The challenges faced by Ukrainian society have transformed people’s perspectives on many aspects of life: mental health care, professional development, and strategies for the future. The population’s involvement in resisting russian armed aggression and volunteering has significantly shifted traditional gender roles. The third wave of the "Pulse of Women's Wellbeing" survey, conducted by Gradus Research and Biasless, revealed both women’s growing readiness to take on greater responsibility and the numerous challenges associated with it.

Rising stress and increased burdens

47% of female respondents reported a rise in stress levels — an 8% increase over the past two years. 45% of surveyed women reported a decline in health, compared to 39% the previous year.
Emotional burnout was reported by 39% of respondents, yet only 3% are receiving adequate psychological support. This is largely due to growing responsibilities, including health-related care (52%), household chores (41%), and caring for relatives (32%).
At the same time, more women have adapted to these conditions — 60% now successfully balance work and personal life, up 10% from last year. The survey also revealed that nearly half of the women are ready for career advancement and leadership roles in the workplace.

Barriers to career growth

The main external factors hindering professional fulfillment are peace — cited by 49% of women — and economic instability (40%). As for personal factors within women’s control, the most cited were a lack of confidence (35%), courage and determination (30%), and knowledge (20%).

Willingness to fill workforce gaps in traditionally “male-dominated” professions

First of all, it’s important to note that 20% of female respondents already work or have worked in male-dominated professions such as technical specialties, IT, logistics, B2B sectors, emergency response, or top management/strategic roles in technical fields.
Meanwhile, 76% of surveyed women stated that they neither work nor have ever worked in such fields.
Nevertheless, the majority of women are willing to help fill the labor shortage — 84% assess their potential as high or moderate. The biggest obstacle they foresee is balancing work with family responsibilities.
Looking at age groups, younger women more frequently encounter emotional barriers during retraining, while older women face a lack of resources and support. Among respondents aged 18–24, 51% pointed to discrimination, 41% to fear of judgment, and another 41% to societal prejudice. In the 55+ age group, the main barriers were balancing work and family (50%), lack of employer support (33%), and limited access to training programs (16%).
Women see favorable conditions for retraining as access to free courses, employer support, and flexible schedules.

"In order for women to fully realize their potential in the face of external and internal challenges, it's crucial to create an enabling environment for professional development, retraining, and transitioning into new roles. We’re already seeing a growing demand for free educational opportunities and quality psychological support. Employers should consider implementing flexible work schedules and providing encouragement to women who, despite the heavy burden of family and health responsibilities, are eager to work and contribute to the country," — comments Evgeniya Blyznyuk, CEO and founder of Gradus Research.

"This wave of research has shown us for the first time that despite challenges, biases, and self-doubt, women are beginning to value themselves more, recognize their own strength and potential, and show a willingness to claim what’s theirs — in responsibility, income, and opportunity. But they are still more reactive than proactive in doing so. To empower their ambitions to lead and strengthen the nation’s development and recovery, they need more proactive encouragement from employers, better communication about role models and opportunities, and fair (read: equal to men’s) pay," — notes Iryna Rubis, founder of Biasless and D&I coach.

The full survey report is available for download via the form below.

The survey was conducted by Gradus Research in partnership with Biasless using a self-administered questionnaire in the Gradus mobile app. Target audience: women aged 18 and over residing in Ukraine, excluding temporarily occupied territories and areas of active hostilities. Sample size: Wave 1 — 1,029 respondents; Wave 2 — 1,168 respondents; Wave 3 — 1,000 respondents. Fieldwork periods: Wave 1 — April 6–8, 2023; Wave 2 — May 17–23, 2024; Wave 3 — March 10–11, 2025.