A student from Poland studied for 4 years at Lviv University but did not receive a diploma due to an admission error

The Halytskyi District Court of Lviv denied the claim of a former student against Ivan Franko National University of Lviv. In the claim, the former student demanded the cancellation of the expulsion order, reinstatement in the university, issuance of a bachelor's diploma, and compensation for moral damages.

A Polish citizen did not receive a diploma after completing her studies

The plaintiff, a citizen of the Republic of Poland, was admitted to the university in 2020 to the specialty "International Relations" under a contract. After completing her studies in 2024 and successfully passing the final assessment, she did not receive a diploma. The claim was based on the fact that the plaintiff fulfilled all study requirements, earned 240 ECTS credits, fully paid for her education, and has the right to a diploma.

As explained by the university, the student was expelled in September 2024 due to the absence of a document confirming complete secondary education recognized in Ukraine as a basis for admission. The issue is that the submitted Polish document of high school completion is not equivalent to the matura certificate, which grants the right to enter higher education institutions in Ukraine. The defendant stated that the plaintiff was repeatedly informed about the need to provide a proper document confirming complete secondary education or to obtain it through Ukrainian external studies. However, these requirements were not fulfilled.

The university emphasized that without such a document, it is impossible to enter data into the Unified State Electronic Database on Education (USEDE) and issue a diploma.

The court recognized the university's decision as lawful

The court noted that upon admission, the plaintiff as a citizen of the Republic of Poland submitted a document about completing studies at a Polish high school (swiadectwo ukonczenia liceum ogolnoksztalcacego), which, according to the legal position of the Ministry of Education and Science of Ukraine, is not a document confirming the right to enter higher education institutions in Ukraine without additional confirmation of equivalence or obtaining a document of complete secondary education of the established sample.

The court took into account Article 3 of the Agreement between the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine and the Government of the Republic of Poland on academic recognition of education documents dated 11.04.2005, according to which the right to enter higher education institutions of the other party's state is confirmed by appropriate documents of complete secondary education (in Ukraine — an attestation, in Poland — the matura certificate (swiadectwo dojrzalosci), issued based on passing the relevant exam).

The court also referred to clarifications from the Ministry of Education and Science of Ukraine, according to which documents like swiadectwo ukonczenia liceum ogolnoksztalcacego are not equated to the matura certificate and do not independently grant the right to enter higher education institutions in Ukraine.

As established by the court, after admission to the university, the plaintiff did not take steps to obtain a document of complete secondary education of the Ukrainian standard through external studies and did not provide the university with the relevant document either during her studies or before the disputed order was issued.

The university, for its part, informed the plaintiff about the need to submit additional documents and set a deadline for submission before the start of the academic year on 01.09.2024. However, these requirements were not met.

The court established that due to the absence of information in the Unified State Electronic Database on Education (USEDE) about the plaintiff having a document of complete secondary education of the established sample, the university was unable to form and issue a higher education document. The plaintiff was expelled from the university as of 01.09.2024.

According to the case materials, the grounds for expulsion were the refusal to recognize the foreign education document in Ukraine and failure to submit the proper document of complete secondary education.

The court emphasized that according to the Law of Ukraine "On Higher Education," the right to obtain a bachelor's degree is linked to having complete secondary education and proper documentary confirmation of this fact in the prescribed manner.

In conclusion, the court found that the university acted within its authority, and the plaintiff's expulsion and inability to issue a diploma were due to failure to meet mandatory requirements for documentary confirmation of the right to obtain higher education.

Given the above, the court considers that there are no grounds to recognize the expulsion order as illegal, reinstate the plaintiff in studies, oblige the issuance of a diploma, or compensate moral damages, since the plaintiff did not prove the illegality of the defendant's actions or the existence of all necessary legal prerequisites for satisfying the claim.

The decision has not yet entered into legal force and may be appealed in the appellate court.

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