Ukraine president is a law graduate

From lawyer to war hero

Many will know of the Ukraine president Volodymyr Zelensky’s previous career as a comedian — but perhaps fewer will be aware of his background in law.

Yep, you read that right: the Ukrainian statesman capturing the hearts and minds of those across the world is a law graduate.

The 44-year-old war hero enrolled at the Kryvyi Rih Economic Institute, the local campus of Kyiv National Economic University in 1995, and graduated five years later in 2000 with a law degree.

Although online sources say the president — who is fluent in English — was licensed to practise law in Ukraine, Zelensky’s career took a very different turn when he caught the acting bug.

He went on to carve out a career as a comedian and actor, and is perhaps best known for playing an ordinary man who accidentally becomes president of Ukraine in TV series Servant of the People. He also played the voice of Paddington Bear in the Ukrainian dubbing of Paddington.

Zelensky had no experience of politics when he was elected president in April 2019, securing a landslide victory against Petro Poroshenko.