When a Specialist's Diploma Names the Bachelor It Built On

What We Received

A client submitted four state-form documents from Odesa I.I. Mechnikov National University in Ukraine. The Bachelor's stage was a 2009 [Ukrainian diploma translation](/translate/ukrainian-diploma) (СК № 37453540) with its supplement (12 ВД № 377027). The Specialist's stage was a 2010 diploma (СК № 39777819) with its supplement (12 ВП № 169592).

Both diplomas were awarded in Psychology and belonged to the same holder. The Specialist's supplement explicitly names the Bachelor's diploma by form number in the 'previous education document' field. The packet was needed for the holder's credential evaluation — the kind of bundle [WES typically reviews](/accepted-by/wes) for Ukrainian Specialist credentials.

How We Handled It

We treated the four documents as a single ordered bundle. The Bachelor's diploma was translated first. Its form number became the canonical reference value for the rest of the packet. The Specialist's diploma and supplement were translated next. The 'previous education document' field was reproduced as 'Bachelor's Diploma, SK No. 37453540' — the same digit string as the bachelor translation, with no transliteration variant of the series prefix.

The phrases describing the level of education were preserved in their distinct forms. The Bachelor's diploma reads 'basic higher education in the area of study Psychology.' The Specialist's diploma reads 'complete higher education in the specialty Psychology.' The two diplomas also use different Ukrainian state-form series — '12 ВД' for the Bachelor's supplement and '12 ВП' for the Specialist's. Both series prefixes were carried through to the English packet so an evaluator can recognize the document family.

Each supplement was laid out as a flat three-column spread mirroring the original. The qualification work and the State Examination Commission decision sit on the left. The additional institutional information sits in the middle. The supplement header and personal-information block sit on the right with the form number printed at the foot. The Bachelor's full course list — 86 disciplines, 7,308 hours total — was fit on a single landscape page. The Specialist's course list — 23 disciplines, 1,242 hours total — also fit on a single page. The bundle mirrors the source pagination.

Expert Note

"This certified translation packet covers a two-tier Ukrainian higher-education credential set issued by Odesa I.I. Mechnikov National University. The phrases 'базова вища освіта' (rendered 'basic higher education') and 'повна вища освіта' (rendered 'complete higher education') are the two distinct levels recognized on Ukrainian pre-Bologna state-form diplomas — 'basic' for the Bachelor's stage and 'complete' for the Specialist's. The Ukrainian diploma series prefix has been transliterated as 'SK' throughout. The Specialist's supplement's 'previous education document' field reproduces the Bachelor's form number as it appears in the supplement."

Elena SokolovaCertified Legal & Official Documents Translator

The Outcome

The eight-page translation was delivered as two separately bound packets — one for the Bachelor's diploma and supplement, one for the Specialist's — each carrying the same order number on the footer. The holder received the bundle for credential-evaluation use.

We have used the same cross-referenced-bundle approach on every two-tier Ukrainian credential set since 2024. The rule is: if the later document cites the earlier one, translate them as a single job, not as independent ones.