556 Students Chose Ukrainian as a Matura Language in Poland: A Historic First
This year, 556 students in Poland chose Ukrainian as their matura language — the national school-leaving examination required for university admission. It marks the first time in history that Ukrainian has officially become a matura subject as a foreign language, as reported by Polskie Radio dla Ukrainy.
How the Ukrainian Matura Works
Ukrainian can be taken at the basic, extended, and bilingual levels — on equal footing with English, German, French, or Spanish. The Wrocław district recorded the highest number of registered students.
Pavlo Levchuk, Associate Professor at the Institute of Slavic Studies of the Polish Academy of Sciences, spoke on Polskie Radio dla Ukrainy about the new system, the C1 proficiency level, admission to Polish universities, and the prospects for the Ukrainian language in Poland. As we previously wrote, he was one of the key initiators of introducing Ukrainian into the Polish education system.
What This Means for Ukrainians Abroad
The inclusion of Ukrainian in the Polish matura is an important step for the hundreds of thousands of Ukrainians who found themselves in Poland after the start of the full-scale invasion. Ukrainian students can now officially certify their knowledge of their native language and use the result for admission to Polish universities.
This also reflects the growing recognition of the Ukrainian language within the European educational system. As we reported, the status and teaching of Ukrainian in Europe has been actively discussed at international pedagogical conferences.
A video from the Polskie Radio dla Ukrainy broadcast on Ukrainian as a matura subject is available on the Polskie Radio dla Ukrainy YouTube channel.