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FAQs

All international students are eligible to apply for scholarships offered by the Bureau for Academic Recognition and International Exchange (www.buwiwm.edu.pl) to one of the following nations under bilateral agreements on direct cooperation: Croatia, Cuba, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Egypt, Ecuador, Estonia, Finland, France, Greece, Georgia, Germany, Hungary, Iceland, Iran, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Japan, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Korea, Latvia, Lichtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Macedonia, Malta, Mexico, Moldova, Mongolia, Montenegro, the Netherlands, New Zealand.

Scholarships are available for students from the European Union through the Socrates/Erasmus program (www.socrates.org.pl). For academic excellence, university scholarships are also offered.

Students from the EU/EEA do not require a visa to study in Poland, but if they intend to stay longer than 90 days, they should apply for a temporary residence permit when they arrive. Students from outside the EU/EEA must travel to Poland with a student visa obtained at a Polish Embassy or Consulate in their home country. It's crucial to remember that tickets can only be issued for a maximum of three months. It is necessary to apply for a residence permit for a set period in the Voivodeship office to extend the stay in Poland. Students are urged to contact their university's international Relations office for more information. On the Polish Ministry of Foreign Affairs website, www.msz.gov.pl, you can find more helpful information about arriving in Poland, obtaining a visa, getting medical care and insurance, obtaining a driver's license, and finding the locations of Polish diplomatic missions.

 

Medical care is not provided for free in Poland. All students must have health insurance for their stay in Poland. It is advised that international students purchase medical insurance either before arriving in Poland or as soon as possible. Otherwise, any medical care that students receive must be paid for. Additionally, third-party liability insurance and accident insurance are advised for international students.

As long as they have their EHIC, EU residents traveling to Poland are eligible for free medical care.

Non-EU and EU citizens without health insurance in their country of residence may sign an insurance contract with the Polish Health National Fund (NFZ - Narodowy Fundusz Zdrowia) and pay a monthly premium of 40 PLN for insurance.

The United Kingdom, Sweden, and Slovakia have reciprocal agreements guaranteeing citizens access to free medical care. By a contract with the Czech Republic, Czech students have the right to immediate medical attention in case of an accident or illness.

The National Health Fund's website, www.nfz.gov.pl, has more information.

Universities offer a wide range of study programs in English, so you are not required to. However, you can learn Polish in order to enrol in a university course or for daily private use while you are in Poland. Most universities that welcome international students offer survival Polish courses or courses in Polish language and culture along with orientation programs. This kind of course may run for a few weeks right before the start of the academic year or it may last the entire semester.

However, if you decide to study in Polish, you will need to demonstrate your Polish language ability before you can enrol in classes. To understand lectures and other forms of instruction at universities, foreign students who wish to pursue studies in Polish must have a command of the language (see www.polonicum.uw.edu.pl).

The State Commission for Certification of Command of Polish as a Foreign Language (www.buwiwm.edu.pl) provides information on Polish language certificates.

The academic year at Polish universities typically consists of two semesters, each lasting 15 weeks.

With a two-week break for the Christmas holidays and a one-week break in February, the fall semester runs from early October until mid-February. The spring semester begins in the middle of February and runs through the end of June, with an Easter holiday break of one week. Beginning in early July and ending in late September is the period of summer vacation.

A bachelor's degree typically requires three academic years (6 semesters), whereas a master's degree typically requires one to two academic years (3 or 4 semesters, depending on the field of study).

You don't need to speak Polish because there are English courses available for international students. You must finish a Polish language course before you can start studying if you prefer to do so.

Students with "karta polacca”—proof of their Polish ancestry—may submit applications for budget-funded studies on the same grounds as Polish nationals. The website www.buwiwm.edu.pl lists scholarships offered by the Polish government and other organisations. In some Universities, there might be additional scholarship opportunities. It would be best if you looked it up in a search engine for courses and at the office for international students at the university of your choice.

A matriculation certificate or equivalent document and proficiency in English (at least at an intermediate level) are prerequisites for admission. All international applicants must also meet the minimum requirements for entry into higher education in their home countries.

Some universities' art departments might administer additional aptitude tests, physical education, teaching preparation, medicine, and technology.

All graduates of Polish higher education institutions are given a Diploma Supplement. The Supplement is free to access and is published in Polish; it is also available in English, German, French, Spanish, and Russian upon request. Since Poland ratified the Lisbon Convention on the Recognition of Degrees in 2004, it has become simpler for other countries to recognise Polish diplomas.

Visit www.buwiwm.edu.pl for details on diploma recognition.


Government of Poland: Useful links


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