Women in Khmelnytskyi Can Train for Free as Bus and Truck Drivers

KEY TAKEAWAYS

• Women in Khmelnytskyi region can apply for free professional training to become bus or truck drivers.
• The She Drives project offers training for categories D, C and CE, depending on the selected program.
• Participants are offered guaranteed employment after completing their training.
• Applications for the new intake are open until August 31, 2026.
• The program is aimed at women who want to enter the transport sector and generally gives preference to applicants with driving experience and the required education.

Women in Khmelnytskyi region have an opportunity to receive free professional training as bus and truck drivers through the She Drives project. The initiative combines vocational education with guaranteed employment, opening another route into Ukraine’s transport sector at a time when the industry continues to face a shortage of qualified drivers.

Free Training for Future Professional Drivers

The new intake is being offered through the She Drives project in cooperation with the Khmelnytskyi Regional Employment Center.

Women can apply for training to obtain professional driving qualifications for buses or heavy trucks. The program is designed not simply as a driving course but as a pathway into a new profession, with employment following completion of the training.

Applications are open until August 31, 2026.

Several Driving Categories Are Available

Participants in the program can choose from several professional transport categories.

The D category prepares women to drive passenger buses and is available in Khmelnytskyi as well as several other Ukrainian cities.

The C category focuses on heavy trucks weighing more than 7.5 tonnes and is also available in Khmelnytskyi.

The CE category provides training for heavy trucks operating with trailers weighing more than 750 kilograms, although this particular training is offered in a smaller number of participating regions.

The project also offers trolleybus-driver training in Cherkasy.

Employment Is Part of the Program

One of the most attractive aspects of the initiative is that participants are not simply receiving free training and then left to search for work themselves.

The project provides mandatory employment after completion, while its team also assists participants throughout the process and works with employers to create suitable working conditions for female drivers.

This makes the initiative particularly relevant for women looking to change careers rather than simply obtain another driving qualification.

Who Can Apply?

The program gives preference to women who:

• live in the regions where the project operates;
• are motivated to complete the training and find employment;
• already have driving experience;
• have completed general secondary education;
• meet the requirements for their chosen driving category.

Applicants therefore need to meet the requirements associated with the specific professional qualification they choose.

Why Ukraine Needs More Professional Drivers

The initiative comes as Ukraine’s transport sector faces continuing labor shortages.

Bus companies, logistics operators and freight carriers need qualified drivers, while demographic changes and wartime migration have made recruitment more difficult.

Opening professional driving careers to more women can help employers expand the available workforce while giving women an opportunity to enter a traditionally male-dominated occupation.

Changing the Image of Transport Work

Professional driving has historically been associated primarily with men, particularly in long-distance freight transport.

Programs such as She Drives are attempting to change that perception by creating a structured route for women to acquire the necessary qualifications and enter the industry.

The project also emphasizes cooperation with employers and the creation of modern, comfortable and open working conditions for female drivers.

A Career Change Rather Than Just a Course

For participants, the biggest advantage may be the combination of three elements: free training, professional qualification and employment.

That makes the initiative potentially attractive to women who already have basic driving experience but have never considered professional passenger or freight driving as a career.

For Ukraine’s transport industry, meanwhile, bringing more women into professional driving could become one practical way of addressing the country’s shortage of qualified workers.

Women interested in participating in the current intake have until August 31 to submit their applications.