Scholarships

Scholarships

General information

Each participant of a Doctoral School not having a doctoral degree is given a scholarship.

Legal basis:

• Art. 209 of the Act - The Law on Higher Education and Science

The period of payment 

The scholarship will be paid for the entire period of education at a Doctoral School (also during holiday), but no longer than for 4 years. This period does not include:

• suspension of education for the period corresponding to the duration of the maternity leave, leave on the conditions of maternity leave, paternity and parental leave,
• the period of education at the Doctoral School, if it ceased education and there is no other Doctoral School providing education in a given discipline, and the entity running the Doctoral School covers the costs of the proceedings for the award of a doctoral degree in extramural mode

The amount of scholarship

At the moment the amount of doctoral scholarship at Doctoral School of the Warsaw University of Technology is PLN 2,668 gross (at least 37% of the professor’s salary). Positive result of the mid-term evaluation results in increasing the doctoral scholarship to the amount of PLN 4,110 gross, from the month after getting a positive result.

The increase of scholarship

PhD students who have:

• a disability certificate,
• a certificate on the degree of disability,
• a total or partial incapacity for work and inability to independent existence, established on the basis of the Art. 5 of the Act of 27 August 1997 on Vocational and Social Rehabilitation and Employment of Persons with Disabilities
• a certificate on being included in  one of the groups of disabled persons and are persons with disabilities established on the basis of the Art. 62 of the Act of 27 August 1997 on Vocational and Social Rehabilitation and Employment of Persons with Disabilities

get scholarship increased by 30%. In order for the scholarship to be increased, a PhD student is obliged to present a current certificate/decision on disability, a certificate on the degree of disability referred to in Art. 5 and Art. 62 of the the Act of 27 August 1997 on Vocational and Social Rehabilitation and Employment of Persons with Disabilities.

Earlier submission of a PhD thesis

A PhD student who submits the doctoral dissertation earlier than the date of completion of education specified in the educational program, shall receive the doctoral scholarship until the date of the deadline for the completion of education, but not longer than for six months. (S)he then receives a one-off payment of a doctoral scholarship equivalent to the amount due for the period remaining until the statutory date of completion of education, but no longer than 6 months. The total period of receiving a doctoral scholarship in Doctoral Schools may not exceed 4 years.

End of the payment

The payment of the scholarship shall cease on the last day of the month in which the PhD student was removed from the list of PhD students or on which the statutory deadline for receiving the scholarship expired.

Insurance premiums

Doctoral scholarship is tax-free, but is subject to obligatory pension, disability and accident insurance according to the provisions of the social insurance system. Sickness insurance is voluntary.

More information can be found in the ‘Insurance’ section.

The basis for starting the payment of doctoral scholarship is submitting ZUS ZUA, PZ SAP and ZZA forms within 7 days from being admitted to the Doctoral School. PhD students realizing ‘Implementational doctorate’ program are obliged to additionally submit a trilateral agreement.

If you have any questions, please feel free to contact dod@pw.edu.pl

1. Regulations for the payment of doctoral scholarships

Additional scholarship programs for PhD students within Excellence Initiative – Research University

WUT START program

The purpose of WUT Start Programme is providing one-off financial aid for doctoral students admitted to doctoral schools at WUT. The scholarship applies to the newly admitted doctoral students and in 2023 was PLN 4,200. To apply for the scholarship, the PhD student has to complete the agreement and submit it to the PhD Students Office within 90 days from the admission.

Regulamin programu Stypendium START

Grant+ program

The purpose of the Grant+ Program at WUT is to raise the amount of scholarship above the statutory minimum. The amount of Grant+ depends on the year of study of a PhD student and meeting the scientific criterion related to the IDUB program indices.

Regulamin programu Stypendium PLUS

If you have any questions, please feel free to contact biuro.idub@pw.edu.pl.

More information can be found at: https://www.excellence.pw.edu.pl/excellence

Insurance

In accordance with the social insurance system regulations, social insurance contributions shall be deducted from the doctoral scholarship. Each PhD student who receives the scholarship is subject to obligatory pension, disability and accident insurance. Sickness insurance is voluntary.

A PhD student who additionally is:

• an employee,
• a member of an agricultural cooperative,
• a member of a supervisory board receiving remuneration for performing the function,
• a person granted various training and social benefits,

shall be a subject to a compulsory social security insurance on the grounds of all the above titles regardless of the amount of the scholarship.

If a PhD student receives a scholarship in the amount lower than the amount of the minimum wage, when being subject to a social insurance title other than the above, (s)he would also be covered by the social insurance obligation on the latter title.

The social security insurance is voluntary when a PhD student receiving the doctoral scholarship is at the same time covered by a disability pension insurance. (S)he then has to submit o copy of the decision on granting the above mentioned benefits and relevant statement in this regard.

The doctoral scholarship amount constitutes the basis for the social security contribution rate.

Social security contributions are co-financed by the PhD student (insured person) and the University (contribution payer) as follows:

• pension insurance contribution is financed in equal parts by the insured person and the contribution payer (9.76% of the base rate each)
• disability insurance contribution is financed by the insured person (1.5% of the base rate) and the contribution payer (6.5% of the base rate)
• accident insurance contribution is fully financed by the contribution payer (in the amount of percentage rate set for particular payer)
• sickness insurance contribution is fully financed by the insured person (2.45% of the base rate).

PhD students are entitled to health insurance, with the exception of those subject to another compulsory health insurance, employed or reported for the insurance as family members.

