The Polish education system follows the Bologna principles and is home to public as well as private universities. Polish universities normally offer three different types of degrees namely:
The academic year in Poland begins in October and ends in June and it is normally divided into the winter and spring semester. Students can choose to study in Poland Full-time or Part-time. It is worthwhile to note that Poland follows a 5 point Grading System for Higher Education which can be described as follows:
Apart from this, it is important to know that Poland is home to over 450 Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) and houses the second oldest university in Europe. Polish universities have produced 18 Nobel Laureates including Marie Curie.
Due to the lack of entrance exams and relatively affordable education, Poland has recently gained popularity as a study-abroad destination for students around the world. Polish universities offer education at all levels and a wide range of degrees/programs. However, here is a list of programs that are very popular in Poland:
For European citizens, a full-time program at a Higher Education Institute (HEI) is free of cost. This acts as a massive silver lining and attracts thousands of students from other countries of the European Union, every year.
For students belonging to the rest of the world, tuition fees may still apply, but Polish Education is very affordable as compared to other countries. Most Polish Universities offer plenty of English-taught courses which is another added advantage for International students. Here is an approximate list of tuition fees in Poland depending on the level of education:
There are plenty of scholarship opportunities for International students in Poland depending on the level of education, duration of the course and the university. Scholarships in Poland might be offered by the Polish Government, private foundations or the concerned universities. Here are some of the most popular scholarships available in Poland:
It may come as a surprise to most of you, but Poland ranks 16th in the English Proficiency Index which is a clear indicator of the fact that people in Poland are pretty well-versed with English Language and any outsider would not face a problem in communicating in English. Having said that Poland is the 6th most spoken language in Europe so if you are proficient in Polish, you will be able to have a great understanding of the fundamentals of other languages such as Czech, Ukrainian and so on. In addition to that, polish proficiency will give you an upper arm at communicating with locals and being able to find a job.
Cost of living in Poland obviously depends upon the type of accommodation you choose but mainly on the city you live in. Bigger cities like Warsaw and Krakow are relatively more expensive in terms of cost of living as compared to smaller cities like Poznan. However, in general due to the ongoing economic development process, the cost of living in Poland is relatively lower than most of the European countries which makes it a higher preferred study-abroad destination. An international student may need to make a provision of 500 USD per month for housing, transport and meal costs.
Whether a student needs a student visa to study in Poland or not depends on his citizenship status. All EU/EEA/EFTA nationals only need a travel document, for instance, passport, to study in Poland for up to 90 days. In case of a longer course duration, students need to register their residence in Poland in either one of the country’s administrative divisions.
Students from the rest of the world need a student visa to study in Poland. There are two types of student visas offered by the Polish Government which are as follows:
Here is a list of documents you shall need in order to apply for a student visa in Poland:
