As the Austrian pilot phase of UNITE draws to a close, it’s a good moment to take stock of what the past months have shown us — both in numbers and in the stories behind them.
In total, 35 people took part in the Austrian pilot, and no two paths looked alike. The group ranged from an 18-year-old who had just finished school to a mother of two, and even included a participant with a doctoral degree. One pattern stood out immediately: 34 of the 35 participants were women, with only one male participant, who was still a minor at the time he fled. This is not a coincidence — it directly reflects Ukrainian martial law, which since February 2022 has generally prohibited men of conscription age (18 to 60) from leaving the country. As a result, those who were able to flee were overwhelmingly women, minors, or people past retirement age, a pattern that mirrors the demographics seen across nearly all European host countries.
Education levels among participants were strikingly high: one person held vocational training, four had completed their Matura (Austrian school-leaving qualification), four held a Bachelor’s degree, 25 held a Master’s degree, and one held a PhD. In other words, more than 80 percent of participants held an academic qualification, many at the highest level. This mirrors broader international data, and it underlines a point we find ourselves returning to again and again: what leaves Ukraine is not a lack of qualification, but highly qualified potential that, without the right support, risks going unused in a new country.
The age range was similarly broad — from participants aged 18 to those in their early sixties — and 14 of the 35 participants had children, a factor that significantly shapes how much time and energy someone can realistically dedicate to job searching, further training, or coaching sessions. Despite this diversity, one consistent pattern emerged across almost every participant’s journey: German language skills are among the single most important factors for successfully entering the Austrian labour market, regardless of how strong someone’s prior qualifications are. Being able to communicate confidently is often what determines whether a qualification can actually be put to use.
Perhaps the clearest takeaway from the pilot phase is this: there is no single path back into professional life after displacement. Some participants needed practical tools — a CV in the local format, a clear overview of recognition procedures. Others needed space to process what they had been through before career planning could even begin. What UNITE’s pilot phase has shown, above all, is that flexibility is not a nice extra — it is the whole point.
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Co-funded by the European Union. Views and opinions expressed are however those of the author(s) only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or the Social Innovation Initiative. Neither the European Union nor the Social Innovation Initiative can be held responsible for them.
