Meran Paul, Features Editor
Oleksii Pidlypenets is a senior at the University of the South from Kyiv, Ukraine. He is double-majoring in chemistry and biology, with a minor in computer science. The Sewanee Purple sat down with Oleksii to hear more about his background and story.
What led you to decide to study in America?
Science has always been my passion, and life as a scientist in Ukraine is pretty complicated from many perspectives, such as finances –just that, conducting science is much harder. I always wanted to follow my passion, and from a young age I saw America portrayed as a place of advancing sciences. And here I am. And, obviously also, after the war started, I realized that high-end science will not be Ukraine’s priority in the next several years after rebuilding.
What was your life like in Kyiv before the war? What are the things that you miss? What are the things that make life seem normal back home that you don’t see here?
Before I came to the States, I was enrolled in Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv as a biology major, and I was living a pretty normal student life. Actually, I remember the last day before the war started very vividly. I attended my classes, and afterwards, several of my friends went to a cafe (canteen), where we talked about the speculations that we heard from American intelligence leaking into Ukrainian media – that war was going to start. This conversation took place less than 24 hours before the invasion, and all of us were convinced that war would not happen. We believed it could be an escalation in Crimea or Donbas, but none of us could imagine lines of Russian tanks going on the highways to the capital. But before the war, again, my life was traditional: classes, home and hanging out with friends. I miss Kyiv. It was a walkable city, and I miss walking past historical buildings and nice landscapes. I lived pretty downtown, so sometimes if I had a lot of time, I could walk from the university to home.
What draws you to chemistry and biology, and a minor in computer science? How do you see these fields connecting, and how do you hope to apply them after graduation?
My initial interest was in biology. It was a bit of a trial-and-error search. At about age 13, I remember having a conversation with my mom, where I was not quite sure what I would want to do with my life. She followed a science professor on Facebook who had science for high schoolers. She signed me up for that, and I would say that working in a lab was love at first sight. I started pursuing biology since then.
When I came to Sewanee, after the first year, I landed a summer research fellowship with Dr. Bachman in the chemistry lab, and the research was on anticancer pharmaceuticals. I was never much into chemistry before, but it had a connection to biology, so I gave it a try. After that, next September, I declared a second major in chemistry.
Now I’m looking forward to combining those two majors after graduation and working in drug discovery. And a big part of it is in silico, so computational research is where the computer science minor comes from.
After the war started in Ukraine, you spent some time volunteering at a local clinic and hospital. How was your experience there?
I was in a group chat for all biology students, and as the capital was overrun with the wounded, there was a need for new hospitals. We received a message that people with any laboratory experience were sought, and I agreed. I imagined I would just be helping a lab scientist. However, when I came to the lab, they let me in, and they told me that I am in charge of this room with equipment to test blood – to know what kind of blood should be transfused and other general information about the status of a patient. They asked me if I knew how to work with this equipment. I did not, and I told them that. However, they did not have any other options and they had to open. In about three days, I had to figure out how to work with it. Thankfully, there were some leftover blood samples from the previous clinics that had evacuated, so I used them to train myself, and in a few days, it was ready to go.
How does the academic environment here compare to what you experienced in Ukraine?
The liberal arts approach in Ukraine does not exist (smiles). You start as a biology major, and from the first year, almost all your classes are dedicated to your major. So, taking French revolution, history class or dance class, my freshman year was definitely something I was not accustomed to. But on the other hand, this– exactly this – system allowed me to add a second major by exploring my passions, and I would say that it worked well for me.
What has been most challenging about adjusting to life here as an international student?
I think the most challenging parts were those unique to being an international student in Sewanee. Very often, international students – including me – have to sustain ourselves financially. Since freshman year, I have had a job on campus, and for the last two years, I have had three part-time jobs, working up to 20 hours a week. I have been involved in research since my freshman year as well, and that is a very rewarding experience. Academics, work, and research together force you to learn time management on a very high level.
