When preparing information on this subject, entities must remember that the evaluation team conducts the evaluation according to the following detailed evaluation criteria that are specified in §2.8 of the ordinance of the Polish Minister of Education and Science of 27 September 2021 on the evaluation of the quality of education at doctoral schools:

  1. the timely completion of doctoral education according to the education programme at the evaluated doctoral school;
  2. the percentage of individuals who were awarded doctoral degrees after completing their educations at the doctoral school, as a proportion of the total number of doctoral students who completed their educations during the evaluation period;
  3. analysis of the scientific and artistic achievements of doctoral students, specifically those linked to the research and artistic activities defined in their individual research plans;
  4. doctoral students’ assessments of the quality of doctoral education, the results obtained from these assessments, and entities’ strategies for utilising these findings to improve the education process;
  5. the methods for utilising data on the circumstances of individuals who graduated from the doctoral school under evaluation and those who were awarded their doctoral degrees after graduation.


Entities should provide an assessment of the effectiveness of the doctoral education process at their doctoral schools. Reports should specify what share of doctoral students who successfully completed their educations by submitting their doctoral dissertations within the timeframe specified by the education programme and individual research plans, including any extensions of up to two years allowed under the doctoral school’s regulations. Reports should should also explain the approach taken to resolve the issue for doctoral students who failed to fulfil this obligation within the specified timeframe.

In this section of the report, the system generates information from POL-on automatically on the percentage of doctoral students who completed their education during the evaluation period and the applications submitted for awarding them doctoral degrees, the percentage of those who were awarded doctoral degrees, and the percentage of those who were denied doctoral degrees. Such statistics are also generated automatically for all doctoral students who completed their education at the doctoral school under evaluation. Entities should comment on the implications and findings derived from the data that they provided.

Entities should present and justify the three to five most significant scientific or artistic achievements of doctoral students in each discipline offered by their doctoral school during the evaluation period, focusing on those related to the activities specified in the students’ individual research plans. Entities should present the quality and significance of the doctoral students’ scientific or artistic accomplishments, rather than the volume of their output.

Reports should explain the mechanisms by which entities enable doctoral students to evaluate the quality of their educations, the degree of student engagement in the process, and the actions taken by the entity in response to students’ feedback. The entity should summarise the general conclusions from students’ feedback during the evaluation period, focusing on the aspects of education at the doctoral school that are most appreciated, as well as the greatest challenges and the strategies in place to address them.

Entities should describe how they integrate the findings of career monitoring (referenced in Article 352, paragraphs 1–13 of the Act) for individuals who graduated from the doctoral school under evaluation and those who were awarded their doctoral degrees after graduation. Entities must specify how the findings impact the operations of their doctoral schools, including the assessment of educational standards and the formulation of responsible development strategies.

Entities may present other information that they deem relevant to the evaluation of the effectiveness of doctoral education at their doctoral schools.

Entities’ descriptions should conclude with  self-evaluations.