The Rector of the University of Białystok prof. Mariusz Popławski struck the scepter three times and officially started the academic year 2024/2025. It was the 28th Inauguration at the largest university of Podlasie. We have a great academic year ahead of us although full of challenges - said. prof. Mariusz Popławski
The inauguration took place on October 10,2024 in the Auditorium of Janusz Korczak of the Faculty of Educational Sciences of the University of Białystok.
The ceremony was attended by representatives of students, doctoral students, employees of the University, as well as invited guests including parliamentarians, local government officials, representatives of the clergy, uniformed services, public insitutions and other universities in Podlasie.
The inauguration was an opportunity to sum up, express thanks and present plans fot the near future. The Rector of the largest univerity in Podlasie reminded that UwB must prepare for evaluation aad meetings with the State Accreditation Committee but also face the demographic decline.
As a university we have reasons to be extremely satisfied. We have great academic and administrative staff. Thanks to our joint activity and efforts we have encouraged many students and doctoral students to study at the University of Białystok. This year we have over 8 thousand students, we accepted over 3.5 thousand students for the first year of studies. But this is also a huge challange ahead of us. We must be aware that unfortunately, students give up their studies and do not continue their education at the second level. We are facing a demographic decline but I'm convinced that thanks to the cooperation of the university with the regional and city authorities, we will cope with this problem together. We need to encourage and convince candidates that it is worth studing in Białystok, in Podlasie, that they do not have to go to other cities because they have great universities here. The University is one of them. We need to speak loudly about it together - said prof. Mariusz Popławski. We also care about improving the comfort of working and studying. I'm glad that at the end of June 2026 we will have a new humanities building that we have a beautiful building of the Vilnius Branch of the University of Białystok. This is the only unit of a Polish university abroad. This is a reason for great satisfaction - emphasized the Rector of University of Białystok.
The first-year students and doctoral students starting their education at the UwB Doctoral School were welcomed in the special way during the inauguration. Their representatives took on oath and a symbolic scepter ceremony took place. the students who obtained the highest marks in the recruitment procedure appeared before the Rector.
Representatives of students and doctoral students spoke during academic ceremony:
Mateusz Onichimiuk - Chairman of the Student Parliament of the University of Białystok who emphasized that the beginning of the new academic year is always a special moment in the life of every university. A time when we not only welcome new students but olso reopen the door to discovering the knowledge, acquiring skills and new experinces.
Mgr Wioletta Lewandowska - Chairwoman of the University Council of the Doctoral Students Government emphaised in the sent letter: Young scientists are the driving force of the University of Białystok, we are the foundations of its future and the pillars of its development. We have the strenght and ability to create a new reality - a reality in which hard work and development go hand in hand with respect and empathy for other people.
During the ceremony there were many awards and decorations.
The Medal of the University of Białystok was awarded to:
prof. Andrzej Stefan Górniak from the Faculty of Biology
dr Wojciech Stachurski and prof. Andrzej Mazewski from the Faculty of Physics who also received a congratulation letter on the occasion of his 50th Anniversary of Work.
The Title of Merit for the University of Białystok was awarded to: prof. Anna Gardocka - Jałowiec from the Faculty of Economics and Finance, prof. Alicja Pelagia Kisielewska from the Faculty of Cultural Studies and prof. Ryszard Ireneusz Łaźny from the Faculty of Chemistry.
The inauguration was also an opportunity to express best wishes to the University, its students and employees. The following speakers were the Voivode of Podlaskie dr Jacek Brzozowski, the Marshal of the Podlaskie Voivodeship Łukasz Prokorym and the Mayor of Białystok, prof. Tadeusz Truskolaski. In their speeches, they drew attention to among others: on the role of universities in the modern world, on wonderful guides on the path to knowledge which are academic teachers for students and on the academic nature of Białystok.
Letters from the Minister of Science Dariusz Wieczorek and the Deputy Speaker of the Senate Maciej Żywno were also read.
The ceremony ended with an inaugural lecture entitled "Why does economics matter?" delivered by prof. Robert W. Ciborowski – former Rector of the University of Białystok and currently Dean of the Faculty of Economics and Finance. During his speech he reminded what economics is and why economists are always true.
We don't embellish, we say what the world is like, we don't moralize, we don't think about how to improve something even though the numbers and data show something different that our perception is completely different. There is a good quote from Thomas Carlyle, a British philosopher from the 19th century: "Economics is not a cheerful science but a gloomy, depressing, and indeed hideous and disturbing science." Because it is true and the truth is always difficult (…) In economics we have only one certainty: that humans act. Everything else is variable which is why economics are interesting. Economists today are almost like a group of priests because they lead us to wealth, they tell us how to be rich and prosperous. Looking at it, I always distinguish several souls of economics: firstly - egoism, secondly - development, thirdly - the future, fourthly - the invisible hand of the market, fifthly- the state and sixthly - the desires of economists - emphasized prof. Robert Ciborowski.
After the lecture, the guests of the ceremony were treated to a surprise: a film summary of the university's development under the supervision of its former Rector prof. Robert Ciborowski.
The musical setting for the inauguration was provided by the Academic Choir of the University of Białystok.
The University of Białystok was established in 1997 as the thirteenth university in Poland. Previously, for almost 30 years, a branch of the University of Warsaw operated in Białystok.
Currently, the university structure includes 15 faculties: Faculty of Biology, Faculty of Chemistry, Faculty of Economics and Finance, Faculty of Philology, Faculty of Philosophy and Cognitive Science, Faculty of Physics, Faculty of History, Faculty of Computer Science, Faculty of Mathematics, Faculty of Educational Sciences, Faculty of Law, Faculty of Sociology, Faculty of International Relations, Faculty of Cultural Studies, Faculty of Management and Branch of the University of Bialystok in Vilnius - Faculty of Economics and Information Technology. There is also a Doctoral School of the University of Białystok.
Over 8 thousand students study at UwB full-time and part-time. Nearly 2.5 thousand of them are students admitted to the first year of first-cycle and long-cycle master's studies. The largest university in Podlasie also educates 200 doctoral students at the Doctoral School of the University of Bialystok.
The University of Białystok employs over 1,200 people. The majority - 761 employees - are academic teachers. Among them, there are 77 professors, 201 habilitated doctors and 353 doctors.