An emotional challenge was not being able to go home for three years. Men over the age of 18 in Ukraine are not allowed to leave the country because of martial law. And there is not much you can do about it. However, the point I want to make here is that the reason why I was not able to go home is by no means Ukrainian laws. It was the Russian invasion that forced Ukraine to impose those laws.
You haven’t been able to go home, but have you been able to see your family at all?
Yes, my summer after freshman and sophomore year, I met my mom and brother for about a month each time – first in Poland, and then in the Czech Republic. I was not able to meet my dad because of the same law. Meeting my mom and brother was great, though. But as I said earlier, I miss my city. Still, seeing at least some of my family was definitely a relief for some amount of homesickness, and having my mom cook meals! (laughs)
How do you navigate conversations with family back home who are not able to leave?
I guess it leads to involuntary desensitization. When I first came to the States, and my family was still experiencing the war, checking the news for about 20 minutes was the first thing I did after waking up every day. Now I spend a maximum of five minutes throughout the day combined. If you try to live life in two places at the same time, you’re going to go crazy.
You also need to be able to filter the news that comes to you. On one hand, you cannot detach yourself from the country because your loved ones are there. But on the other hand, you need to be able to live your life. I also feel that by being involved on campus and educating the Sewanee community about Ukraine, I am contributing to the bigger goal of an eventual victory.
On that note, what do you think Americans generally misunderstand about the war in Ukraine?
Considering I often get the question, “Is the war still going on?”, there is a lack of media coverage. Another one is the scale of war. I often get asked if Kyiv is safe. Since 2022, this has never been a local conflict. There is not a single city that is safe. There are raid alerts throughout the whole country, very much every day. The scale of losses, according to some predictions, is about a thousand wounded or killed on the Russian side every day, and a proportionate number of Ukrainians. These numbers are hard for the Western mind to comprehend when you live in a peaceful country.
Awareness of a wider world does matter in all wars. Also, the language you use to talk about it matters. That’s why when you talk about the Russia-Ukraine war, you should use exactly this formulation and not “Ukrainian crisis” or “conflict” because it removes the responsibility of an aggressor and shifts the focus to Ukraine being the root of this problem, which it is not. Awareness and conscious language are so important.
What do you think has helped you cope with the emotional and mental toll of the ongoing conflict while balancing the demands of your studies? What stops you from checking social media all day?
I experienced war for half a year in Ukraine. I think it gives me a sense of what is happening back home and not being completely detached from these experiences. And therefore, those news articles are not empty for me, I can imagine the bombings, because I witnessed a missile coming into the apartment house a street away from mine. What stops me from checking social media every day is, I guess, a subconscious mechanism. It’s not a conscious decision you make. You just settle down for more digested news of what main things happened; you just check with your family, and make sure they are okay. This is what you go with. You can say that this is the bare minimum– I know, and I’m fine with it.
How has your experience influenced your career aspirations? And do you see yourself using the skills you are building to help rebuild or contribute to your home country?
My interest in science started before the full-scale invasion, so the origin of those interests does not directly lie in a war. However, I am positive about the future of Ukraine after the war, and I believe that it will become an attractive place for foreign investments. I believe in the great minds of Ukrainians and that Ukraine can become a place for the development of science, including pharmaceutical sciences. So when the war is over, and it’s time to rebuild, I would definitely love to go back home and work on the rebuilding of Ukraine.
To further understand Oleksii’s impact, we spoke with Professor Bachman, who has guided his work for the past two years. Beyond his academic success, his professor praised his research abilities, calling him an “excellent, creative researcher with the perseverance required to succeed in the laboratory.” His work has produced a series of “truly” new compounds for an anti-cancer pharmaceutical project and has been presented at national conferences, with a manuscript currently being drafted for a top chemistry journal. Professor Bachman concluded with a powerful vote of confidence: “I am sure Oleksii will shortly be one of the top Ph.D students in the graduate program he selects and will soon become Dr. Pidlypenets.”
Oleksii’s story serves as a powerful reminder of the resilience and courage shared by many international students navigating immense personal challenges while pursuing their academic goals far from home.