The Cabinet of Ministers decided to join the Odesa Law Academy to Mechnikov University

The Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine has decided to merge the National University "Odesa Law Academy" and the Odesa National University named after Ilya Mechnikov.

This was reported by the Ministry of Education and Science.

The reason for this step was the demographic situation. According to the Ministry of Education, over the past 15 years, the average number of students per higher education institution has decreased from 6 500 to 3 500. Educational institutions are merging to “strengthen the capacity of universities by pooling their resources” and attract investment.

The Ministry of Education assured that the measures will not affect students. Students of the Odesa Law Academy and its structural divisions will study in the same programs they enrolled in. Financing conditions, budget places, and the cost of contracts will also remain the same.

The rights of teachers of the two institutions will be protected during the reorganization, with the exception of the president, rector, and vice-rectors, representatives of the department emphasized.

"The Odesa Law Academy was separated from the Odesa Mechnikov University in 1997. Now, in accordance with the governmentʼs decision, educational programs and scientific schools that provided training for lawyers in Odesa have been returned to the structure of a classical university, which corresponds to European practice," the Ministry of Education and Science noted.

The merger of the two educational institutions will take place gradually throughout 2025. To form the merged university, a reorganization commission will be created — it will be headed by the rector of Mechnikov University, Vyacheslav Truba.

• In 1997, lawyer and politician Serhiy Kivalov became the rector of the Odesa Law Academy. Later, he took the position of president of the university. So, by the decision of the Cabinet of Ministers, Kivalov loses this position.
• In 2004, the lawyer headed the Central Election Commission, which recognized Viktor Yanukovych as the winner of the presidential election. The results were challenged in court as falsified. After that, Serhiy Kivalov was a peopleʼs deputy from the now-banned “Party of Regions” for four convocations.

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