Poland’s newly appointed Minister of Science and Higher Education, Dariusz Wieczorek, has unveiled a proposal to allocate 150 million zloty (€34.5 million) to enhance and refurbish university student residences.
As Minister Wieczorek explains, the Ministry aims to back the revitalisation of dormitories, acknowledging that 30 per cent of their capacity remains unutilised due to their suboptimal conditions.
There is real potential here – instead of living in a rented apartment and paying 3,000 zloty (€691) a month, a student should have a dormitory available.
As local media reports, the Ministry also revealed detailed plans for distributing these funds. The funds will be distributed to all 87 universities in Poland that currently receive state subsidies for student residences. This one-time payment will not affect existing subsidies.
Each university’s share of funding will be proportional to the number of available dormitory spaces, limited to a maximum of four million zlotys for a single institution.
Earlier this year, real estate services agency CBRE said that despite having about 1.2 million students, Poland’s dormitory capacity fills less than ten per cent of them—falling below the European average of 13 per cent. Dormitory capacity has been reduced from 144,000 in 2008 to the current figure of 112,000.
According to the Polish National Agency for Academic Exchange, the typical cost of accommodation in a dormitory in Poland is outlined. For a shared room, the monthly range is between €60 and €80, while a single room generally falls within the range of €100 to €150.
Over 100,000 International Students at Polish Universities
Moreover, the number of international students at Polish universities has now exceeded 100,000 for the first time, reaching 102,200 in the 2022/23 academic year. Approximately nine per cent of the total student population in Poland currently consists of international students.
Based on Statistics Poland (GUS), considering annual exchange students, the total number of international students in Poland reaches 105,400. This reflects an almost 18 per cent increase compared to the previous academic year, indicating a rapid recent rise in international student enrollment.
The largest national group among international students in Poland comprises 48,700 Ukrainians. Their number has increased significantly by over 12,000, suggesting a possible correlation with Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Other substantial national groups include students from Belarus (12,000), Turkey (3,800), Zimbabwe (3,600), India (2,700), Azerbaijan (2,500), Uzbekistan (2,100), China (1,800), Kazakhstan (1,700), and Nigeria (1,600).
