Pursuant to Article 19(1) of the Act of 7 July 2017 on the Polish National Agency for Academic Exchange, the Director of the Polish National Agency for Academic Exchange hereby announces a call for applications for participation in the Poland My First Choice NAWA Programme (hereinafter the “Programme”).

The objective of the Programme is to encourage young people from developed countries to pursue education at Polish university-type higher education institutions[1] by means of offering scholarships for second-cycle studies.

The scholarship offer is addressed to the citizens of the following countries and territories: Australia, Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Canada, Chile, Croatia, Cyprus, Czechia, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Spain, Hong Kong, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Japan, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Macau, Malta, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Portugal, Romania, Singapore, Slovakia, Slovenia, South Korea, Sweden, Switzerland, Taiwan, the United Kingdom, Uruguay, the United States of America.

Eligible to apply for the scholarship are foreigners who, at the time of the call, meet all of the following conditions:

1. they are citizens of one of the following countries and territories: Australia, Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Canada, Chile, Croatia, Cyprus, Czechia, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Spain, Hong Kong, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Japan, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Macau, Malta, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Portugal, Romania, Singapore, Slovakia, Slovenia, South Korea, Sweden, Switzerland, Taiwan, UK, Uruguay, USA;
2. they are not Polish citizens and have not applied for Polish citizenship;
3. at the time of submitting an application for participation in the Programme, they are enrolled in first-cycle studies in a country covered by the Programme or obtained a first-cycle studies graduation diploma in a country covered by the Programme not earlier than in 2022;[2]
4. they are planning to take up full-time second-cycle studies in the academic year 2024/25;
5. they have proven command of:

a) Polish at level B1 or higher, if they are planning to take up second-cycle studies in Polish;

or

b) English at level B2 or higher, if they are planning to take up second-cycle studies in English.

The Programme makes it possible to obtain a scholarship from the NAWA Director to take up full-time second-cycle studies in Poland at university-type higher education institutions (HEIs) supervised by the Minister of Science and Higher Education. Moreover, the Programme enables free education at public universities.

The list of university-type HEIs supervised by the Minister of Science and Higher Education constitutes Attachment 2 to the Announcement.

The Applicant chooses the study programme and the language of education based on the offer of the HEIs listed in Attachment 2 to the Announcement. Information about studying in Poland can be found at https://study.gov.pl/. Information about study programmes (the offer of Polish universities) is available at:  https://study.gov.pl/studyfinder.

The programme does not include studies carried out under so-called double degree agreements.

NAWA does not act as intermediary in the Applicants’ admission process to the HEIs. The Applicants participate in the admission process at the university-type HEIs of their choice on their own and independently of the application for participation in the Programme. The Applicants should learn about the admission requirements, including requirements regarding the command of Polish and the rules of holding potential language exams.

Deadline for submitting applications

The call for applications will be open until 25^th June 2024,
3 pm local time (Warsaw).

Form of submitting the application

Exclusively in electronic form via the Agency’s ICT system, //FILL IN THE APPLICATION//

Language of the application

The application should be drafted in Polish or English.

The maximum number of applications which may be submitted by the Applicant

Maximum 1 application.

Date of commencement and length of the studies

The implementation of the scholarship must commence in the academic year 2024/2025 in that the Scholarship Holder takes up full-time second-cycle studies.

List of required attachments to the application:

1.       scan of the passport page with the Applicant’s personal data;[3] for citizens of the European Union, a scan of the identity document is acceptable;

2.       scan of a first-cycle studies graduation diploma obtained in a country covered by the Programme not earlier than in 2022, including the transcript of records (a list of all courses completed including grades).[4]

Applicants who, at the time of submitting the application, are enrolled in the final year of first-cycle studies as well as Applicants who, at the time of submitting the application, have not yet received a first-cycle studies graduation diploma, must submit a scan of a certificate issued by the university containing:

1)   full name of the Applicant,

2)   name of the university issuing the certificate,

3)   name of the first-cycle study programme,

4)   (planned) date of completing first-cycle studies,

5)   grade point average and transcript of records,

6)   information on the maximum mark on the grading scale,

7)   seal of the university issuing the certificate.

A model certificate constitutes Attachment 4 to the Announcement.

3.       scan of a document attesting command of the language in which the Applicant intends to study in Poland.

