Strategic framework for mobility and internationalisation

Poland does not yet have a strategy for internationalisation or mobility in early childhood and school education and/or higher education, or national benchmarks for mobility. Currently, work is underway to develop an internationalisation strategy for higher education and science. It is coordinated by the Polish National Agency for Academic Exchange in cooperation with the Ministry of Science and Higher Education. Details about the work on the strategy. 

Mobility and internationalisation in the education sector are included in the priority areas of ‘The Integrated Skills Strategy 2030’ (ISS) (Zintegrowana Strategia Umiejętności) adopted by the Government in 2019 (the general part of the Strategy) and 2020 (the detailed part). The target groups are children, youth and adults, learners and teaching staff, management staff, and staff involved in initial and in-service training of teaching and management staff in both formal and non-formal education. In the areas of intervention of the ISS, mobility and international cooperation are geared towards supporting skills development in all target groups. The lines of action for learners and teaching staff also cover the development and quality improvement of international practical placements and internships in cooperation with employers. Actions targeted at teaching and management staff and staff involved in initial and in-service training of teaching and management staff are also aimed at the dissemination of international good practice in teaching, the development of skills for transnational project planning and management, and the establishment of, and participation in transnational networks. 

Measures supporting mobility and internationalisation

Programmes and projects supporting mobility and transnational partnerships and networks

Mobility of learners and education staff and international cooperation at all education levels are supported on the widest scale by the EU Erasmus+ Programme. Various activities are also funded or co-funded nationally, with much wider opportunities available in higher education than in school education.

At the school education level, there are projects co-financed by the EU funds and the national budget (see Chapters 12.1 and 12.4). At the higher education level, multilateral, bilateral and national programmes (co-)funded by the Polish Government and / or other countries or international organisations offer opportunities for student and staff mobility and broader cooperation among higher education institutions (see Chapters 12.2 and 12.5).  Adult learners, teaching or training staff and adult education institutions have access to mobility and international cooperation opportunities only under Erasmus+ (see Chapters 12.3 and 12.6). 

Recognition of study periods, traineeships and qualifications, validation of learning outcomes

The recognition of study periods and traineeships completed abroad is facilitated by the European Credit Transfer and Accumulation System (ECTS), which is in place in Polish higher education, and guidelines on the use of the European Credit System for Vocational Education and Training (ECVET) developed by Polish experts (see Chapters 12.1 and 12.2). 

The Polish Qualification Framework, which is linked to the European Qualifications Framework, facilitates the recognition of qualifications. The national legislation is aligned with the relevant EU Directives and the Lisbon Convention. Different mechanisms are in place for the purpose of further education (academic recognition) and employment (professional recognition) in regulated and non-regulated professions. Specific certificates, diplomas and other qualifications identified in the national legislation are automatically recognised. Other qualifications are recognised through an administrative process to confirm the completion of a given level of education, a procedure for the confirmation of access to higher education, and/or a procedure for a given occupation or profession. (See Chapters 12.1 and 12.2.)

People who have acquired specific knowledge, skills or competences outside formal education, for example, during a mobility period, can have such learning outcomes validated at the level of school education and higher education (see Chapter 12.3). 

See also information about other mechanisms facilitating and promoting mobility in Poland and other European countries, collected by Eurydice and Cedefop, in the Mobility Scoreboard. 

International dimension in curricula

In school education, including education in schools for adults, the national core curricula, which provide the basis for school curricula, include various contents inserting the European, global or intercultural dimension into general education subjects. The legislation also provides for the establishment of international schools and classes, for which curricula are developed by foreign educational institutions and where classes can be taught in a foreign language. (See Chapters 12.4 and 12.6.) 

The national legislation on higher education provides for the establishment of foreign higher education institutions (HEIs) and branch campuses of foreign HEIs in Poland, and joint programmes leading to joint, double or multiple degrees. It does not prescribe curricular contents (except for the regulated professions). However, European content or various elements of knowledge about Europe and the EU are included in curricula, in particular, in the field of European Studies and related fields, as well as in many other fields of study. (See Chapter 12.5.)

Worldwide cooperation in the field of education 

In addition to ongoing cooperation as part of its EU membership, Poland participates in international studies and surveys on education conducted by the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), the International Association for the Evaluation of Educational Achievement (IEA), and in the activities of the Council of Europe and the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) in the field of education. 

Poland has also signed bilateral cooperation agreements in the field of higher education and research with around 100 countries in all regions of the world. They cover student, academic staff and expert exchanges and various activities aimed at sharing information, experience and good practice. (see Chapter 12.7).

Institutions responsible for various aspects of internationalisation and mobility

• Ministry of National Education and Ministry of Science and Higher Education develop, coordinate and implement national policies for preschool education, school education and adult education, and for higher education and science, respectively (the websites available in Polish only).

• Foundation for the Development of the Education System (Fundacja Rozwoju Systemu Edukacji): administers EU programmes in the field of education and training, including Erasmus+, the European Solidarity Corps, and e-Twinning, and projects co-funded by the EU and the national budget. 

• Polish National Agency for Academic Exchange (Narodowa Agencja Wymiany Akademickiej, NAWA): administers programmes and projects funded or co-funded by the EU and / or the Polish Government or international organisations which support mobility and internationalisation of higher education and science. It is also responsible for academic recognition of qualifications, and acts as the Polish unit of the ENIC-NARIC networks (the European Network of National Information Centres, and the National Academic Recognition Information Centres).