Higher educational institution

Higher educational institution [вищий учбовий заклад or ВУЗ; vyshchyi uchbovyi zaklad or VUZ]. A calque of the Russian vysshee uchebnoe zavedenie; in Soviet usage (retained in post-Soviet Ukraine) the term applied to post-secondary schools of various kinds—universities, polytechnics, institutes, academies, conservatories, and higher schools. In the 1920s such institutions were called vysh (from vyshchi shkoly, ‘higher schools’). Generally, they offer a four- to six-year program leading to a diploma and combine teaching with research. Some of them are devoted to upgrading the qualifications of specialists. (See also Higher education.)

[This article originally appeared in the Encyclopedia of Ukraine, vol. 2 (1988).]