The UL Vice-Rector for Student Affairs and Quality of Education, Robert Zakrzewski, prof. UL opened the meeting. The convention was attended by people who deal with recruitment of international candidates for studies in the leading Polish universities. This is a very narrow group of specialists throughout Poland. The specifics of recruitment of international students often consists in the individual assistance for a candidate starting from reporting a desire to choose a particular field of study, through completing the required documents and ending with a visit at a given university in person.
During the two-day meeting, held in the Training and Conference Centre of the University of Lodz, issues related to standards in the legislation concerning international candidates were raised including and verification of foreign documents depending on the country in terms of their legality. Good practices used at universities, among others, applied recruitment systems, recognition of education or cooperation with recruitment agencies were also discussed.
The following guests took part in the discussions: Director of the Department of International Cooperation of the Ministry of Science and Higher Education, Mr. Przemysław Skrodzki, as well as representatives of the Polish National Agency for Academic Exchange and the Education Authority in Lodz.
So far on the initiative of the IROs Forum, two meetings for administrative staff dealing with recruitment of international candidates had been organised. One was held in 2017 and the other in 2019. These were several-hour meetings that did not exhaust the thematic scope, and therefore, the convention at the University of Lodz lasted two days full of workshop meetings, combined with a panel discussion. Experts have exchanged knowledge, as well as strengthened their soft competences related to the challenges posed by multiculturalism of the arriving students
- says Liliana Lato, Head of the UL International Relations Office.
Expanding inter-university cooperation also affects the unification of standards, building a uniform picture of Polish higher education. The University of Lodz representatives want good and effective solutions not to be confined within the walls of one university. They should build a coherent image of professional service that our university provides to international students based on the exchange of experience and knowledge.
The meeting was hybrid: 33 participants came to Lodz, while 18 people took part remotely. The event was part of a project implemented under the Welcome to Poland Programme co-financed by the European Social Fund under the Operational Programme Knowledge Education Development through the Polish National Agency for Academic Exchange.
Source: UL International Relations Office
Edit: Promotion Centre, University of Lodz