Family members include:

• an own child,
• a child of the spouse,
• an adopted child,
• a grandchild or an unrelated child under one’s guardianship or an unrelated child within a foster family or an orphanage,

before they are 18 or 26 if they are in full-time education at school, a teacher training centre, a university or a doctoral school, or without restrictions of age in case of those with significant degree of disability,

• a spouse (Art. 5 sec. 3 of the social insurance system regulations).

PhD students under the age of 26 or those with significant degree of disability regardless of age, shall be reported for health insurance as a family member of an insured person.

However, if the PhD student is not reported as a family member of an insured person, (s)he is entitled to the health insurance as a PhD student. The insurance coverage shall be effective from the day of the submission of the statement for the purposes of determining the obligation of health insurance, but not earlier than on the day of the commencement of the first semester of education. The insurance coverage shall cease on the day of the completion of the education at a doctoral school or on the day of the removal from the PhD students list. The PhD student is reported for the health insurance by the entity conducting a doctoral school (contribution payer).

Please note: The right to health care for PhD students who completed education at a doctoral school ceases after 4 months from the day of the completion of the education or of the removal from the list of the PhD students.

The change of the insured person data

Data given to ZUS (Social Insurance Institution) shall be correct and up-to-date. If it is not correct or it has changed, the Doctoral School should be informed about this fact within 2 days from the date the changes took place by submitting a ZUS ZUA form.

If the change applies to the insurance code, title or commencement date (e.g. due to reaching the age of 26 or changing the title of health insurance), it is necessary to submit both the ZUS ZWUA form and the ZUS ZUA form.

Additional accident insurance

PhD student may also purchase the additional accident insurance. The insurance is valid for a given academic year, i.e. form October 1 to September 30 (or from the day following the payment). Current information on the insurance can be found:

https://www.ca.pw.edu.pl/Kwestor/Dzial-Plac/Ubezpieczenia/Ubezpieczenie-NNW

The insurance is voluntary and optional. The insurance premium is deducted from the doctoral scholarship paid in October or November, PhD students starting their education in the Spring semester, will have the premium deducted in February or March. ‘Implementation doctorate’ program participants who have their scholarship temporarily suspended, should pay the premium on their own if they wish to join the insurance.

The claim needs to be reported to the WUT Finance Department by filling out appropriate form.

If you have any questions, feel free to contact dod@pw.edu.pl.

Maternity, paternity and parental leaves

According to the Act of July 20, 2018 – The Law on Higher Education and Science, PhD student is entitled to suspend education for the period corresponding to the duration of a) the maternity leave,

b) the leave on the conditions of maternity leave,

c) paternity leave                                                                    and

d) parental leave

as defined by the Act of June 26, 1977 – Labour Law.

PhD student applies for suspension of education to the Head of Doctoral School. In the cases referred to in par. 1, items 1 and 2, the application shall be submitted no later than 21 days from the date of occurrence of circumstances entitling to the suspension. The application should include the documents justifying the suspension (child's birth certificate/child's adoption certificate).

During the period of suspension of education, the provisions concerning the determination of the amount of the maternity allowance shall apply accordingly to the determination of the amount of the doctoral scholarship, except that the basis for the amount of the allowance shall be the monthly doctoral scholarship, applicable on the date of the application for suspension.

The length of maternity and parental leave depends on the number of children born during one labour or taken for upbringing and is:

1. maternity leave

• up to 20 weeks for one child
• 31 to 37 weeks for more than one child

1. parental leave

• 41 weeks for one child, including 32 weeks that can be divided between both parents or used by one of them and 9 weeks that can be used only by one parent
• 43 weeks for more than one child including 34 weeks that can be divided between both parents or used by one of them and 9 weeks that can only be used by one parent
• 38 weeks when a foster family takes a child up to the age of 7 (or up to 10 years old if the child's school obligation is postponed) or an insured person takes up a child up to the age of 14 and submits an application for initiation of adoption proceedings.

Paternity leave is granted to the father for up to 2 weeks, but no longer than:

• until the child is 12 months old,
• until 12 months from the date on which the decision adjudicating the adoption of a child becomes final and no longer than until the child turns 14 years old.

Paternity leave may be used at once or in no more than 2 parts, none of which may be shorter than a week.

If you have any questions, please feel free to contact us at dod@pw.edu.pl.

Medical examination

Each newly admitted PhD student receives a referral for medical examination which is issued on the basis of the list of hazardous factors specified by the supervisor (participants of ‘Implementation Doctorate’ program are obliged to provide the list completed by the advisor from the company as well).

After the medical examination, participants of WUT Doctoral Schools submit the medical certificate to the PhD Students Office.

Newly admitted PhD students are also obliged to get acquainted with the list of hazards to life and health occurring at WUT, by signing a proper declaration.

If you have any questions, please feel free to contact dod@pw.edu.pl

Occupational Health and Safety training

Newly admitted PhD students are obliged to participate in occupational health and safety training.

WUT Training Department in cooperation with the WUT Occupational Health and Safety Inspectorate provide an occupational health and safety training as well as fire safety training offer in the form of guided independent study. Training materials are available in Polish and in English.

After getting acquainted with the materials, an appropriate declaration needs to be completed and sent to the PhD students Office via email.

The Training Department confirms completion of the training by issuing a certificate in two copies – one is kept in the PhD student’s personal file, whereas the other one is handed over to the participant of the training.

If you have any questions, please feel free to contact dod@pw.edu.pl