Socioeconomic context
According to the World Bank’s Monitoring Living Conditions in Ukraine: Spring 2026 Update, the estimated proportion of Ukraine’s population living below the national poverty line reached 41.6% in 2025, compared with 37.0% in 2024. The World Bank also reported that real labour income among households in the lowest income quintile declined by more than 30% between 2024 and 2025.
The persistence of high poverty levels and income inequality confirms the continued relevance of targeted institutional measures aimed at reducing financial barriers to higher education.
Targets to admit students who fall into the bottom 20% of household income group
Since 2021, the Interregional Academy of Personnel Management (IAPM) has maintained an institutional target of ensuring that at least 20% of its newly admitted students come from households within the bottom financial quintile.
For the purposes of this target, the bottom financial quintile is defined as the lowest 20% of households in Ukraine’s national household income distribution. The target applies specifically to applicants whose financial circumstances qualify them for inclusion in this group.
The admission target was formally incorporated into the Policy on Sustainable Development: “No Poverty” of the Interregional Academy of Personnel Management, approved by the IAPM Academic Council on 28 September 2022. The policy establishes the Academy’s commitment to widening access to higher education for applicants experiencing serious financial disadvantage and provides an institutional basis for monitoring their representation among newly admitted students.
Identification and verification
During the admissions process, applicants’ eligibility for classification within the bottom financial quintile is assessed and verified by the IAPM Admissions Committee using the financial information and supporting records provided during admission. Verified information is recorded in the Academy’s electronic student database. Following enrolment, the students’ relevant financial status is monitored by the IAPM Financial Department throughout their period of study.
The Admissions Committee is responsible for monitoring achievement of the annual admission target. The Financial Department monitors students’ continuing eligibility for targeted financial assistance and other support programmes. Personal financial information is processed confidentially, and only aggregated institutional data are published.
Admission results, 2021–2025:
| Year |
Total newly admitted students |
Newly admitted students from the bottom financial quintile |
Share |
| 2021 | 3184 | 478 | 15% |
| 2022 | 3440 | 520 | 15% |
| 2023 | 2692 | 547 | 20% |
| 2024 | 2029 | 563 | 28% |
| 2025 | 2021 | 606 | 30% |
Source: IAPM electronic student database and verified admissions records, 2021–2025. The data were compiled and validated by the IAPM Admissions Committee and Financial Department.
The results demonstrate that IAPM achieved its institutional target in 2023, when students from the bottom financial quintile represented 20.3% of all newly admitted students. The Academy subsequently exceeded the target by 7.7 percentage points in 2024 and by 10.0 percentage points in 2025.
In 2025, 606 of the 2,021 newly admitted students came from households within the bottom financial quintile:
606 ÷ 2,021 × 100 = 29.99%, rounded to 30.0%.
As the bottom financial quintile represents 20% of the national household income distribution, its 30% representation among newly admitted IAPM students was equivalent to 150% of proportional representation. Students from the bottom financial quintile were therefore represented among newly admitted students at a rate 50% higher than their proportional share in the national income distribution.
Confirmation through student surveys
In addition to verified administrative records, IAPM conducts surveys among students concerning household income levels and socioeconomic circumstances. The survey findings confirm the trend identified in the Academy’s admissions and financial data: students from low-income households, including those within the bottom financial quintile, constitute a substantial proportion of the IAPM student community.
The student survey results are reviewed alongside admissions and financial records to:
validate trends identified through administrative data;
monitor socioeconomic access to higher education;
identify students who may require additional assistance;
inform tuition support, accommodation, food assistance and other support measures;
evaluate progress towards the Academy’s bottom financial quintile admission target.
The combination of verified admissions records, continuous financial monitoring and student survey findings provides consistent institutional evidence that IAPM has implemented, achieved and subsequently exceeded its admission target for students from the bottom financial quintile.
Measures supporting achievement of the target
IAPM has implemented support programmes for students from low-income households since 2000. These measures are intended to reduce financial and educational barriers before admission and throughout the students’ period of study.
The Academy provides free preparatory programmes for applicants from low-income households during the ten-month period preceding admission to bachelor’s degree programmes. These programmes allow applicants to strengthen their academic preparation and improve their readiness for entrance examinations.
IAPM also organises monthly information events for prospective students. During these events, applicants receive individual information about tuition assistance, available discounts, educational loans, accommodation, meals and other forms of institutional support.
Following enrolment, eligible students may receive financial and non-financial assistance, including tuition fee reductions, flexible payment arrangements, subsidised accommodation, food support, access to educational materials, legal assistance and psychological support.
These coordinated measures support the Academy’s long-term commitment to widening participation and ensuring that students experiencing serious financial disadvantages can access and successfully continue higher education.
Last updated: 21 October 2025.
