Poland

Last update: July, 2026

The Ministry of National Education is responsible for arts education at primary and secondary levels, while the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage supervises the public system of artistic education and specialised art schools. Public debate increasingly concerns unequal access to cultural education, shortages of arts education in general schools and the role of cultural competences in the digital era. The basic school programme is supported by cultural centres and activities of other institutions, which provide their own arts education programmes. The current school system consists of eight-year primary schools and four-year secondary schools. Two basic art courses are taught at both levels: music and fine arts. On a primary level, both subjects are compulsory for grades four to seven and account for one hour a week each.

At secondary level, schools may offer subjects such as music, visual arts, philosophy or art history depending on the curriculum profile and organisational possibilities. Additionally, secondary schools might expend their curricula to include art history, music history, Latin and ancient culture, or philosophy (eight hours a week), in order to provide students with specialised and advanced knowledge of these topics, if they choose to continue studying arts at a tertiary level. The Polish education system allows students to pass the secondary school-leaving examination in those subjects.

In addition to the aforementioned system, the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage's cultural education programme supports extracurricular cultural activities developed by cultural institutions.

Last update: July, 2026

The art education system in Poland is separated from the general preparatory education system. Some art schools in Poland carry out both curricula, general and artistic, while other schools focus solely on professional artistic education. Students attending art schools focused solely on artistic curriculum are also obliged to attend general preparatory schools on primary and secondary levels.

The public artistic education system supervised by the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage includes music schools, fine arts schools, ballet schools and post-secondary artistic education institutions.

Music schools

Public and private primary and secondary music schools combine general and artistic education or provide specialised artistic curricula concluded with diploma examinations and professional qualifications.

Fine arts schools

Public and private secondary fine arts schools provide general and artistic education or specialised artistic training concluded with diploma examinations and professional qualifications.

Dance schools

Public and private ballet and dance schools provide long-cycle artistic education connected with professional dance training.

Circus arts schools

Public and private circus arts schools provide specialised professional artistic education.

In the 2024/2025 school year, there were 464 art schools not leading to a professional certification with 68 266 students; 225 schools leading to professional certification with 23 651 students; and 16 post-secondary art schools.

Table 2:         Number of art schools and students, 2022-2025

Source: Central Statistical Office

Last update: July, 2026

Table 3:         Number of students in higher arts education

Source: Central Statistical Office

In the academic year 2024/2025, there were 27 higher arts education institutions of which 19 were public. The curricula included 72 different fields of study. The total number of students amounted to 42,7 thousand – 3,3% of all students in Poland.

The implementation of the Bologna Process continues to shape higher education in Poland, particularly through the development of comparable degree structures, quality assurance mechanisms, student mobility and the European Credit Transfer and Accumulation System (ECTS). Since the academic year 2004/2005, university graduates receive special supplements to diplomas which contain detailed information about their education process, exam results, qualifications and also the number of gained ECTS points.

Quality assurance in higher education is supervised by the Polish Accreditation Committee (Polska Komisja Akredytacyjna), which evaluates teaching standards in public and private higher education institutions. Other positive impacts of the Bologna process include the increasing mobility of Polish students and many proEuropean elements have been added to the curricula of arts and humanities faculties.

Last update: July, 2026

Non-formal cultural and arts education in Poland is carried out mainly by cultural institutions, NGOs, libraries, community centres and local governments. In recent years, increasing emphasis has been placed on accessibility, cultural participation, digital competences and cooperation between schools, cultural institutions and civil society organisations.

At the national level, an important role is played by the National Centre for Culture (Narodowe Centrum Kultury), which coordinates educational programmes, grants and training activities related to cultural participation, media education, local cultural initiatives and artistic education. The institution implements programmes addressed to children, youth, teachers, animators and cultural institutions throughout the country.

NGOs continue to play an important role in cultural education, especially in areas related to film education, local participation, social inclusion, intercultural dialogue and creative activities for children and young people. Recent educational programmes increasingly address sustainability, media literacy, digital culture and the impact of artificial intelligence and new technologies on culture and education.

Last update: July, 2026

The professional post-graduation training system in Poland is still very limited. Some professional institutions provide young professionals with training. Orchestra academies for young professional musicians are a good example of such initiatives, where music graduates can perform alongside professional orchestra musicians, who provide them with support and training. However, even those are still scarce. Most of the professional training takes place in schools (secondary and tertiary levels).

For art managers and those who wish to pursue a career in arts administration, the National Centre for Culture and the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage introduced an internship programme, which allows public and private cultural institutions to hire interns under the governmental regulations. The programme runs twice a year and the standard duration of an internship varies between 160 and 320 hours.