A professor from the USA offered a recipe for creating Ukrainian Harvard

Case study was shared by Roman Sheremeta, a professor of economics at the University of Western Case (USA), a native of Ivano-Frankivsk, on his page in Facebook.

According to the scientist, Ukraine needs to become an innovative country, because an economy based on innovation is growing faster and more stable than an economy built on natural resources. He suggests turning to the example of the United States, where Internet giants Google and Facebook, as well as high-tech companies like Microsoft, Apple and Boeing, create tens of thousands of high-paying jobs.

“To understand why there are so many innovative companies in the US, let’s recall how they came about. Most of these companies were founded by students from leading universities such as Stanford, Harvard, MIT. Microsoft founder Bill Gates, Apple, Steve Jobs, and Facebook, Mark Zuckerberg, studied there. How are these universities different from hundreds of other universities? The world’s best teaching staff and research institutes. They attract venture capitalists like a magnet and open up a ton of business opportunities for students. These universities are world leaders both in the number of startups created by students and the amount of venture capital raised by these startups”, – said Roman Sheremeta.

In his opinion, Ukraine can learn from the US experience. “In Ukraine, it is necessary to create world-class research institutes, to attract the brightest minds of the planet. The transformation of Ukraine into a high-tech economy should begin with the creation of a completely new university – the equivalent of Stanford, Harvard, MIT,” – the professor notes and says that there are corresponding prerequisites for this.

According to him, firstly, Ukraine has a strong natural science and engineering school. This confirms the current boom of the Ukrainian IT industry.

Secondly, in the scientific world there is a very strong Ukrainian diaspora. “Among scientists with Ukrainian roots are directors of elite German research institutes that are members of the Society named after Max Planck. Ukrainians win prestigious research grants, create successful startups in Silicon Valley. Most of these people will support Ukraine if they have a real chance to change it for the better”, – said Roman Sheremeta.

Thirdly, world-class institutions involved in social sciences are already appearing in the country. “Examples are the Consortium of Economic Research and Education (EERC), as well as the Kyiv School of Economics”, –  the scientist said.

Fourth, many successful Ukrainian businessmen are working in Ukraine and abroad, who could help finance the new university, the professor said. “Most of the budgets of Stanford, Harvard, MIT are private donations. With age, Ukrainian businessmen realize the need to leave behind something fundamental that will always be associated with their names”, – said Roman Sheremeta.

He stated that, unfortunately, there are no truly world-class universities in Ukraine yet. “According to the new QS rating, among Ukrainian universities, the best 477 position is in KhNU. Karazin. Five more universities entered the first 1000. In general, the situation is disappointing, even when compared with universities in Eastern Europe and the countries of the former USSR”, – the professor wrote.

To create Ukrainian Harvard, Roman Sheremet, in particular, offers the following recipe: “1. A university must be created from scratch, and not based on existing universities. 2. The university should be private and funded by donations from the Ukrainian elite. 3. The university should be open to students and teachers from all over the world. 4. The university should include independent research institutes, open up the opportunity for students to create innovations and found startups”.

The first step to Ukrainian Harvard, according to Sheremet, may be a small research institute, even if formed on the basis of one of the existing Ukrainian universities, but acts as an independent legal entity. The institute should decide on several narrow priority areas and gather the best Ukrainian and world researchers in these areas.