A diploma behind bars

It turns out that one can obtain a degree while behind bars. At least, that is an option available to those who have ended up in the Cherkasy Correctional Colony No. 62. Here, seventeen convicts have taken up their textbooks.
Prisoners sit at their desks. Some solve problems, some write essays, and others take tests. The students’ gazes are focused and intent. There is no whispering or rustling in the classroom—an exam is in progress.
“And besides, it is impossible to skip classes in the colony: the guards bring us in and take us back...”
The first of the local convicts to earn a higher education degree behind bars was 27-year-old Ivan Chyhyryn, who received a degree in finance.
“After passing my exams, I was immediately enrolled in the fourth year, because before coming to the colony, I was studying at a higher education institution in Kyiv,” says the former student. “If you compare the studies, there is practically no difference. Perhaps the local education is similar to correspondence study. All conditions have been created here: there is a library, academic literature, an equipped computer lab, and four classrooms for studies. The only thing is that it is impossible to cheat; one must rely only on one’s own strengths, as each student has individual assignments. And besides, it is impossible to skip classes in the colony: the guards bring us in and take us back...” The only help for the convicts are the notes of senior students, which are passed from hand to hand like a relic. By the way, this year, about 90 people are pursuing higher education in places of detention.
“Now, quite a few convicts want to obtain a diploma,” says Andriy Stryzhov, head of social-educational and psychological work. “But not all convicts’ relatives have the means to pay for studies every year, as the cost is higher than in a regular university. Currently, 17 people are pursuing higher education with us, but they will be the last to receive a diploma behind bars. This is because the introduction of external independent testing requires taking exams at specially designated centres. And unfortunately, their creation within places of detention is not provided for by legislation.”