Wojciech Dąbrówka, spokesman for the Conference of Rectors of Academic Schools in Poland (KRASP), which represents 110 member institutions enrolling roughly 70 percent of the country's students, said universities were moving away from training graduates for a single lifelong profession.
"Universities are increasingly designing their offerings not in the logic of a single profession for life, but in the logic of competencies that allow graduates to function in a world of constant change", he told the Polish Press Agency (PAP).
The biggest trend this year, Dąbrówka said, is the integration of AI across disciplines well beyond computer science. Lublin University of Technology is launching programs in AI in energy and medical informatics, while Marie Curie-Skłodowska University is offering AI in media and social research, and Jagiellonian University is introducing digital humanities and language technologies.
A second trend is security-focused programs blending technical, legal and geopolitical skills. New offerings include cybersecurity at the University of Bielsko-Biała and a Master in Global Leadership and Geopolitics at Kozminski University.
Interdisciplinary study is the third major theme. "Fewer and fewer new proposals fit into a single classical disciplinary silo", Dąbrówka said. Examples include a fintech program at Poznań University of Economics combining finance, programming and AI, and a medical bioinformatics degree at Białystok Medical University.
Health-related fields and programs addressing energy transition and environmental challenges round out this year's new offerings.
Universities are also responding to student expectations for flexibility and practical skills. "Young people are asking what competencies they will gain, whether they can work in an interesting sector and whether studies will give them agency in the labor market", Dąbrówka said.
Despite a looming demographic dip, overall study interest has remained stable, partly due to rising numbers of international students. According to Poland's Central Statistical Office, more than 1.28 million students were enrolled in Polish universities in the 2024/25 academic year.
(jh)
Source: PAP