More than 460 young people of Polish origin will receive scholarships of the Polish National Agency for Academic Exchange (NAWA) under the Gen. Anders Programme – first-cycle studies and uniform Master’s degree studies. They will begin studies at Polish universities or courses which prepare for studies in the coming academic year.
The Gen. Anders Programme for the Polish diaspora – first-cycle studies and uniform Master’s degree studies enables young people of Polish origin (Polish nationality) and holders of the Card of the Pole (Karta Polaka) to take up education at universities in Poland and to improve their command of Polish. The programme is directed at the Polish diaspora all around the world. In this year’s edition of the programme, 1518 applications from young people who wish to study in Poland were submitted. NAWA granted scholarships to 462 applicants, who will be able to take up studies at a Polish higher education institution of their choice.
‘The Gen. Anders Programme for the Polish diaspora plays a significant role in maintaining the bond between the Polish diaspora and Poles who live abroad with our country. I am glad that the programme is popular among young people in the Polish diaspora. It caters to numerous needs of the diaspora,’ says Prof. Wojciech Maksymowicz, deputy minister of science and higher education. ‘We offer young people of Polish origin the opportunity to choose among the best universities in Poland and to complete studies here. At the same time, we increase the potential of the Polish diaspora, which is enriched with well-educated graduates. The young people who decide to remain in Poland after graduation, in turn, have better job opportunities thanks to having completed higher education. In addition, we strengthen the Polish identity and the sense of connection to the Polish tradition, history and culture. Thanks to the programme, contacts between the Polish diaspora and the Poles in their motherland develop on a wide variety of levels,’ Deputy Minister Wojciech Maksymowicz adds.
The Gen. Anders Programme for the Polish diaspora implements the principles of the ‘Government programme of cooperation with the Polish diaspora in the years 2015–2020.’ This year’s beneficiaries come from the following countries: Belarus, Brazil, Czechia, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kirghizstan, Lithuania, Latvia, Moldova, Romania, Russia, Ukraine, and Uzbekistan.
Przemysław Wyganowski, deputy director of the Diplomatic Academy of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, emphasises that the programme enables NAWA beneficiaries to strengthen their bonds with Poland as well as to improve their command of Polish. In the future, when they begin their professional careers, these graduates will certainly contribute to deepening the relations between Poland and the countries of their residence.
NAWA has been offering scholarships under the Gen. Anders Programme for the Polish diaspora – first-cycle studies and uniform Master’s degree studies for three years now. More than 1380 applicants in total have been granted NAWA scholarships in the years 2018–2020.
‘Our beneficiaries are ambitious young people who wish to make the best use of the opportunities offered to them by a NAWA scholarship. They make an independent choice of the higher education institution. They usually decide to study at the University of Warsaw, the Jagiellonian University, Warsaw School of Economics or Warsaw University of Technology,’ says Dr. Grażyna Żebrowska, Director General of the Polish National Agency for Academic Exchange NAWA. ‘The most popular fields of study among the Polish diaspora are information science, international relations, journalism, management, and law. I believe that for the young members of the Polish diaspora, studies at Polish universities will be a good start to carry out their plans for the future,’ Dr. Grażyna Żebrowska adds.
NAWA beneficiaries will receive a monthly scholarship of PLN 1250 in the course of first-cycle studies and of the first three years of uniform Master’s degree studies. In the fourth year of uniform Master’s degree studies, the amount of the scholarship rises to PLN 1500. The scholarship for the participants of preparatory courses in turn amounts to PLN 1450.
‘The association “Wspólnota Polska” actively contributes to maintaining contacts with Poles abroad on all continents, whose number amounts to almost 20 million. This enormous group of people needs constant contact and support in various forms. The scholarships founded by NAWA are a valuable element, as they enable young people to come to Poland,’ says Dr. Aleksander Socha, representative of the association. ‘We want the youth who come to Poland to have the opportunity to profit from the cultural resources, to learn Polish and to study at the same time. Financial support is important, because it allows them to pay for their living. Apart from the financial side, moral support is significant, as well. This is expected of us by our compatriots, our youth, especially from Eastern Europe,’ Dr. Aleksander Socha adds.
NAWA is planning to allocate PLN 27 million in the academic year 2020/2021 for scholarships under the Gen. Anders Programme for the Polish diaspora for all the programme beneficiaries (who were granted scholarships both this year and in the previous editions) – students of all types of studies and participants of preparatory courses.
The list of names of all scholarship holders (scholarships granted by NAWA at higher education institutions supervised by the minister of science and higher education)
Press conference at NAWA’s office. Announcement of the results in the Gen. Anders Programme for the Polish diaspora – first-cycle studies and uniform Master’s degree studies. In the photo, from the left: Prof. Wojciech Maksymowicz, deputy minister of science and higher education; Dr. Aleksander Socha, representative of the association ‘Wspólnota Polska’; Dr. Grażyna Żebrowska, NAWA director; Przemysław Wyganowski, deputy director of the Diplomatic Academy of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs; Aleksandra Kucy, Department of Cooperation with the Polish Diaspora and Poles Abroad at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
