Lviv National Stepan Gzhytsky University of Veterinary Medicine and Biotechnology

Stepan Gzhytskyi National University of Veterinary Medicine and Biotechnologies, located in Pekarska street, 50, Lviv is a complex of education, science, close cooperation with agricultural production and education of future specialists in the spirit of patriotism and cultural wealth. The major structural unit in the system of providing professional educational services is a Department. The University has 31 departments. Moreover, the structural unit providing educational services, including second higher education, advance training and retraining of personnel is the Institute of Extended Training and retraining of AIC Specialists.

There are more than four thousand full-time and extramural students studying in the University. Training of masters is carried out in five specialities. There are four faculties of full-time education, Faculty of Distance Education, Institute of Extended Training and Retraining AIC Specialists. The University continues its work concerning official recognition of diplomas of Ukrainian agricultural universities by the universities of developed countries.

The University provides educational services in such areas: veterinary science, food technology and engineering, technology of producing and processing livestock products, fish industry and aquaculture, specific categories (quality, standardization and certification), economics and business, management and administration, ecology, environment protection and law.

The other major units, which facilitate the educational process, are: scientific library, scientific and production complexes "Davydivsky" and "Komarnitsky", Department of Practise, Information Technology Centre with the technical and educational services. The University implemented a program of integration science and educational process. 59 branches of departments were established, based on the best scientific institutions and production units (companies, enterprises, associations). The University provides training of specialists for the state budget, preferential government loans, funds of individuals and entities. The percentage of state orders is 65% in full-time department and 35% in extramural studies.

The main aim is to strengthen the cult of knowledge. Recently, it has become a good tradition to refer the best students of the University for Practice to United Kingdom, Germany, Netherlands, and Ireland.

Stepan Gzhytskyi National University of Veterinary Medicine and Biotechnologies Lviv (alternative spelling: Grzycki) is the one of the oldest higher educational institutions of such a profile in Ukraine.The roots of the University go to 1784 when a veterinary department was set up at Lviv University.

In Austria, Emperor Joseph II introduced educational reform, according to which there were only three universities on the territory of empire: in Vienna, Prague and Lviv. Lviv University received the status of university in October, 1784 and began to teach veterinary medicine and then started the development of veterinary medicine as a science in Galicia. At first they wanted to establish Veterinary school in Lviv like in Vienna but founded only the fifth university chair, the chair of veterinary medicine at the Medical Faculty of the University. The first professor and chairman was Georg Chmel (1747 – 1805) graduator of Vienna Veterinary School. He was an author of first veterinary works in Lviv. In 1881 – 1882 academic year the Veterinary School was founded in Lviv. Its full name was Kaiser-King Veterinary School together with school of forging horses and clinic for animals in Lviv. The Director of that school was prof. Peter Seifman (October 1, 1881), the former director of Warsaw Veterinary School and a director of Kazan's Veterinary Institute. At the same time prof. Henrih Kadyi and prof. Anton Baransky were taken at positions there. In four years (February 19, 1885) the school gave the first five diplomas of veterinary doctors.

According to resolution from December 1896 Lviv Veterinary School received status of High School (Academy) (October 1, 1897) In September 1908 the Academy received the right to give the scientific degree – the doctor of veterinary medicine and for special services – honorary doctorate (doctor honoris causa). From 1909 Rector was elected among the professors of the Academy for two years. Joseph Szpilman (1855 – 1920) was the first rector of Lviv Veterinary Academy.

Before the First World War at the Academy worked such famous professors as Stanislaw Krolikowsky, Volodymyr Kulchytskyj, Zigmund Markowsky, Pawel Kretovicz and Theophil Holobut. In 1917 Volodymyr Kulchytskyj became the Rector. He was the first Ukrainian rector of the Academy, a man of the encyclopedic knowledge, well-known anatomist and orientalist.

On December 12, 1922 the Academy received a new name – Lviv Academy of Veterinary Medicine that lasted till autumn 1939. Professor Waclaw Moraczewsky (1867 – 1950) took a special place in the history of the Academy. He was a famous biochemist, talented teacher and public figure, literature critic, expert in arts and music and a sportsman. He had a great impact on the Ukrainian writer Vasyl' Stefanyk. He also made a great influence on scientific progress of Ukrainian scientist S. Gzhytskyj (1900 – 1976) and the University was named in his honour.

In autumn 1939 Lviv Academy of Veterinary Medicine turned into Lviv Veterinary Institute. Professor Ivan Chynchenko (1905 – 1993) became the director of the institute. He was a famous scientist. Both important and dramatic was war and post war times. German administration turned Lviv higher schools into professional courses to lower the quality of Slavic specialists. After the completion of these courses a certificate was given instead of a diploma. The directors of these courses were Otto Habersang and Prof. Uergen Witte.

In 1944 this educational institution restored its activity in the status of an institute after Lviv liberation and in 1949 the second faculty was opened – Zootechnical (since 1956 – Zooingineering, since 2003 – the faculty of Biology and Technology ). In times of an independent Ukraine such faculties were founded: in 1991 – Sanitary and Technological Faculty, in 2004 – the Faculty of Food Technologies, in 2002 – the Faculty of Economics and Management. Furthermore, these the Faculty of Extramural Education, the centre of artistic selfactivity and the institute of Post-Graduate education are actively working here.

In 1992 Lviv Academy of Veterinary Medicine regained its former name. In 2003 the Academy assumed the status "National" and was named after its student and then worker – the chief of Biochemistry Department, prominent scientist, and corresponding member of NAS and an academician of Ukrainian Agricultural Academy professor Stepan Gzhytskyj (1994). An academic council regained its right to assign the honorary status of a doctor (1998).

All buildings of the university (main building, housing departments, research library, sports complex and 4 campus dormitories with a dining room) are compactly located in the central part of the city.

Educational research and production centers of the University are located in farming towns of Lviv region: ERPC "Komarnivskyj" – in Horodok' district at a distance of 50 km from the city, ERPC "Davydivskyj" – in Pustomyty' district at a distance of 10 km from the city.

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