new six-to-12 month research opportunities for visiting undergraduate or graduate students displaced by global crises. 

The Ivey Business School will also be investing more than $1 million to welcome 10 Ukranian graduate students looking to complete their studies. 

The Ivey MBA Ukrainian Student Academic Shelter Program will run on an exchange basis with Lviv Business School and National University of Kyiv-Mohyla Academy. It will allow 10 students from those schools who are enrolled in a masters-level program in business, finance, marketing, technology or economics to come to Western with their tuition fee waived.

The school will also cover costs for learning materials, housing and a monthly stipend. .