ukraine global scholars official presentation

Ukraine Global Scholars

September, 2015

Last Modified 20.08.2015 19:14 FLE

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Executive Summary

▪  Ukraine Global Scholars (UGS) is a non-profit initiative, helping talented Ukrainian students receive education at world's top universities. UGS is seeking to raise USD15k to cover the needs of the current student intake in the upcoming test taking and admission

–  Ukraine has got a strong pool of talents, which is, however, strongly underrepresented in the world’s top universities

–  UGS is run by Ukrainian students who were successfully admitted, graduated or are currently studying at Harvard, University of Pennsylvania, Yale, Princeton, MIT and others

–  We help high school students (8-11 graders) with the application process: (1) acquaint students with the Western educational system, (2) help them through the cycle of application process, (3) assist them with the test preparation as well as cover test costs, (4) provide advice on financial aid application and (5) introduce students to the network of young Ukrainian leaders studying abroad

–  Since inception in early 2015, UGS team have selected and coached 13 Ukrainian students to apply to top prep schools and universities in 2015-2016 academic year


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Contents

▪  Context

▪  Ukraine Global Scholars

▪  UGS 2015 progress to date

▪  UGS needs and next steps


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Ukraine has a strong talent pool of high school student

Despite Ukraine’s mediocre ratings in high school education quality…

… Ukraine can boast impressive results in international high school Olympiads

▪  Ukrainian high school students consistently demonstrate top performance in prestigious international Olympiads

Source: 2015 PISA assessment

Singapore

Hong Kong

South Korea

Japan

Taiwan

Finland

Estonia

Switzerland

Holland

Canada

1

2

3

4

4

6

7

8

9

10

Poland

Germany

UK

US

Russia

Sweden

Slovakia

Ukraine

Israel

Greece

11

13

20

28

34

35

37

38

39

40

Chemistry

Biology

Physics

Mathematics

2014 2015


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However, Ukrainian higher education lags significantly and limits full potential realization

Only a handful of Ukrainian institutions made it to top 1,000 universities…

…and are significantly behind top Eastern Europe & CIS universities

Taras Shevchenko National University

Kyiv National Technical University “KPI”

Kharkiv Karmazin National University

Sumy State University

Kharkiv National Politechnic University

#421-430

#481-490

#551-600

#651-700

#701-1,000

Name Rank

Source: 2014/2015 university ranking by Quacquarelli Symonds

Moscow State Lomonosov University

Charles University in Prague

Bauman Moscow State Technical University

Gumilev Eurasian National University

University of Warsaw

#114

#244

#322

#324

#335

Country Rank University

▪  Ukraine’s universities provide low value proposition for the top performing students


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At the same time, Ukraine remains underrepresented at top schools

Princeton University

Breakdown of undergraduate students by country, # of students during the 2013-14 school year

12223556671317

023175

16

125

1718

0221410

1912

578

Turk

ey

Ukr

aine

Geo

rgia

Cze

ch R

.

Cro

atia

Rus

sia

Pol

and

Est

onia

Rom

ania

Fran

ce

Italy

Ger

man

y

▪  Virtually zero presence of Ukrainian students in Ivy League universities due to lack of information, coaching and financial constraints

Yale University

Harvard University

Source: University data


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Three key challenges impede Ukraine’s top students

Financial constraints

Selection & coaching

Information availability

•  Limited information on prep school and college admissions process

•  Existing resources often insufficient to deliver right information in the right time, enough to persuade students to apply to a top global university

•  Currently no program targeting top performing students with tailored admissions & career mentorship approach

•  Education support limited only to a few locations and often not performed by university alumnis with first-hand experience

•  Insufficient information on financial support opportunities and advice on obtaining it

•  Limited financial resources to cover the cost of coaching, tests, tutorials and other preparation needs

▪  Ukrainian Global Scholars Initiative was launched to help Ukrainian students overcome these challenges


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▪  Quality of teachers/ professors is a key driver of student performance

▪  On average, students with high-performing instructors perform 53 percentile points better

▪  UGS aims to –  Identify talented

Ukrainians at a young age

–  Help gain admission to best universities, maximizing their potential

At UGS, we aim to maximize students’ potential by using proven method - identifying them early on and providing high quality coaching

Student performance 100th percentile

50th percentile

Age 15 22

90th percentile

37th percentile

53 percentile points difference

Two students with same performance

Students with high-performing instructors

Students with low-performing insutructors

Source: Sanders and Rivers ‘Cumulative and residual effects on future student academic achievement’


