More foreign students want to take part in Polish academic exchange programmes
The COVID-19 outbreak put a question mark over the future of international student exchange programmes. It comes as a pleasant surprise then that young people from across the world seem even more interested in pursuing higher education in Poland.
Despite the challenging circumstances of COVID-19 and resulting travel restrictions, the Polish National Agency for Academic Exchange (NAWA - Narodowa Agencja Wymiany Akademickiej) has reported a record-high number of applications for scholarships and academic exchange programmes in Poland this year. The Agency, which coordinates a number of projects encouraging young people from abroad to study in Poland, has noted a considerable increase in applications from students of Polish descent (who can participate in The gen. Anders Programme for the Polish diaspora) as well as foreign students from all over the world - Indonesia, Columbia, Mexico, Vietnam or Central Asian countries (applying for The Stefan Banach and The Ignacy Åukasiewicz Scholarship Programmes, joint initiatives of NAWA and the Polish Ministry of Foreign Affairs).
As announced by NAWA, the Agency has received over 600 applications for The gen. Anders Programme - more than twice as many as last year - and over 2,300 applications for the Ignacy Åukasiewicz Scholarship Programme - over four times more than in 2019.
Due to the pandemic outbreak, this year’s application processes and interviews have been conducted online and some of the deadlines have been pushed back. However, as expressed by the Agency’s representatives, the lifting of the 14-day mandatory quarantine for students from abroad allows them to look forward to the upcoming academic year with hope.
If you would like to find out more about NAWA's programmes: The gen. Anders Programme, The Stefan Banach Scholarship Programme, The Ignacy Åukasiewicz Scholarship Programme or Poland My First Choice Programme - visit the website of the Polish National Agency for Academic Exchange. The website also provides information on several programmes for enthusiasts of the Polish language and culture: you can find out more about them here: Polish language programmes.
Source: Nauka w Polsce - PAP
