Students enrolled in the first year of bachelor's or master's programs in 2026 who are eligible for a state grant must confirm it in the "Diia" mobile application. A strict regulatory deadline has been established for this process, concluding on October 25. Official data from the Unified State Electronic Database on Education and the Ministry of Education and Science of Ukraine confirm that automatic distribution of certificates began back on September 15.
The confirmation procedure requires first-year students to use a remote qualified electronic signature known as "Diia.Signature" ("Diia ID"). To successfully activate this function, users must scan the special chip of a biometric document—either an ID card or a passport—using an NFC-enabled smartphone. It is important to note that if a freshman has been successfully enrolled in several different specialties simultaneously and meets the program criteria, the system may send multiple certificates, but they are strictly permitted to confirm only one of them.
Essence and Features of Academic Grants
An academic grant is a non-repayable state financial assistance designed for partial or full co-financing of contract-based higher education. A key advantage of the program is the absence of any burdensome obligations, including mandatory job placement after graduation. Only students who meet established rigorous requirements, study at higher education institutions participating in the MES experimental project, and timely confirm their electronic status via "Diia" can receive state support.
Payment Amounts and Regional Coefficients
The final amount of state support is calculated on an individual basis. For bachelor's degree applicants, as well as medical, pharmaceutical, and veterinary master's students, national multi-subject test (NMT) scores are taken into account. For master's programs based on a bachelor's degree, entrance exam results are considered. In 2026, the program was scaled up, and baseline amounts were increased. Additionally, multiplying coefficients of 1.3 or 1.5 are applied for priority specialties, alongside a special 1.5 coefficient for students who received their secondary education certificates in the Zaporizhzhia, Mykolaiv, Sumy, or Kharkiv regions and enrolled in universities within those same regions.
Important Nuances and Limitations
Legislation clearly defines situations in which a student loses the right to funding. Specifically, applicants who received official recommendations for budget-funded positions but consciously declined them in favor of contract-based studies cannot claim the state educational grant. Furthermore, if a student missed the deadline due to technical reasons, a regulated re-issuance procedure exists, and the grant can be reinstated within two years after expulsion provided the student returns to the educational process.