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Selected examples of Western-educated Ukrainian leaders in policy, business and science

▪  Harvard Kennedy School, MPP

▪  KyivPost, CEO

Nataliya Bygayova ▪  Smith College, BA ▪  Energy professional at

Naftogaz Ukraine

Anastasia Solovaniuk

▪  University College London, LLM

▪  Member of Ukrainian Parliament

Natalia Katzer-Buchkovska ▪  Harvard Business

School, MBA ▪  Advisor to the Prime

Minister at Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine

Dan Pasko ▪  Dartmouth College,

BA; Harvard Kenedy School, MPP

▪  CEO at UkrGazVydobuvannya

Oleg Prokhorenko

▪  Stanford, PhD Candidate in Neuroscience; MIT University, BS

▪  Director of Partner Relations at Nova Ukraine

Kat Kozyrytska ▪  Harvard University,

PhD Candidate; Princeton University

▪  Recepient of 2012 LeRoy Apker Award in Physics

Yulia Dovzhenko

▪  Harvard Kennedy School, MPP

▪  Minister of Finance of Ukraine

Natalia Yaresko


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Contents

▪  Context





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Board ▪  University of

Pennsylvania, BA in Economics

▪  Founder and CEO at Mitten

▪  Expertise in business development

▪  Deerfield Academy, Harvard University, Wharton, MBA Candidate

▪  Consultant at McKinsey & Company

▪  Expertise in operational transformations

▪  Choate Rosemary Hall, Harvard University, AB in Applied Mathematics

▪  Analyst at Goldman Sachs

▪  Deep knowledge of corporate finance and financial instruments

▪  St. Mark’s, MIT, Harvard University, PhD Candidate

▪  Teaching fellow at Harvard

▪  Award winning teaching instructor in the Department of Chemistry

▪  Yale University, BS Candidate in Computer Science

▪  Currently a freshman at Yale

▪  Focus on computer science and entrepreneurship

Yulia Sychikova Misha Lemesh Roman Yevstihnyeyev Anna Levina Vlad Vyhodets

UGS was founded by 5 Ukrainian Ivy League alums and students who collectively received USD 1,5M in fellowships, grants, and scholarships

Total funds received by source (US$M)

1,8

1,5

0,3 Prep schools

Universities

Total funding


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Volunteers (non-exhaustive)

▪  Wharton, MBA Candidate

▪  Project leader at Boston Consulting Group

▪  Extensive experience in process optimization

▪  Queen Mary U of London, LLM

▪  Legal Manager at Imperial Tobacco

▪  Deep knowledge of Ukrainian and international law

▪  Phillips Academy Andover, Middlebury College

▪  Currently a freshman at Middlebury

▪  Wesleyan ▪  Currently a freshman

at Wesleyan

▪  New York University Abu Dabi, BA

▪  Currently an undergraduate student

Sergiy Boyev Yulia Lemesh Anastasiya Prokhorenko

Misha Yakovenko Anastasiya Oleksiyenko

UGS is supported through an extensive network of volunteers and friends

▪  Leysin American School, University of Pennsylvania, BS

▪  Currently Software Engineer at Amazon

▪  Leysin American School, University of Pennsylvania, BS

▪  Currently Research Assistant at the University of Pennsylvania

▪  Northwestern University, MD, PhD, Vassar College, BA

▪  Currently psychiatric resident physician at Northwestern Memorial Hospital

▪  Milton Academy, Yale University, Harvard University, PhD Candidate

▪  Currently Physics PhD student at Harvard University

▪  Wharton, MBA Candidate

▪  Boston Consulting Group

▪  Extensive experience in TMT (Technology, Media & Telecommunications)

Anton Bastov Denys Bastov Marina Bayeva, MD, PhD

Ivan Kozyryev Pavlo Borovyk


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UGS team meticulously selects top talent from all corners of Ukraine and guides ~10 finalists through full cycle of the application process

2. Coaching

3. Support

4. UGS community contribution

1. Selection

Full-cycle college and prep-school advising

▪  UGS scholars receive admission decisions

▪  UGS alumni are expected to contribute to the expansion of the UGS program and are encouraged to act as volunteers and coaches for incoming classes of scholars

▪  UGS reaches out to applicants across Ukraine

▪  Candidates –  Submit written

applications –  Take Math/

English tests –  Have 2+

interviews ▪  UGS board collectively

makes admission decisions and selects ~10 finalists

May through July

January through April

▪  Post-seminar, UGS team provides resources (e.g. textbooks) to assist with independent prep

