Polish Language Summer School Officially Opened

The official inauguration of the Polish Language Summer School was held in the Senate Hall in Collegium Maius. This year there are 39 participants from Ukraine, Belarus and Moldova.

- We are very happy that so many young people want to improve their language skills at our University, - said Prof. Wiesława Piątkowska-Stepaniak, Vice-Rector of the UO, warmly welcoming the participants of the school. – We are so glad that the number of participants increases every year and that young people want to study with us. Our summer school is not only a part of the landscape of the University of Opole, but also of the city and the surrounding region, which we try to show and bring closer to its participants. They share their culture, form friendships, and they often want to stay with us longer, which is very valuable.

Foreign students choose various programmes

- Although officially the Polish Language Summer School was opened in 2010, the first exchanges began in 2004, - said Monika Nowobilska from the Centre for Eastern Partnership. - The University of Opole, as one of the first in Poland, started to admit students from the East. At first, there were just a few young people, but now their number increases every year. This year our University will be educating approximately 200 students from Ukraine, Belarus, Russia, Georgia, Moldova, Azerbaijan, Armenia, Kazakhstan. Initially, the majority of foreign students chose study programmes at the Institute of Social Sciences, but now they are present almost everywhere. - We have participants who want to learn the basics of the Polish language and those who are quite advanced. Most of them will become our students.

Stanisław Trafaniuk is going to study economics. - I have chosen this school not only due to the fact that I want to learn Polish; I learned that people from different countries participated in it giving me an opportunity to form interesting friendships and learn about other cultures.

Oleg Kaczmar has chosen logistics. - Poland is a country which is developing rapidly. I would like to learn Polish, become a logistics specialist and stay in Poland.

The School promoting the University and region

The Summer School of the Polish Language and Culture is organized by the Centre for Eastern Partnership in cooperation with the Institute of Polish and Cultural Studies.

The School provides an intensive Polish course at different levels, lectures on Polish culture and customs, and training on obligations and rights of foreigners in Poland. Participants visit museums, galleries, Opole Zoo, and the Park of Science and Entertainment in Krasiejów

The Polish language classes last three weeks and are interspersed with lectures about the culture and history of Poland and Opole. Students also go on trips and explore the city and the region. A three week summer school is to improve the Polish language skills of young people from abroad, but also to give them the opportunity to become familiar with the elements of the Polish culture and mentality, and the specifics of the region. Students will also gain lots of practical information which should be useful in daily life in Poland. The course helps them start living in a foreign country, in a new environment, and in completely different conditions. The course also aims at familiarizing participants with the University of Opole and its infrastructure, with the city and the Opole region. It prepares them for studying in Poland (the rights of foreigners in Poland, the rights and obligations of students, setting up a bank account, the need for health insurance, etc.).

The Mayor of Opole is an honorary patron of the project.

Video clip: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bV7Ju42ANeI&feature=youtu.be