A year and a half of implementation of the DEFEP project “Distance Education for Future: Best EU Practices in Response to the Requests of Modern Higher Education Seekers and Labor Market” is bearing fruit. This is a valuable experience and new opportunities for the transformation of higher education on Ukraine’s path to the EU. This period was devoted to researching and improving approaches to distance education.

The DEFEP team conducted a sociological survey and analyzed best practices in the EU, Moldova and Ukraine, the results of which are reflected in the relevant reports. The methodology of distance education was improved, which is reflected in the monograph. A package of standard regulations for managing the educational process in HEIs was developed, which became the basis for internal regulations on distance education at partner universities. A roadmap for the implementation of distance education and a strategy for ensuring its quality and academic integrity have been formed.  Academic integrity course and guides for professional development of teachers, advisors and university administrators have been prepared. Specialized laboratories are being set by purchasing special equipment and software. Meetings are held with stakeholders, students and employers to update educational programs and curricula. The results are presented and discussed at conferences, round tables, and forums.

In order to inform the academic community of the Petro Mohyla Black Sea National University of the main results, DEFEP project coordinator Olena Filimonova made a report at a meeting of the Academic Council on July 1, 2024. The report for the year and a half of the project was approved unanimously by the Academic Council and will be submitted to the Ministry of Education and Science of Ukraine and the European Education and Culture Executive Agency. And with the beginning of the new academic year, we will start piloting the training of masters in the distance form of higher education.