▪  UGS scholars prepare for entrance exams and complete college/prep school applications

▪  UGS board members get assigned to scholars as mentors and provide feedback on application essays and additional support as needed

▪  UGS team conducts an intense 2-week seminar of daily lectures and workshops

▪  UGS scholars are guided through the value chain of the application process

▪  Each daily module ends with homework assignments followed by consistent feedback from 2+ UGS team members

September through December

August


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1. UGS selection mirrors the application process to US colleges

100% ~50% ~25%

# # of candidates

Round 1: written applications Outreach Round 2: English

and Math tests Round 3: Admission interviews

Selection criteria

▪  Clear and logical personal story

▪  Track record of academic and other achievements

▪  Leadership qualities and potential for growth

▪  Above average performance vs. the applicant pool

▪  Next round decisions made in combination with qualitative data from round 1

▪  Fluency in spoken English

▪  Outstanding soft skills (e.g. presence, attitude, willingness to contribute)

Selection method

▪  Application essay ▪  Transcripts for 3

previous years ▪  List of extracurricular

and academic achievements

▪  List of 5 favorite books

▪  Customized set of SAT/TOEFL questions testing grammar, reading comprehension and mathematics

▪  1-1 admission interviews with 2+ UGS board members

UGS selects ~10 finalists who, in the opinion of the Board, have a ~50-75% chance of being admitted to top institutions. Our goal is to get UGS scholars to 100%

~5-7% selected as finalists

▪  UGS team sends letters to high school across Ukraine and reaches out to applicants through social media, targeting students aged 15-17 y.o.


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2. Selected scholars participate in an intense 2-week seminar

Lectures and daily 1-1 feedback followed by multiple iterations of homework assignments

▪  Application process overview

▪  Types of schools/ colleges

▪  Choosing college/ prepschool

▪  Common app ▪  Deadlines

▪  TOEFL, including essay writing

▪  SAT, including essay writing

▪  SAT II subject tests

▪  ACT vs. SAT

▪  Fee-waiver writing

▪  Recommen-dations

▪  CV writing ▪  Transcripts

reporting

▪  Do’s/Don’ts of email corres-pondence

▪  Social media profiles

▪  Scholarships overview (merit-based vs. need-based)

▪  Loans ▪  Financial

forms and docs overview

▪  Interview techniques workshop

Topics covered

US education system

Homework assignments

▪  Write short responses and “Why College X” essay

▪  Complete the Common Application

▪  Take practice SAT I test

▪  Create a CV and CV supplements

▪  Adapt Ukrainian transcripts to the US template

▪  Take practice ACT test

▪  Create a LinkedIn profile

▪  Complete a sample Financial Aid report

▪  Conduct mock admission interviews

All tools and materials (e.g. templates, handouts, guidelines, etc.) have been specifically developed by UGS team members based on their extensive experience of having won multiple scholarships and been admitted to numerous top prep-schools and colleges

Standardized tests School package Digital

intelligence Scholarships / financial aid

Admission interviews


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3. UGS support continues in a form of individual coaching and mentoring until application deadlines in early January

UGS support September through December

Description Intended impact

Application essay guidance

▪  UGS team members regularly review and provide 1-1 feedback on application essays

▪  Numerous iterations to improve essay quality both in terms of structure and content

Test prep

▪  UGS team –  provides test prep

resources –  Covers test fees in

November/ December

▪  Keep track of the students’ progress and ensure a positive trajectory in practice test scores

Mentoring

▪  Each scholar gets assigned a mentor to address student-specific development needs

▪  Additional coaching and easy access to experienced advisors to increase admission chances


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4. UGS involvement continues post-admission, with grads contributing to the program and ensuring sustainability in the long term

▪  Act as UGS ambassadors in home towns across Ukraine

▪  Increased awareness and applicant pool in top-performing high school

▪  Participate in selection/coaching process as volunteers

▪  Consistent supply of experienced/trained advisors to keep costs in check against raising number of applicants

Coaching

Support

UGS community contribution

Selec- tion

Forms of contributions Advantages

▪  Contribute to UGS financially post-education

▪  Endowment to ensure stability in the long-term


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Contents

▪  Context





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UGS generated significant interest through its web and social media pages

0

2,000

3,000

1,000

Cumulative # of website visits

0

200

400

600

Cumulative # of page likes

0

200

400

600

Cumulative # of page likes

UkraineGlobalScholars.org

VK.com /ukraineglobalscholars

Facebook.com/ukraineglobalscholars

▪  Since launching in May, UGS steadily drove the number of subscribers to its social media pages

