Who can apply?

Persons who would like to start a four-year doctoral program in physical, chemical, biological, or medical sciences from October and who have obtained an M.Sc. degree, M.Sc. Eng. degree or equivalent (or will get it before October 1):

  • in physics, chemistry, materials engineering, or related disciplines - in the case of disciplines of physical and chemical sciences,
  • in biology, biotechnology, medicine, pharmacy, chemistry, or related disciplines - in the case of the disciplines of biological and medical sciences.

may apply for admission to WDS IPAS.

In exceptional cases, justified by the highest quality of scientific achievements, applications for admission to the School may be submitted by persons who do not meet the above-mentioned requirements but are graduates of first-cycle studies or who have completed the third year of uniform master's studies in the fields mentioned above.

What is the recruitment process like?

Primary recruitment is carried out through a competition conducted by the Recruitment Committees acting at Doctoral Entities (i.e., ILTSR PAS and HIIET PAS). The basis for accepting a candidate to the School is their position on the ranking list determined by the number of recruitment points obtained and the availability of places in Doctoral Entities.

The Recruitment Committees conduct interviews with the candidates, which consist of:

  • A 10-minute presentation in English of scientific achievements to date, motivation to undertake scientific work, and own scientific interests,
  • an interview in Polish or English verifying the knowledge of the chosen discipline; in particular, the candidate's knowledge will be checked:
  • in the discipline of physical sciences - in physics (in particular in the physics of the solid-state),
  • in the discipline of chemical sciences - in chemistry (in particular physical chemistry),
  • in the discipline of biological sciences - in biology (in particular in immunology, molecular biology, and microbiology)
  • in the discipline of medical sciences - in medical biology (in particular immunology, genetics, and microbiology).

After the interview, the Recruitment Committees award candidates recruitment points (from 0 to 20 points):

  • evaluation of the candidate's previous training course, achievements, and predisposition to scientific work based on the documentation provided (from 0 to 5 points),
  • evaluation of the presentation of the applicant (0 to 5 points),
  • assessment of the candidate's knowledge of the discipline (0 to 10 points),

and then draw up ranking lists for each discipline separately.

The ranking lists, indicating the minimum number of recruitment points and persons admitted, shall be made public and published on the School's website and in the Public Information Bulletins of Doctoral Entities.

Should the available number of places be vacant, the School reserves the right to announce and carry out supplementary recruitment in September.

What documents should I submit?

Applications for admission to the School must be submitted:

  • by email to the address (preferred method of application); however, the original documents should be delivered before the studies start (a failure to meet this requirement will result in the candidate’s name being removed from the list of doctoral students).
  • in person at the School premises (i.e., at the Secretariat of the Institute of Low Temperatures and Structural Research of the Polish Academy of Sciences at Okólna Street 2 in Wrocław) from 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.
    or
  • by registered mail or courier service (date of receipt of documents at the School's premises decides) to the address: WSD IPAN, ul. Okólna 2, 50-422 Wrocław

The application should include a filled application form (DOCX, 44 kB) and presented in Polish or English:

  • diplomas: matriculation or higher secondary school certificate, Bachelor’s (engineering), Master's Degree/MD diploma or an equivalent certificate of graduation or an official document from the applicant’s university stating when the MSc/MD defense is due. The diploma should be provided before taking the oath (the commencement of education),
    [in the case of candidates who do not meet this condition: (1) a copy of the diploma of completion of first-cycle or third-year master's degree studies and (2) an application to the School Council for admission to recruitment, including a description of proven scientific achievement of the highest quality],
  • a duplicate (certified copy) of the entire grade book/Transcript of Records of the first- and second-cycle program (or full-cycle Master’s degree program), or a supplement to the degree with grades from the entire course of study, or a student’s grading report from all years of their studies confirmed by the Dean’s Office, together with the calculated average grade from their studies;
  • a certificate of English-language skills at B2 level or higher or information in the diploma supplement that the candidate completed an English course at the required level as part of the university program (if the supplement does not describe the level of the course, a certificate from the Dean’s Office is required;
  • a cover letter with an indication of 2-3 research topics from the list of the offered Ph.D. topics;
  • additional documents proving the candidate's suitability for scientific work (list of publications and conference presentations, list of completed courses and postgraduate studies, obtained language certificates, activity in scientific circles, etc.).
  • in the case of indicating the topics carried out within the framework of research projects (with external founding), the application for recruitment to the given project(s) and possibly required additional documents.

In the case of obtaining a professional title M.Sc./MD outside the European Union - additionally originals of MSc/MD diploma and its transcript with grades, both certified with an apostille or authenticating (legalization) in the diplomatic representation of the Republic of Poland (in that country). Documents submitted without proper authentication will be considered as not meeting formal requirements.

Is it possible to be a doctoral student in a research project?

In the case of funds coming from external institutions' projects and intended to finance a doctoral scholarship for a doctoral student participating in the project, special recruitment may be announced with the commencement of education from the beginning of the month following the entry into the list of doctoral students. It will be conducted on the basis of the rules described above, however:

  • the calendar of the special recruitment will be announced in advance on the School's website.
  • The Recruitment Committee is joined by the project manager who assigns an additional 0-4 points for the candidate's suitability to perform the tasks provided for in the project.

Information on the recognition of master degree diplomas issued outside Poland

  1. The Recruitment Rules for the Wroclaw Doctoral School of the Institutes of the Polish Academy of Sciences oblige the foreigners to evaluate their master's/MD degree diploma if these are recognised to give access to further studies in Poland automatically using the KWALIFIKATOR system (https://nawa.gov.pl/en/recognition/system-kwalifikator), or by applying for an individual statement to NAWA (https://nawa.gov.pl/en/recognition/how-to-obtain-a-recognition-statement)
  2. A general principle in force in Poland concerning the recognition of master's degree diplomas issued outside Poland states:

  1. "If your degree entitles you to apply for doctoral degree in the country of issue, also in Poland it gives the right to access education at the doctoral school or to start proceedings which lead to obtaining Polish academic degree.

    Note:

    Diplomas confirming the completion of higher education abroad do not give access to further studies in Poland if:

    • institutions which issued them or institutions in which the education was provided:
      • were not accredited higher education institutions on the date of issuing the diploma or implemented a study programme which did not have accreditation on the date of issuing the diploma or
      • do not operate within a higher education system of any country or
    • a higher education programme or its part was implemented against provisions of the country in which the education was provided.

Where can I find out more?

Details of the rules of recruitment can be found here (PDF, 272 kB).
Detail information on the collection and processing of personal data (GDPR) can be found here (PDF, 279 kB).