All-Ukrainian Forum of Student Youth «StudProf 2026»: dialogue, experience and solutions!
From November 9 to 12, the All-Ukrainian Student Youth Forum «StudProf 2026» was held in Lviv, bringing together representatives of student trade union organizations from different parts of Ukraine. The participants focused on current challenges and opportunities for youth, protection of students’ labor rights, employment prospects, and creating conditions for decent work.
The team of the Primary Trade Union Organization of Students, Postgraduate Students and Doctoral Students of the Zaporizhzhia Polytechnic National University – the head of the student trade union committee Svitlana Karpenko, the deputy head of the student trade union committee Sofiia Stepanenko and the head of the trade union bureau of the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering Mykyta Dorofeev – joined the forum.
One of the key components of the forum was the panel discussions, during which participants had the opportunity to discuss current challenges facing student youth, share experiences, and develop a common vision for further changes.
«Support for Youth: From Dialogue to Solutions» is the first panel discussion dedicated to the role of youth in social processes, protecting their interests, and finding effective support mechanisms.
The following joined the discussion:
- Olha Chabanyuk — Deputy Head of the Trade Union of Education and Science Workers of Ukraine
- Sergiy Makhnovsky — Head of the Main Department for the Implementation of State Policy in the Sphere of Higher Education and Adult Education of the Ministry of Education and Science of Ukraine;
- Paraskovia Dvoryanin — Head of the Standing Commission of the Lviv Regional Council on Education, Science and Innovation
- Andriy Zakaliuk — Director of the Department of Education and Culture of the Lviv City Council
- Andriy Havrushkevych — Assistant to the Rector for Veteran Policy of Ihor Sikorsky Kyiv Polytechnic Institute
«Decent work from day one: how to create conditions for young people on the labor market together» was the second panel discussion, which focused on the issues of first employment, labor rights of young professionals, professional development, and cooperation with employers.
The following experts shared their opinions:
- Olena Kulchytska — expert of the Youth Guarantee implementation team
- Nadiya Kalinichenko — Deputy Head of the Employment Department of the Cherkasy Regional Employment Center
- Vasyl Fedyuk — member of the National Qualifications Agency
- Vasyl Ilkiv — Deputy Chairman of the Lviv Regional Association of Employers’ Organizations
A separate important part of the forum was the presentation of best practices in youth trade union work «Inspiring Experience. Ideas That Work», which was attended by Svitlana Karpenko. Together with representatives of trade union organizations in Kharkiv, Lviv, and Chernivtsi, she shared her work experience, initiatives, and practices in supporting students.
These meetings and discussions have once again confirmed how important partnership, interaction and willingness to hear each other are. We are convinced: youth is not about the future, youth is about the present! It is about people who already today take responsibility, propose changes, defend their rights, create opportunities and, with their own actions, shape the country in which they want to live.