▪  This growth was 100% organic/word of mouth with 0 ad spend

▪  Strong potential to increase presence through an ad campaign

451

600

3000+

May June July August

x Total # as of 15/08


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UGS team leveraged network of volunteers and existing platforms to run selection process without additional investments

x # of applicants

Round 2 Round 1 Round 3

~150 ~70 ~40

13

▪  Written applications submission

▪  Standardized tests ▪  2+ admission interviews

Description

▪  Applications submitted via email and aggregated into a database through Google Drive

▪  Customized tests designed and results analyzed through ClassMarker.com

▪  Admission conducted through Google Hangouts and Skype


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Likewise, seminar planning, coordination, and workshops were conducted online by highly qualified UGC contributors

Lectures

Homework assignments

Feedback UGS team conducted lectures and graded homework assignments through freely available resources such as Skype and Google Drive


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Having incurred 0 operating expenses, UGS team selected and coached 13 remarkably talented finalists in the summer of 2015

Zakarpattia

Ivano- Frank.

Lviv Tern. Khmeln.

Chernivtsi

Vinnytsia

Kiev (city)

Kiev

Cherkasy

Kirov.

Kherson

Mykolaiv Odessa

Crimea

Zaporizhia

Luhansk

Donetsk

Dnipropet- rovsk

Poltava Kharkiv

Sumy Chernihiv

Zhytomyr

Rivne Volyn

Denys, 18, international Model UN and public speaking awards, National English Olympiad award

Nastya, 17, numerous international scholarships, admitted to a US college

Yura, 17, numerous MAN, oblast, national awards in Math, Physics, Chemistry & History

Ira, 17, national awards in Law and Debate, multiple oblast rewards in Geography, History, Law and English

Sergey, 18, numerous awards in Model UN, founder of several ventures, academic awards in Biology, English & Chemistry

Alex, 17, winner of regional MAN competition, participant of international Physics contests

Yulia, 17, perfect GPA of 12.0, numerous MAN, oblast, national awards in Biology, Chemistry and Ecology

Salome, 16, awards in international singing competitions, awards in regional Ukrainian, English and Geography Olympiads

Sasha, 16, an aspiring NASA engineer who built his own telescope, multiple awards in MAN

Vlad, 18, a toy inventor turned entrepreneur and leading a startup in the UK, World Ballet Dancing Champion

Yulia, 17, exchange program scholarship winner, multiple leadership awards from US High School

Liza, 15, thirty-two awards in city/oblast Olympiads in Math, Biology, Law, English and other subjects

Mykola, 17, numerous MAN, city, oblast awards in Physics, Astronomy & Computer Science


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Contents

▪  Context


▪  UGS 2015 seminar



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UGS aims to raise US$15k to purchase test prep materials and pay test fees as soon as Sep-Oct 2015 and ensure sustainability of program

Breakdown of required spend

(US$ in thousands)

▪  Printed and online test prep materials

▪  Essay prep books

▪  Test fees and official score reports for 12 schools per student

▪  Website upgrade and maintenance

▪  Shipping costs ▪  Legal

1,4

15,0

4,0

2,5

1,4

4,1

1,6

Total Textbooks & prep materials

Misc SAT I ACT SAT II TOEFL


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Contributions as low as US$200 can make a tangible difference

▪  Donate via GoFundMe: www.gofundme.com/supportUGS

US$900

US$700

US$200 •  Covers textbooks and preparation materials for one student •  Receive personal thank you letter from a student

•  Covers all test fees and official score reports for 12 schools for one student

•  Receive personal thank you letter from a student

•  Full admission package per one student •  Receive personal thank you letter from a student and

UGS partner merchandise

US$4000

•  Covers all anticipated program operational costs (Website upgrade and maintenance, Shipping costs, Legal)

•  You or your company will be mentioned on partner section of the UGS website


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Our long-term vision is ambitious - more people and a greater range of advising services over the next few years

Long-term: A group of social ventures with the focus on education and career prep

▪  A group of finalists coached and guided through the application process to the most selective colleges and boarding schools

▪  Online webinars and workshops conducted for the youth on educational and career topics

▪  An educational/career cluster based in Kyiv with regular seminars and speaker series

Short- to medium-term: Education and career prep platform


▪  Online webinars and workshops conducted for the youth on educational and career topics

Present: College and boarding school prep program


2015-16

2016-17

End of 2015


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Interested in donating?

▪  Or contact us at [email protected]

▪  Donate via GoFundMe: www.gofundme.com/supportUGS

Thank you for your support