History of the Faculty

The Faculty of History and International Relations is one of the oldest at Vasyl’ Stus Donetsk National University.

More than 80 years ago, the formation of the University began with the faculty of History and Philology.

The Faculty traces its roots back to 1937. Together with the Faculty of Philology it was then a part of the established Stalin Pedagogical Institute. The first graduation of historians took place in June 1941, but the further activities of the university were interrupted by war, therefore Pedagogical Institute was evacuated to the Perm Oblast. Stalin Pedagogical Institute with its Faculty of History resumed work after the region’s liberation from the German invaders in October 1943.

At that time, 31 students were enrolled on their first course.

The first post-war graduation took place in 1945, when 21 graduates obtained their History Teacher degrees.

Since 1948, the Faculty of History and Philology has trained specialists in three departments: History, Russian Language and Literature, Ukrainian Language and Literature.

A landmark year in the history of the Faculty was 1965, when it became independent – one of the five faculties of Donetsk University.

In 1992, a new specialty at the Faculty and Department of Political Science were opened. The specialty “International Relations” was opened in 1997 at DonNU, and the Department of International Relations and Foreign Policy started their activity in June 1999.

Since 2014, the Faculty of History within Vasyl’ Stus Donetsk National University has been operating in Vinnytsia.

In 2019, the Faculty of History was renamed the Faculty of History and International Relations by the decision of the Academic Council.

The Faculty of History and International Relations trains students in two specialties: History & Archeology and International Relations, Public Communication & Regional Studies.