About Us
Building Bridges Between Nations
The BridgeUSA Ukraine Program for Resilience and Reconstruction (UPRR) builds links between Ukrainian and U.S. scholars for long-term collaboration on joint research, shared pedagogy, course development, and publications. By fostering lasting and productive partnerships of Ukrainian universities with U.S. institutions of higher education, these programs aim to help educate and train professionals critical to Ukraine’s capacity to recover and rebuild.
Program fellows are matched with faculty mentors at a U.S. institution with whom they develop individualized, collaborative programs that meet their specific needs as researchers and educators.
The program includes a month-long visit to a U.S. university where scholars may engage in research, observe classes in their field of study, develop new courses or course materials, deliver presentations and lectures, explore U.S. higher education administrative policies and culture, and attend conferences in their academic fields.
The BridgeUSA Ukraine Program for Resilience and Reconstruction is funded by the U.S. Embassy in Kyiv with additional funding provided by U.S. host institutions and administered by American Councils for International Education: ACTR/ACCELS.
The BridgeUSA Ukrainian Academic Fellows Program was a parallel program sponsored by the U.S. Department of State, Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs (ECA) with additional funding provided by U.S. host institutions.
Our Magic Numbers
Who Can Apply
The program is intended for citizens and current residents of Ukraine who are:
- employed as full-time instructors and/or researchers at an institution of higher education in Ukraine and who possess at least two years of university level experience
- proficient in spoken and written English at the time of application
- committed to returning to Ukraine after their month-long visit to the U.S.
- eligible to receive a U.S. J-1 Exchange Visitor nonimmigrant category visa.
Preferred candidates will demonstrate the following:
- Outstanding leadership or potential leadership within their university community
- A strong commitment to teaching and/or research, and the development of new materials, courses, and programs to benefit Ukraine’s capacity to educate specialists in critically important fields
- Strong potential to develop lasting collaborative relationships with U.S. academics.
Scholars specializing in the following academic fields may apply:
Field Cluster | Illustrative Fields |
Critical Minerals & Resources | Geology; Mining Engineering; Petroleum Engineering; Metallurgy; Materials Science; Critical Raw Materials Management |
Energy Security & Resilience | Power Engineering (including Nuclear and Renewables); Energy Transmission and Storage (including Smart Grids); Energy Security |
Advanced Manufacturing | Mechanical Engineering; Industrial Engineering; Mechatronics; Robotics; Miniaturization; Automation |
Information Technology & Emerging Technologies | Artificial Intelligence; Cybersecurity; Data Science; Software Engineering; Cloud Computing; Digital Infrastructure |
Infrastructure & Reconstruction | Civil Engineering; Construction Management; Urban Planning; Transportation Engineering; Architecture |
Agricultural Technologies & Food Security | Precision Agriculture; Agricultural Engineering; Agribusiness; Food Safety and Security |
Environmental & Water Management | Environmental Engineering; Water Resource Management; Environmental Remediation |
Innovation & Entrepreneurship | Technology Commercialization; Startup Development; Innovation Management |