1. 1997 - 2010: from Master to Ph.D.
Natalia holds a Master’s degree in Law from the Odessa National University located in Ukraine, which she obtained in 1997. This particular period was marked by the end of the Soviet Union and the lack of a welfare state. Political and constitutional changes have led Natalia to rapidly get interested in the question of human rights in the Ukrainian society.
Through a competition organised by the Constitutional Court of Ukraine, she wrote a conference paper on this issue and was notified by her university's constitutional law department that she had been selected to start a Ph.D. programme. Natalia was not prepared to embark on a Ph.D. as she primarily used the competition as an opportunity to disseminate her ideas. Therefore, she sought help from her professors to get prepared and to find the right topic for her training. She finally started a comparative research in the constitutional law with the United States and the United Kingdom. For her research, she was funded by the Ukrainian’s government but worked in parallel as a lawyer to secure her living costs.
To complete her doctoral research, she spent one year as part of the Ph.D. programme at King’s College, in London, between 2006 and 2007, with the support of the British Council through their programme for talented researchers. At this time, she had the opportunity to choose between two options: either returning to Ukraine, or doing a double doctorate with the United Kingdom and Ukraine but chose to return to Ukraine to properly finish her Ph.D., which she obtained in 2010.
2. 2000 – 2022: teaching experience in Ukraine
Natalia’s research and teaching experience dates back to 2000. For 22 years, she worked at the Odessa Academy of Law National University starting from associate professor positions to become a full professor and head of the constitutional department of her University. She was deeply involved in the life of the department of law and participated to the development of courses in English for students and the translation of teaching materials. She also complemented her courses with a new European approach, by participating in a visit to the Central European University in Budapest, Hungary.
In parallel, she continued to develop her research work on comparative laws. She took part in short visits for facilitating her work. She went for example in the United States, at the University of Boston for 2 months through the support of the Home Office of the USA to enhance her comparative work.
Natalia became a well-known expert in the field of comparative law and municipal law in Ukraine. In 2013, she was appointed Head of the Odessa Branch of the European Public Law Organization (EPLO), an international organisation dedicated to the creation and dissemination of knowledge in the area of Public Law and Governance. In April 2017, she joined the Scientific Advisory Board at the Constitutional Court of Ukraine and in September 2021 she was awarded the "Best Lawyer of Odessa City" prize.
3. 2022 – present: research experience at UNISTRA
After the war in Ukraine began, Natalia initially believed it would last only a few months. She spent half a year in Baku, Azerbaijan, working on a scientific project. Unfortunately, she faced administrative challenges in obtaining a work permit there. During this time, she started exploring European Law to align with the trend of Eurointegration, which has been reducing the gap between national and international legal practices. She also reconsidered one of her earlier ideas — pursuing a Ph.D. in a "Western" educational system to complement her Ukrainian qualifications.
Natalia decided to move to France under the EU temporary protection regime for Ukrainians and chose Strasbourg for its strong European identity. She researched potential Ph.D. topics at the University of Strasbourg and reached out to professors, particularly from the SAGE research unit (UMR 7363 - Societies, Actors, Government in Europe). Her expertise and experience as a professor garnered attention, and she was invited to join a research team. With the support of a professor who was the director of research at the CNRS in Strasbourg at the time, Natalia identified a research subject that aligned with her interests and secured a support grants from SAGE and from the Interdisciplinary Thematic Institute (ITI) MAKErS.
Now, as a part of the research team, Natalia continues to share her expertise while advancing her studies in European law and governance. Additionally, as a laureate of the Marie Skłodowska-Curie Action for Ukraine (MSCA4Ukraine) programme in 2022, Natalia secured additional funding from the European Union to continue her research in France until April 2025.
4. Futur career goals
With the end of her Marie Curie grant approaching (April 2025), Natalia is working on her various funding options to pursue her research work in Strasbourg.
She recently applied for the PAUSE programme (French hosting programme for scientists and artists in exile) supported by the Collège de France to co-fund her research project at the University of Strasbourg.
Additionally, she serves as an expert within the Council of Europe Programme on Human Rights Education for Legal Professionals (HELP), the only European Network of national training institutions for judges, prosecutors and lawyers in the 46 Council of Europe’s member states and beyond.
In the longer term, she would like to develop international partnerships, in particular to apply for Horizon Europe programmes. She is currently engaged in a dialogue with Belgium and the Czech Republic to create a consortium to apply as a team to Horizon Europe calls for proposals.
5. Advice for young researchers pursuing their careers
Natalia’s advice for all young researchers at the early stages of their careers is to:
« Never start with compromise, and never worry about what others might think »
« Set your goals and keep moving forward, giving it your absolute best »