3.1. If the chosen study programme is taught in Polish:  scan of a document attesting command of Polish at the required level (i.e. at least B1), e.g.:

a) language certificate, or

b) certificate/diploma or other documents attesting graduation from a secondary school or first-cycle studies taught in Polish, or

c) certificate of completion of a Polish language course at the above-mentioned level.

3.2. If the chosen study programme is taught in English:

a) scan of a certificate attesting command of English at level B2 or higher, valid as on the day of submitting the application (list of acknowledged certificates constitutes Attachment 3 to the Announcement), or

b) scan of a document attesting graduation from first-cycle studies taught in English,

c) scan of a certificate from the university in Poland, where the Applicant is applying for admission to a second-cycle studies under the Programme, of having passed the entrance examination verifying knowledge of the English language.

Citizens of countries covered by the Programme where English is an official language do not have to submit a document attesting to the command of English.

4.       cover letter  in Polish or in English including, among others: description of interests, reasons for the choice of the study programme and university in Poland, description of the subject area of the planned Master’s thesis, description of the expected impact of the stay in Poland on the Applicant’s further academic/scholarly/professional development.

5.       optional: scans of documents attesting to the Applicant’s special achievements.

If the Attachments are issued in a language other than Polish or English, it is required to attach translations into Polish or English. Acceptable translations are made by a sworn translator or certified by a Polish diplomatic or consular post or made by a Polish language teacher or a regular translator and certified with the seal of a translator.

General assumptions

Applications will be subject to formal and merit-based assessment.

Formal assessment

The purpose of formal assessment is to verify the applications to ensure that they meet the formal criteria specified in this Announcement.

Merit-based assessment

The purpose of merit-based assessment is to verify the applications to ensure that they meet the qualitative criteria specified in the Announcement.

Merit-based assessment criteria

Maximum score

1.

Grade point average in first-cycle studies based on graduation diploma or grade point average certificate.

0-50

2.

Coherence of the planned learning pathway (based on the cover letter and other documents attesting to academic achievements, publications, awards), including:

- goals set by the Applicant, academic interests, activity related to the chosen study programme so far,

- reasons for the choice of the study programme and the university in Poland,

- subject area of the Master’s thesis or research,

- expected impact of the studies and participation in the Programme on the Applicant’s further academic, scholarly, or professional development,

- special achievements attested by appropriate documents.

0-50

In total:

0-100

Maximum score:

100

GPA

Score

up to 3.54

0

3.55-3.94

25

3.95-4.54

30

4.55-4.74

40

4.75 and more

50

The Scholarship of the Director of the Polish National Agency for Academic Exchange covers:

1.              monthly scholarship during the regular period of study,

2.              exemption from education fees at public HEIs.

The financial terms and conditions of education at non-public HEIs supervised by the Minister of Science and Higher Education are determined by the HEIs. The issue of payment for studies should in such cases be settled individually between the Scholarship Holder and the relevant non-public HEI. The matter of education fee exemptions rests with the non-public HEI.

The scholarship is paid during the regular period of education for a maximum of 12 months per academic year, starting from the first month of classes at the HEI. The scholarship amounts to PLN 1,800 per month.

An  allowance for the costs of international travel connected with coming to Poland to study during second-cycle studies under the Programme is paid once together with the with the first monthly grant and calculated using the following rates per the scholarship holder's country of citizenship:

In the case of a documented fortuitous event, the Agency Director may increase the scholarship by PLN 500 on a one-off basis at the written request of the Scholarship Holder.

The NAWA Director’s scholarship is paid through the HEI at which the Scholarship Holder is studying (not applicable to the payment of the emergency allowance).

Total amount of funds allocated for the call is approx. PLN 1,654 413,79 including approx. PLN 457 413,79 for scholarships paid in 2024. The Agency reserves the right to change the allocation of funds.

The Scholarship Holder is obliged to submit an annual report on the completion of education in the given academic year by 31 October of each academic year.

The first report should be submitted after the completion of the first year of studies under the Programme. Scholarship Holders who begin their studies in the summer semester submit their first report after that first semester.

The results of the Call will be announced by 31 August 2024.

State budget

1. Regulations of the Polish National Agency for Academic Exchange Programmes Programmes for natural persons taking up education of 28th March 2024 (including model agreement in the Section X. Attachments),

2. List of university-type higher education institutions Poland My First Choice NAWA 2024,

3. List of acknowledged English language certificates Poland My First Choice NAWA 2024,

4. Model certificate Poland My First Choice NAWA 2024.