How one Ukrainian teenager is making her way in Poland
At 18 years old, Vitalina is adapting to a new country while staying connected to home and shaping her future
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- Українська
- Polish
When the war in Ukraine escalated in winter 2022, Vitalina and her parents left their home near Kyiv for Kraków, Poland. For Vitalina, who was 15 years old, education quickly became an anchor of stability.
By joining a preparatory class for non-Polish students, Vitalina had the chance to learn Polish and adapt to a new school environment. At the same time, she continued her Ukrainian education online, completing two years of the Ukrainian high school curriculum externally within just one school year and receiving her high school diploma.
This intense effort paid off. At just 16, Vitalina was admitted to the Jagiellonian University, one of Poland’s most prestigious universities, becoming the youngest student in her group. She decided to pursue political science, inspired by seeing how her father’s involvement in local issues made a difference for people around him.
At first, she struggled with the language barrier and age gap.
“I am a very responsible person, and when I started university, I wanted to be on the same level as Polish students right away,” Vitalina says. “But later I realized it’s enough if I understand the material and feel comfortable participating in lectures. Now I’ve learned to actually enjoy studying.”
Now, Vitalina is eager to gain her first professional experience. She is actively looking for an internship, her first step into the labour market.
To that end, Vitalina recently joined the training cycle “Youth on the Labour Market” at Spilno Hub Kraków, a safe space and community hub created with UNICEF support that helps refugee children and families integrate into Polish society.
Agnieszka Pospiszył, a staff member at Spilno Hub Kraków, explains that the idea for the trainings emerged from conversations with young people attending activities at the hub:
“It’s difficult. You’re a young person doing something for the first time in your life, looking for a job in a country you don’t yet know well, in a language that isn’t your own. Many also face unfair offers, like unpaid internships. So we realized there was a real need for support in building confidence,” she says.
To respond to these needs, the team designed practical, hands-on workshops where participants worked directly on job-search tools such as CVs and LinkedIn profiles. “We wanted to ensure the skills were concrete and useful beyond the workshops,” Agnieszka says.
Vitalina confirms that they were. During her sessions, she took a test to pinpoint her talents and learned how to develop them. She also met with a career counsellor.
Participants also had the opportunity to meet other migrants who successfully rebuilt their careers in Poland, including a refugee woman who opened a hair and beauty salon in Kraków and now employs several people. The conversations focused on practical pathways such as starting a business, navigating recognition of diplomas and professional qualifications, and finding opportunities to apply existing skills in a new country.
For Vitalina, the most valuable part of the training was the financial literacy session, which she believes is key to independence.
“It wasn’t just a one-hour lecture, but a real discussion,” she says. “The trainer told us about the ‘50-30-20’ method, a principle of personal budgeting where 50% of income goes to essential needs, 30% can be spent on leisure, and 20% is saved or invested. He also explained why this method doesn’t always work the same for everyone and that financial planning should be individual. I really remembered that and will definitely use it in the future.”
In displacement, the hub gave Vitalina not only skills but also a sense of belonging – a community that helps her stay connected while living far from home. Her mother, Svitlana, notes that being far from Ukraine still weighs heavily on her daughter.
“Vitalina loves Ukraine. During massive shelling of Kyiv, which often happens at night, she cannot sleep and follows all the news. My sister, her husband, and my niece are still in Kyiv. My sister works as a pediatrician. My husband’s mother lives near Kyiv, she is a teacher. So every morning we first turn on the news,” she says. “It is very frightening, very painful.”
Svitlana says her daughter now stands at a crossroads: unable to return home because of the war, but determined to move forward and make choices for her future. For now, Vitalina sees herself in Poland, at least until she completes her studies.
Vitalina is already thinking about her master’s degree. This time, she wants to broaden her academic path, perhaps to public management or journalism, still connected to political science but opening new possibilities.
To support young people like Vitalina, UNICEF launched the Pathways initiative, which equips adolescents with the skills and knowledge they need to build their futures. Whether in Poland or back in Ukraine, Pathways helps them prepare for employment and independence through formal education and skills building opportunities, in line with their needs and best interests. The initiative helps thousands of refugee youth across Poland to discover their strengths and plan their next steps – helping them turn disruption into opportunity.
The Pathways initiative is being implemented with the generous support of the Bureau of Population, Refugees, and Migration of the US Department of State (PRM).
