The foundation of the Scientific and Educational School of Statistics was laid with the establishment of the Kyiv Commercial Institute (now Vadym Hetman Kyiv National Economic University, KNEU) and the simultaneous creation of the Department of Statistics and Geography, headed by Professor V.H. Bazhaiev. The department provided instruction in statistical theory, demographic statistics, insurance and valuation statistics, the history of statistics, and other subjects.

By the late 1960s, the Department of Statistics, led by Professor Y.S. Paskhaver since 1947, had a significant number of faculty members. This allowed the administration of the Kyiv Institute of National Economy (now KNEU) to divide the department into two separate ones: the Department of General Statistical Theory and the Department of Economic Statistics.

The Department of General Statistical Theory began its activities on September 1, 1968, under the leadership of Doctor of Economics, Professor Y.S. Paskhaver. Under his guidance, the department conducted extensive research and hosted periodic inter-university conferences at the all-Union level. The results of these conferences were published in the prestigious scientific collection "Issues of Statistical Methodology and Statistical-Economic Analysis" (1963, 1966, 1969, 1971, 1980). As a result of the department's academic work, the Scientific School of Statistics of Y.S. Paskhaver was established.

The research conducted by its representatives focused on improving methodological tools for analyzing the patterns of formation and development of complex phenomena and processes, applying them in automated management systems. The development of new methods for measuring stochastic and correlation relationships - such as standardized grouping methods, recurrent systems of regression equations, structural-dynamic models, and defining the limits and prerequisites for their use in socio-economic statistics - led to the emergence of a new direction in statistical methodology.

By the late 1980s, the need arose once again to merge the Departments of General Statistical Theory and Economic Statistics. In September 1988, the newly unified Department of Statistics was headed by Doctor of Economics, Professor A.V. Holovach. In the 1990s, the scientific direction "Statistics of the Financial Market" was initiated by Professor S.S. Herasymenko in collaboration with the World Bank's Institute for Economic Development. From the mid-1990s, the Department of Statistics actively engaged in international statistics, studying issues of international economic comparisons and the implementation of international standards in Ukraine's statistical practice.

Another research focus of the department involved the statistical analysis of economic development rates and proportions in transition economies and the structural transformation of their economic systems. In 2005, joint scientific projects with the International Labour Organization and the International Organization for Migration (Geneva) were launched, offering Ph.D. students the opportunity to undertake internships at the International Labour Organization in Geneva (Switzerland) funded by the organization.

The department maintained an institute for postgraduate and doctoral studies and operated Ukraine's only specialized council for defending doctoral and candidate dissertations in the specialty of "Statistics". Almost all doctors of science currently heading statistical departments in Ukrainian national universities, including those in Kyiv, Donetsk, Dnipro, Odesa, Kharkiv, and Ternopil, successfully defended their theses here.

This approach - concentrating the preparation of statistics professionals in a university with the necessary academic, scientific, methodological, and technical resources - yielded exceptional results. Thanks to this concentration, Ukraine now has a strong scientific school of statistics whose representatives actively work in ministries, agencies, research institutions, and higher economic education institutions.

Notable Alumni

Among the distinguished graduates of the department are:

Serhii Ivanovych Pyrozhkov – Ukrainian scientist and diplomat, Doctor of Economics, Professor, Academician of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine.

Antonina Mykhailivna Yerina – Doctor of Economics, Professor, author of over 180 scientific and methodological publications, including fundamental textbooks on statistics. She supervised more than 30 Ph.D. and doctoral candidates, making a significant contribution to the scientific community in statistics and economics.

Ella Marlenivna Libanova – Renowned socio-economist and demographer, expert in labor economics, Academician of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine, Doctor of Economics, Professor, Honored Economist of Ukraine, and Director of the M.V. Ptukha Institute of Demography and Social Research.

Oleksandr Hryhorovych Osaulenko – Doctor of Public Administration, Professor, Academician of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine, Honored Economist of Ukraine, Rector of the National Academy of Statistics, Accounting, and Audit.

Ihor Hermanovych Mantsurov – Ukrainian economist, Doctor of Economics, Professor, Corresponding Member of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine, Honored Economist of Ukraine, who worked on development programs for national economies in Africa and the Balkans under UN specialized agencies.

Mission and Key Activities

The primary mission of the Scientific and Educational School of Statistics today is to harmoniously combine deep scientific understanding of the patterns and trends of complex socio-economic phenomena and processes with the latest tools and technologies in statistical analysis.

The main activities of the school include:

• Developing advanced methodologies for statistical analysis of socio-economic phenomena and processes, incorporating global achievements in statistics adapted to Ukraine’s innovation-driven development.
• Facilitating the formation of professional, organizational, and institutional conditions in Ukraine for creating a modern information space and ensuring effective competition in the global market for statistical and analytical services.
• Providing doctoral students, Ph.D. candidates, and students with fundamental and applied knowledge and skills essential for in-depth and comprehensive data analysis as a foundation for scientific and philosophical understanding of reality and managing socio-economic processes at micro and macro levels.

The scientific and educational school maintains close scientific ties with international universities and collaborates with colleagues from Poland, Slovakia, and Switzerland. For the past 20 years, the Ukrainian-Polish-Slovak Seminar has been held annually, addressing current issues in the development of statistics in modern conditions. Bilateral agreements exist between KNEU and the Cracow University of Economics (Poland) and the University of Bratislava (Slovakia).