2025 UPDATES: CHANGES IN ADMISSION RULES FOR INTERNATIONAL STUDENTS APPLYING TO POLISH UNIVERSITIES

The 2025 admission campaign to Polish universities has become, without exaggeration, the most unpredictable in recent years. The admission rules for higher education institutions changed three times during a single recruitment campaign: first — at the end of June, then again — at the end of July, and the final regulations were approved only in August. Due to constant changes, many applicants and even universities themselves faced confusion in procedures and requirements. The year 2025 became a real challenge for the system of admitting foreign students — and for the applicants themselves.

However, now that the final version of the rules has been approved, we can take a closer look at what exactly has changed in admission to Polish universities and what candidates should prepare for in 2026.

New language proficiency requirements

One of the most significant changes in 2025 was the introduction of new requirements for confirming language proficiency. From now on, all universities in Poland — public, private, prestigious or “not so much” — are required to accept foreign students only if the candidates have Polish language proficiency at a level not lower than B2. According to the new legislation, proficiency in Polish or English must be confirmed by an official certificate or document that meets national standards.
How to confirm your Polish language proficiency:

• By a certificate issued by the State Commission for the Certification of Proficiency in Polish as a Foreign Language (Państwowa Komisja Poświadczania Znajomości Języka Polskiego jako Obcego).
• By a TELC or ECL certificate.
• By completing a Polish high school (liceum) or technical school (technikum) — for those who studied directly in Poland.
• By completing a one-year preparatory language course at a university lasting at least 9 months (the so-called “zrubka” or kurs przygotowawczy).

For those planning to study in English, the requirements remain unchanged: it is necessary to provide an international certificate at the B2 level, such as TOEFL, IELTS, FCE, Pearson, or other certificates recognized by Polish universities.
This reform aims to improve the quality of education and ensure that students can fully participate in the academic process without language barriers.

Admission process to Polish universities: what has changed for different countries

The 2025 changes also affected the admission procedure for different categories of international applicants.
For citizens of Ukraine, the admission system remains, one might say, unchanged. Ukrainian educational documents are recognized automatically in Poland thanks to existing interstate agreements. As before, there are no additional entrance exams, and admission takes place through a document review and competition process, depending on the university.

For candidates from other countries (Belarus, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, etc.) that do not have international agreements with Poland on mutual diploma recognition, additional entrance exams have been introduced. These exams may be conducted online or in person — the format is determined by each university individually. Depending on the chosen field of study, applicants must pass exams in relevant subjects. For example: for technical and engineering fields — mathematics, physics; for medical faculties — biology, chemistry; for humanities — history, geography, social sciences. In addition, candidates from these countries must go through the process of diploma recognition — nostrification.

The purpose of the new system is to improve the quality of preparation for international students and ensure that their knowledge meets Polish academic standards.

Conclusion

The 2025 admission campaign has shown how quickly Poland’s education law can change. However, now that the new rules have come into force, applicants have the opportunity to prepare in advance for admission in 2026. The main things to focus on are early preparation for admission and achieving the required level of language proficiency.

Poland remains one of the most attractive countries for international students, and the new rules are another step toward improving the quality of education and integrating students into the Polish academic environment.

We, the ENTRANT educational agency, are already ready for the new admission campaign and will be happy to guide you through the entire process of applying to study in Poland! We promise that with us, your admission will be clear, simple, and stress-free! CONTACTS