NAWA: Poland's National Agency for Academic Exchange

Narodowa Agencja Wymiany Akademickiej, also Poland's ENIC-NARIC centre

NAWA matters to newcomers in two ways: its scholarship programmes for studying or researching in Poland, and its information on how foreign diplomas and school certificates are recognised. This explanation sets out what a NAWA statement can tell a university or employer, and why nostrification and professional licences are separate steps.

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As written locally

Narodowa Agencja Wymiany Akademickiej (NAWA)

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Scholarships and information on foreign diplomas

What NAWA does

Why NAWA comes up both when funding studies in Poland and when checking how a foreign qualification is recognised.

Narodowa Agencja Wymiany Akademickiej (NAWA), the Polish National Agency for Academic Exchange, funds scholarship programmes for international students and researchers and is Poland's ENIC-NARIC centre. It provides information and statements on foreign diplomas and school certificates, but it does not nostrify degrees.

NAWA was set up in 2017 to support the international side of Polish higher education and research. For newcomers it matters in two ways: scholarships and recognition of foreign education.

On the scholarship side, NAWA runs programmes such as Banach (second-cycle studies for citizens of selected partner countries, with a monthly stipend and no tuition fees), Poland My First Choice, the Gen. Anders programme for the Polish diaspora, and summer language courses. Each call has its own eligibility rules, deadlines and award amounts, so read the current call rather than an older summary.

On the recognition side, NAWA is Poland's ENIC-NARIC centre. Its free KWALIFIKATOR database lets you check how foreign qualifications are treated in Poland and download a NAWA-signed statement. If your document is not covered, you can request a free individual statement on a foreign diploma or secondary school certificate through the SYRENA online system. A statement on a secondary certificate confirms only whether it gives the right to apply for higher education in Poland.

A NAWA statement is information, not a decision that turns your degree into a Polish one. A foreign degree becomes equivalent to a Polish degree either under an international agreement or through nostrification at an eligible Polish university. Foreign school certificates are recognised by law or by the regional education authority (kurator oświaty). Regulated professions have their own licensing bodies. NAWA also places apostilles only on documents issued by Polish universities.

Key takeaways

NAWA runs scholarships for international students and researchers, including the Banach programme.
It is Poland's ENIC-NARIC centre and issues free statements on foreign diplomas and school certificates.
Individual statements are requested online through SYRENA.
A statement is not nostrification; equivalence comes from an agreement or a university procedure.
Regulated professions need separate approval from their own authority.

Scholarship plans, university applications and employer questions

When NAWA becomes relevant to you

NAWA usually appears when you look for a scholarship to study or research in Poland, when a university asks how your foreign certificate or degree is recognised, or when an employer wants to understand your qualification. The examples show how applicants and graduates use it before deciding on further steps.

You meet NAWA when you look for a scholarship to study or research in Poland, when a university asks how your foreign school certificate or degree is recognised, or when an employer wants to understand the level of your qualification. It is usually the first stop for checking a foreign qualification before deciding whether nostrification or a professional licence is needed.

Example situations

An applicant from outside the EU checks KWALIFIKATOR, finds that their bachelor's degree gives access to master's studies in Poland and attaches the signed statement to the university application.
A graduate whose degree is not in the database requests an individual statement through SYRENA, then learns that the employer actually requires nostrification at a Polish university.
A student plans their budget around a NAWA scholarship call and keeps the award letter as proof of funds for their residence application.

Who recognises degrees, and who licenses

A statement is not nostrification

Why universities, not NAWA, nostrify degrees, and why its scholarships differ from those paid by your own university.

NAWA does not nostrify degrees; eligible Polish universities do. A NAWA statement also does not give you the right to practise a regulated profession and does not replace a university's admission decision. Its scholarships are separate from the social or merit scholarships paid by your university.

Vocabulary to browse after NAWA

More Polish terms for study, work and residence

After NAWA, these cards explain other Polish terms from the areas of life around studying in Poland, including documents, permits and institutions from working life and residence. Each card explains its own term rather than a step in a NAWA procedure.

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