Ivano-Frankivsk
General information
Located in the western part of Ukraine, Ivano-Frankivsk region occupies the territory of 13.9 thousand square km which is roughly the size of Israel or Moscow. The region is home to 1.4 million people and the city itself has a population of approximately 250,000.
History of Ivano-Frankivsk
Ivano-Frankivsk has a long and an interesting history. It used to be a small village Zabolottya founded in 1437. The town was established in 1662 by a Polish magnate Andriy Pototsky, who had been the owner of the lands at that time. He named the city Stanislav (in honour of his son), or rather Stanislaviv, which conformed more to the norms of the then Ukrainian language. March 7, 1662 - Stanislav received the status of a city.
Its present name the city got in 1962. In commemoration of its 300th anniversary, it was decided to rename the city in honor of one of the greatest Ukrainian writers, philosophers, poets and journalists - Ivan Franko.
Nowadays, IF is one of the biggest and most famous economic, cultural and architectural centers in Western Ukraine. It is an administrative center of the IF region, a land with unique culture and hospitable people.
Education in Ivano-Frankivsk
Annually there are approximately 12,500 graduates in higher education from the institutes of higher learning in the Ivano-Frankivsk region. Approximately 29,000 students study at five major Ivano-Frankivsk state institutions with 74 areas of specialization available and another 6380 students studying at one the six commercial institutes in the region. The National Technical University of Oil and Gas which is a member of the International Association of Oil and Gas Universities and is the only institute of higher learning in Ukraine that focuses on training professionals for the oil, transportation, and energy sectors. Today approximately 11,000 students are studying within 13 different schools/colleges at the university, with the possibility to obtain a degree in one or more of 24 different disciplines. Technical schools also provide specialized education in many fields and serve to enhance the skill set of students who already have Bachelor's or master's degrees.
Ivano-Frankivsk universities prepare between about 1000 students annually in computer science, management information systems, applied mathematics and other related disciplines which include the study of programming languages and other technologies. Of the more than 2000 annual graduates from the National Technical University of Oil and Gas, more than 76% graduate with degrees in the sciences, engineering, computer science and IT.
Softjourn visitors information
How to get to Ivano-Frankivsk
The easiest way is to take a flight to Kyiv and then fly to Ivano-Frankivsk.
Flights schedule between Kyiv and IF:
| From | To | Departure | Arrival | Mon | Tue | Wed | Thu | Fri | Sat | Sun |
| Kyiv | IF | 10:00 | 11:10 |
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| Kyiv | IF | 11:05 | 12:15 |
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| Kyiv | IF | 20:40 | 21:50 |
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| IF | Kyiv | 6:45 | 7:55 |
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| IF | Kyiv | 7:10 | 8:20 |
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| IF | Kyiv | 17:35 | 18:45 |
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An alternative way is to fly to Lviv (there are daily flights from almost all European capitals). Softjourn will meet you in Lviv airport and drive to IF.
Where to stay in IF
In Ivano-Frankivsk you will have a range of hotels to choose from – either you like big modern hotels with rooms for several hundred people or you prefer staying in a smaller hotel located in the building with unique architecture of the 19th century. Whatever you choose, you can always organize “a small office” (with Internet connection) in your hotel room.
We recommend hotel Atrium which is located only 2-minute-walk from our office downtown IF.
How to find us in IF
Softjourn offices are located downtown Ivano-Franksivsk, just a few minutes walk from the cityhall (Ratusha).