Alumni Testimonials

 

 

We are continually pleased by the appreciative and enthusiastic letters which CUPP alumni and friends write. We realized that we should be sharing them with you, members of the Canadian Parliament, our supporters and volunteers who have participated in CUPP for the past ten years.

Boris Kormich - CUPP '97 
University of Odesa 
Faculty of Law 
My MPs: Clifford Lincoln('96), Dan McTeague('97) 
"I applaud the initiative of this outstanding program which I and many of my colleagues consider to be the best kind of aid that Canada can give to Ukraine"


 

Natalie Mylenko - CUPP '97 
Zaporizhia Technical University, 
Management 4th Year. 
My MPP: Mario Sergio(Ontario) 
My team: Arctic 
"Canada is an amazing country. It has wonderful people, beutiful scenery and a rich economy. This is not just my opinion but is also the opinion of the United Nations, which has considered Canada to be the best country in the world to live in for the fourth year in a row. But I love Ukraine. I like its people and its traditions. I like the mountains in the west, the forests in the north, the steppes in the east and the seas in the south. Of course we have problems at the present time. It takes time to change a society. It is impossible to rebuild a state in five years. Yet we have achieved a lot, in a peaceful way, since 1991. Nations of the world have accepted the fact that Ukraine is now an independent state, and that it stands for democracy. It is striving to bring in reforms to its economic and social life. There is an amazing opportunity for students like us to take part in this process. There is huge potenital for development and I believe that someday Ukraine will be as good a country to live in as Canada or any other Western state. So the answer is that yes, I love Canada and I am returning home to do as much as I can in order to make true my predictions that someday soon Ukraine will be as good country as Canada to live in and well both be No. 1."


 

Evhen Palenka - CUPP '95 
University of Kharkiv 
My MPs: Wayne Easter (PEI), Mac Harb (Ontario) 
Oklahoma State University, March, 1997. 
"During my program here in the USA, everyday I realized how important and valuable CUPP was for me. CUPP gave me a very good basis of knowledge and experience for the graduate program in both American universities and also gave me a unique opportunity to better understando the political, economic and legal systems of western countries. This knowledge is extremely important for students who focus on social sciences and I can see that my participation in CUPP gave me a valuable advantage for my studies in the USA.

CUPP is a "long term investment" with extremely high possible returns which will benefit us participants during our lives, our jobs, and in the future".  


 

Vyacheslav Tolkovanov - CUPP '96 
Horlivka Institute of Foreign Languages 
My MP: Eleni Bakopanos (Quebec) 
Tolouse University, France, March 1997 
"It is not surprising that many of the participants of CUPP for the past seven years have received scholarships to continue their studies in various institutions of higher learning in the world. For example, I received the scholarship of the French government for study at the International School of Translators ESUCA (Ecole Superieure de la cadres Interpretes-Traducteurs) at the University of Tolouse. Here in France, I often recall my internship in Canada. I believe that the internship in the Canadian parliament was a culminating moment in my life which significantly changed my consciousness. We saw and we understood how state institutions work in a civilized society. I am delighted that in spite of financial restraints, CUPP is continuing it program with the larger group of Ukrainian university students. They will have a unique opportunity and acquire experience working in the Parliament of Canada. Good Luck!"


 

Nazar Bobitsky - CUPP '94 
Ivan Franko Lviv University 
My MP: Chris Axworthy (Saskatchewan) 
University of Amsterdam, The Netherlands, March, 1997 
"The wide diversity of international politics as seen from Parliament Hill was open to me. I was able to observe the exciting complexity of national policy-making as embodied in the Canadian Parliamentary System with MPs offices as its organic nucleus. I also learned, I hoped, the most valuable part of my CUPP experience, namely, the liberal ethics of international and professional business political and academic communities, with its high level of erudition and tolerance, demanding working standards and drive for perfection."


 

Oleskiy Shoshenko - CUPP '95 
Jaroslav Mudryj Law Academy, Kharkiv 
My MPs: Chris Axworthy (Saskatchewan) , John Solomon (Saskatchewan) 
University of Minnesota Law School, March 1997 
"My CUPP participation was important in the selection process for the Freedom Support Scholarship. Secondly, I was influenced by Canada personally. Obviously, with the passage of time, impressions do not remain as strong and vivid, but something from my Canadian experience has taken root in my mind. This something pushes me forward to new accomplishments in life. It makes me think about the destiny of Ukraine and Ukrainians more often and more critically."  


 

Roman Didenko - CUPP '96 
Eastern Ukraine University, Luhansk 
My MP: Lawrence A. MacAulay (PEI) 
Saint Paul University, Ottawa, March 1997 
"No doubt, the Third Party Neutral course on Conflict Resolution at Saint Paul University, was beneficial for us as Ukrainian students who are the future of Ukraine and who will one day face similar or new conflicts in our home country in the process of building a civilized and democratic society. My conclusion is that while conflicts are inevitable, they are solvable. Incorporating the TPN course into the CUP Program is essential."

 

You can check how CUPP 2010 Interns and CUPP 2011 Applicants spend their time. CUPP Diary!