Access to first cycle studies

Upper secondary education and the entitlement to apply to be admitted to a higher education institution have to be confirmed in the Republic of Poland with the following documents:

1. certificates and other documents issued by the school or educational establishment operating within the system of education of a Member State of the European Union, Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), European Free Trade Association (EFTA) – a party to the European Economic Area agreement, whereupon a candidate is entitled to apply to be admitted to a higher education institution in those states. This applies to secondary school-leaving certificates obtained in the following countries: Australia, Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Canada, Chile, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Great Britain, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Japan, Korea, Latvia, Lichtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Mexico, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, USA.
2. IB Diplomas (International Baccalaureate) issued by the International Baccalaureate Organization in Geneva;
3. EB Diplomas (European Baccalaureate) issued by European Schools pursuant to the Convention Defining the Statute of the European Schools, drawn up in Luxembourg, on June 21, 1994 (Journal of Laws [Dz.U.] of 2005, no. 3, item 10).
4. Certificates and other documents issued abroad by schools or educational establishments recognized by the state on whose territory or within whose system of education they are operating, are recognized under the principles provided for ininternational agreements (Ukraine, China).

If you hold a different certificate (not listed above) issued abroad by a school or educational institution recognized by the state in whose territory or within whose educational system it operates, you must apply to the Education Superintendent / Board of Education (Kurator Oświaty) to have the certificate recognized as a document entitling you to apply for higher education in Poland. If you live in Poland, you should submit your application to the Education Superintendent for your place of residence. If you do not live in Poland, you should submit your application to the Education Superintendent in Katowice (which is where the University of Economics in Katowice is located).

IMPORTANT! As of July 1, 2025, the Polish National Agency for Academic Exchange (NAWA) will take over responsibility for issuing information on foreign certificates and documents confirming eligibility for admission to first-cycle and long-cycle Master’s degree programs. From that date, it will no longer be possible to apply to the Education Superintendent — candidates will be required to apply to NAWA for written information about their certificate. More information will be available on the NAWA website: nawa.gov.pl/en/recognition/how-to-obtain-a-recognition-statement

Final decisions issued by the Education Superintendent in proceedings initiated before June 30, 2025, will remain valid and may be used during the admissions process for first-cycle or long-cycle Master’s studies.

NOTE: Foreign candidates applying for first-cycle studies on the basis of a foreign certificate NOT listed in points 1–4 are required to take an entrance examination. The purpose of this exam is to assess whether the candidate has the necessary knowledge to undertake studies in the chosen field. The scope and schedule of the entrance exam will be published as soon as they are determined.

Access to second cycle studies

If your degree gives access to the next level of higher education or qualifies you to apply for a doctoral program in the country where it was issued, it will also entitle you to access education at the corresponding level of education in Poland (e.g.,second-cycle studies or doctoral school), or to begin the process of obtaining a Polish academic degree.

• If you obtained your secondary education in the European Union or an OECD / EFTA member state, you need to submit an entitlement document. It is a certificate confirming that your diploma entitles you to undertake second-cycle studies in the country of issue. If your diploma does not contain information about your entitlement to further education at the second-cycle level, you need to obtain an additional document confirming that it entitles you to study in the country where it was issued. This document should be:

- downloaded from the KWALIFIKATOR system if your diploma is included there or:

- issued by the university you graduated from if your diploma has not been included in the Kwalifikator system. You can use our template (but it is not obligatory), which can be found in the Documents and further steps section in the Enrollment applications tab (My account -> Enrollment applications -> Documents and further steps -> Eligibility statement).

NOTE: A certificate is required only if such information is not included in the degree diploma or transcript.

• If you obtained your secondary education in a state which is NOT a member of the European Union / OECD / EFTA, your education cannot be recognized in Poland automatically. You are obliged to obtain an individual recognition statement  from NAWA (Polish National Agency for Academic Exchange). It is advisable to apply for such recognition as soon as you have your diploma / graduation certificate and transcript (NAWA usually needs ca. 60 days to issue a recognition statement). The process is online and free of charge.