Anastasiia Pustovachenko fled Russian bombs in Chernihiv in 2022. Three years later she stood in Aberdeen wearing a graduation gown and holding a degree in Economics. The 21-year-old now says Scotland feels like home every bit as much as Ukraine does.
Surviving the Siege of Chernihiv
Russian troops surrounded Chernihiv on the first day of the full-scale invasion in February 2022.
For nearly two weeks Anastasiia, then 18, lived without electricity, water or heating while shells fell around her neighbourhood.
“We felt completely cut off from the world,” she told BBC Scotland News.
When Russian forces finally withdrew, they left streets littered with unexploded bombs. Walking to the shop became a game of Russian roulette.
Her parents made the painful decision: their daughter had to leave Ukraine.
In July 2022 Anastasiia and a friend flew to Scotland under the Homes for Ukraine scheme and were welcomed by a host family in Inverurie, Aberdeenshire.
Starting University While Air Raid Sirens Rang at Home
Anastasiia had already begun studying Economics remotely in Ukraine. Aberdeen University accepted her straight into second year.
She arrived knowing almost no one and speaking limited English.
“The hardest part was being away from my family for the first time while knowing they were still in danger,” she says.
During lectures her phone would buzz with air-raid alerts from Chernihiv. She would step outside to text her parents and check they were alive.
In her first year alone she helped start the university’s Ukrainian Society, which now has more than 70 members and organises cultural events, fundraisers and emotional support meet-ups.
Graduation Day, July 2025
This summer Anastasiia walked across the stage at Elphinstone Hall to collect her MA Honours in Economics.
Her parents could not attend because of the war, but watched the livestream from Chernihiv with tears in their eyes.
She returned home for only the fourth time since 2022 this past Christmas. One Russian missile landed just five minutes from her family home while she was there.
“The sound of a rocket coming in is something you never forget,” she says quietly.
The Visa Cloud Hanging Over Thousands
Like tens of thousands of Ukrainians in the UK, Anastasiia’s original three-year visa expires in 2025.
The UK government opened the Ukraine Extension Scheme in February 2024, allowing people on the Homes for Ukraine and Ukraine Family Scheme to apply for another 18 months, meaning most can stay until at least autumn 2026.
But after that, nothing is guaranteed.
“Employers see the visa expiry date and hesitate,” Anastasiia explains. “I have the degree, the language, the experience, but the uncertainty makes everything harder.”
Scottish universities and refugee charities are now lobbying Westminster for a clear long-term pathway for Ukrainian graduates.
First Minister John Swinney said in June 2025 that Scotland “owes a debt of gratitude” to young Ukrainians who chose to study here and wants them to stay and contribute.
Scotland is Now Home Too
Ask Anastasiia where home is and she doesn’t hesitate.
“Ukraine will always be my real home. It’s where my family is, where I grew up, where my heart is. But Scotland is now home too.”
She loves the quiet Aberdeenshire villages, the North Sea wind, the way people stop to chat in the street.
On graduation day she wore a traditional Ukrainian embroidered vyshyvanka under her gown, a symbol of carrying both identities at once.
“I want to build my future here,” she says. “I want to work, pay taxes, give back to the country that saved my life and gave me a chance when I had nothing.”
More than 27,000 Ukrainians have made Scotland their home since 2022, according to the latest Scottish Government figures. Hundreds have graduated from Scottish universities this summer alone.
Anastasiia is one of them, proof that refuge can turn into belonging.
Ukraine will always call her back. But for now, Scotland is the place where she feels safe enough to dream again.
What do you think should happen to Ukrainian graduates like Anastasiia? Should the UK offer them a clear route to stay? Drop your thoughts below and share this story with #ScotlandWelcomesUkraine if you believe refuge should lead to a future.
