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A Young Generation of Ukrainian Female Scientists

Many probably remember the uproar in the press and academia in 2005 when Harvard University President Lawrence H. Summers suggested that the lack of female scientists in the USA is due to the “innate” differences between men and women. A lot has been said and written on this topic, but it does statistically appear that there are more men than women in science in the United States.

The female students at the USA/USA Program do not pay attention to these numbers; many of them actively pursue undergraduate degrees in Chemistry, Biology, Physics, Biochemistry etc., and then continue on a PhD track. One of many such students, Olga Davydenko, 22, is from Sevastopol. Double-majoring in Biochemistry and Bioengineering, she will be graduating Magna Cum Laude from Union College in June of 2008. She will start her PhD program in molecular biology in the fall of 2008 at University of Pennsylvania. Union College is an independent, highly selective undergraduate institution that has educated prominent bankers, inventors, writers, scientists, diplomats, lawyers, and a former President of the United States - Chester A. Arthur. Located in Schenectady, a small town in upstate New York, this is a perfect place for young minds to focus on their academics.

After trying in vain to shove her old high school interest in Chemistry and Biology under a rug, and pursuing a degree in accounting, Olga came to Union. I asked Olga about her prospects in “soft sciences.” The energetic, effervescent and witty young scientist replied, “Well lets see, if it wasn’t for USA/USA I would have now graduated with a degree in accounting from Sevastopol National Technical University, which does not sound bad at all, except I hated economics and loathed working a boring job for the rest of my life. I would also be married now. Shudder.”

Once given a chance to study something she really loved, Olga used every opportunity to learn more and be a leading example in her field. She is President of the Chemistry Club at Union. All three of her campus jobs are directly related to learning more and encouraging others to learn as well: She works 20 hours a week as a tutor for the Biology Department, is a tutoring supervisor for The Academic Opportunity Program (AOP) and the Higher Education Opportunity Program (HEOP), and a lab technician for one of her Biochemistry professors. This girl does not seem to stop working even during her summer breaks. “ Every summer during my undergraduate career I did research. After my freshman year I was in Ukraine working on the USA/USA seminar and conducting research in the Institute of Biology of the Southern Seas located in Sevastopol. The summer after my sophomore year I completed an Endocrine Society Fellowship while working in a reproductive endocrinology lab at the Wadsworth Center in Albany, NY. The past summer before my last year of college I was a Union College Summer Research Fellow working on the project that was to become my senior thesis (which it did).”

After her acceptance as one of the 10 USA/USA Program scholars in 2001, Olga has been actively giving back to the Program. She worked without monetary compensation for three summers at the USA/USA Seminars where, together with other volunteers, she instructed the new USA/USA scholars on how to write essays, study for the SATs and fill out financial aid forms. Besides teaching scholars about the technicalities of the application process, the USA/USA Seminars turn into galvanizing gatherings for young Ukrainian talent, inspiring them to reach high and work hard. Not every USA/USA scholar ends up coming to the United States, but each of them remembers their Seminar and is “never the same” after they’ve completed it.

Young scientific minds like Olga would not have had an opportunity to pursue their passion in science in Ukraine: they all confess that it’s a sad situation with inadequate equipment in the labs and low salaries for scientists. If they stayed back in Ukraine, these students would most probably have chosen other career paths, the same way Olga tried accounting, and their gift to science would be completely lost, both for Ukraine and for humanity. After coming to the United States they can work on their research and become true leaders in the field, and then set up world-class research labs in Ukraine. The USA/USA Program serves exactly these motivated, talented students, opening the doors of opportunity to regular Ukrainians from ordinary families who are eager to learn in a world-class environment.

I asked Olga in private whether she came to the USA to stay, to which she responded that she likes being in this country solely as a science student because “the labs are fantastic,” but she misses “the general atmosphere of Ukraine.”

To find out more about the USA/USA Program and its students please contact Yevheniya Krutko, the Executive Director of the organization.

USA/USA Program
80 Maiden Lane, suite 606
New York, NY 10038
Tel: +1-212-785-4170
Yevheniya@ukrainianscholarships.org