Polish ministry proposes raising minimum professor salary to 9,650 zł from 2026, triggering automatic pay increases across academic staff.
Proposed Salary Increase
The Polish government has published a draft amendment to regulations regarding minimum monthly salaries for professors at public universities. The Ministry of Science proposes increasing the base rate from 9,370 zł to 9,650 zł, effective January 1, 2026.
This 3% increase is necessary because the current structure would create a legal gap when the national minimum wage rises to 4,806 zł in 2026, making assistant professors’ salaries (currently 4,685 zł) below the legal minimum.
Impact on Academic Staff
The salary system at Polish universities is structured so that professors’ pay serves as the reference point for all other academic positions. The new minimum professor salary of 9,650 zł will automatically increase assistants’ minimum pay to 4,825 zł, aligning with legal requirements.
The change will affect all academic staff whose salaries are determined as a percentage of the professor’s salary. According to law, professors must earn at least 83% of this base rate, while associate professors must earn at least 73%.
Broader Effects on University System
The salary increase will extend beyond teaching staff to include employees of the Polish Academy of Sciences, functional allowances (including those for rectors), and social and rectoral scholarships for students.
Public universities retain autonomy in setting actual salaries above these minimum thresholds, depending on their financial resources.
Benefits for Doctoral Students
Participants in doctoral schools will particularly benefit as their scholarships are directly tied to the professor’s salary. After the changes, the minimum doctoral scholarship before midterm assessment will rise from 3,466 zł to 3,570 zł.
Doctoral students after midterm assessment will receive at least 5,500 zł, up from 5,340.90 zł. Additional support for doctoral students with disabilities will increase to 1,071 zł.
Changes to Academic Promotion Procedures
The salary increase will also affect promotion proceedings, raising fees for reviewers and promoters. The fee for a doctoral thesis promoter will increase to 8,000 zł, while an assistant promoter will receive 4,825 zł.
Reviewers will see their fees rise to 2,605 zł, while members of habilitation committees and reviewers in professorial title proceedings will receive 3,860 zł. Members of midterm assessment committees for doctoral students will also be affected.
Implementation Timeline
The Ministry of Science proposes that the regulation should enter into force the day after its publication, but with retroactive effect from January 1, 2026.