Budget-funded students will not be required to work after graduation — the Parliament revised the approach to state orders

Students of civilian specialties studying at the expense of the state budget will not be obliged to work at their first job after completing their studies. This provision was excluded from the revised draft law No. 10399 for the second reading following broad public discussion. This was reported by the Committee of the Verkhovna Rada on Education, Science, and Innovation.

The committee noted that the updated version of draft law No. 10399 does not provide for a mandatory contract for the first job for students of civilian specialties. The requirement to work obligatorily will remain only for those who from the beginning study as future servicemen or employees of other structures in the security and defense sector.

It was also reported that students studying on budget places in civilian specialties will have no contracts for work or other obligations to the state. A similar approach will apply to the grant system — it will also not require mandatory employment after graduation.

The committee recalled that the version of the draft law adopted in the first reading contained a different approach. In particular, after the second year, a student studying at the state’s expense was to conclude a contract for the first job offered by the state and work in the specialty for a certain period after graduation. In case of refusal, it was envisaged that the student would have to independently compensate for the cost of their education.

This model was proposed due to a shortage of personnel in several sectors. As an example, the committee cited the education sector, where the state finances the training of about 10,000 future teachers annually, but only about 2,000 graduates actually go to work in schools.

Therefore, it was previously proposed to introduce a contract for the first job, which would mean that the state invests funds in training a specialist, and the graduate works in the specialty for a certain time, after which they independently determine their further professional path.

However, during public discussion, this initiative caused significant public resonance. In particular, there were remarks about possible signs of forced labor, violations of constitutional rights of citizens, and questions about the level of pay at the first job.

The Committee on Education, Science, and Innovation explained that because of this controversial provision, there was a risk of jeopardizing the adoption of the entire draft law. Therefore, it was decided to abandon this requirement and focus on implementing the basic reform model, which includes forecasting labor market needs, a new state order system, and a grant financing mechanism.

They also emphasized that draft law No. 10399 proposes to change the very principle of state support for higher education. The state order should become a true order from the state according to its needs, rather than a mechanism where higher education institutions independently determine the number and specialties of specialists trained at the state’s expense.

Moreover, it was reported that the new model concerns not only grants but also state orders, budget places, labor market needs forecasting, and other higher education financing mechanisms. Employers, business associations, and industry experts who can assess which specialists the economy will need in five, seven, or ten years are planned to be actively involved in this process.

It is noted that draft law No. 10399 proposes to clearly distinguish three instruments of state support.

The first instrument will remain the state order. It will be applied only in cases where a person already during their studies enters the relevant state system. Primarily, this concerns the security and defense sector — military educational institutions, the Ministry of Internal Affairs system, the Security Service of Ukraine, intelligence, and other structures with specific training conditions. Such students conclude contracts and work in the relevant state bodies after graduation.

The second instrument will be budget places for civilian specialties. The state will pay for the education of entrants who have demonstrated the best results. At the same time, they will have no obligation to work after graduation. According to the committee, this mechanism will allow supporting talented students and simultaneously increasing the number of budget places in specialties most needed by the country.

The third instrument will be the grant system. In this case, the student will study under a contract, but the state can fully or partially compensate for the cost of education. Separate grants are provided for socially vulnerable categories of the population, combatants, children of fallen defenders of Ukraine, victims of the Revolution of Dignity, orphans, and others who need state support.

The Committee on Education, Science, and Innovation emphasized that the proposed changes do not reduce state support for students but rather expand it. An increase in the number of support instruments is envisaged, each with a clearly defined purpose.

Thus, the state order will remain for those sectors where the state forms its own personnel reserve, primarily in the security and defense sector. For civilian specialties, budget places will remain for the best entrants, as well as a grant system that will allow financing the education of various categories of students, including those who need special social support.

As previously reported by the "Judicial and Legal Newspaper", draft law No. 10399 provides for reforming the mechanism of financing higher education and state support for students. The document proposes combining the state order system with the mechanism of state grants. It is expected that the size of grants will depend on the results of the National Multi-subject Test and the chosen specialty.

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