Polish students commenced the 2026 Matura, the national high school graduation exam, on Monday, May 4th, with the basic-level Polish language test.
Exam Commencement and Materials
Students began the exams at 9:00 AM on Monday, May 4th. Following the exam’s completion, the Central Examination Board (CKE) released the test materials.
Polish Language Exam Content
The Polish language Matura assessed reading comprehension, knowledge of the Polish language and literature, and essay-writing skills. Texts by Agnieszka Krzemińska and Olaf Szewczyk were included in the test.
Students were tasked with preparing a synthesis note based on both texts, focusing on the topic of traditional versus digital methods of information storage. The exam also featured works such as “Antigone,” “The Song of Roland,” and “The Springtime.”
Essay Topics
Students had a choice of two essay topics.
Essay Requirements
The essay required referencing a required reading, another literary work, and selected contexts. The essay had to be at least 300 words in length.
Matura Exam Schedule
The Polish language exam initiated a series of Matura examinations. Students must complete three written exams at the basic level: Polish, mathematics, and a modern foreign language. Two oral exams, in Polish and a foreign language, are also mandatory.
Students attending schools or classes with minority language instruction must also take a written and oral exam in that language.
Passing Requirements
To pass the Matura, students must achieve at least 30 percent of the points on each mandatory exam. No passing threshold applies to additional subjects taken at the advanced level.
Upcoming Exam Dates
The next mandatory written exam will be held on Tuesday, May 5th, with the basic-level mathematics exam. Basic-level modern foreign language exams are scheduled for Wednesday, May 6th.
Written Matura exams will conclude on May 21st, while oral exams will be conducted from May 7th to May 30th, according to school schedules.
Popular Advanced-Level Subjects
Data from the CKE indicates that English is the most popular subject chosen at the advanced level, with 252,400 students, or 73.2 percent, declaring their intention to take it.
Mathematics is second, with 93,400 students (27.1 percent), followed by geography with 84,000 declarations (24.4 percent). Other popular choices include biology, advanced-level Polish, chemistry, social studies, history, physics, and bilingual English.
Results and Retakes
The CKE will announce the Matura results on July 8th. Students who fail a mandatory subject will be able to retake it in August. The written exam retake is scheduled for August 24th, and the oral retake for August 25th. Final Matura results, including the May, additional, and retake sessions, will be published on September 11th.
