Student internship documents in Poland: deadlines and who signs what

Who signs internship documents: the three parties

Three parties are usually involved:

• You — the student, who finds a placement (or is assigned one by the university), completes the internship and prepares the documents.
• Opiekun praktyk z ramienia uczelni (university internship supervisor) — the academic responsible for internships on your programme. They approve the placement, accept the documents and give you credit.
• Opiekun praktyk w zakładzie pracy (workplace supervisor) — an employee of the organisation where you do your internship. They organise your work, sign your logbook and write your evaluation.

Get your university internship supervisor’s contact details at the start of the semester: they are the person to ask about anything the regulations do not cover.

Before the internship: porozumienie, skierowanie, program praktyki

Porozumienie or umowa o organizację praktyki

The porozumienie o praktykę or umowa o organizację praktyki (internship agreement) is an agreement between the university and the host organisation. It usually sets out the dates, the place, the obligations of both parties and the workplace supervisor. It is signed by representatives of the university and the organisation. Some universities have standing agreements with certain companies, in which case a new agreement may not be needed.

Getting the agreement signed can take time, especially at large organisations. Start on this well in advance, not a week before the internship begins.

Skierowanie na praktykę

The skierowanie (internship referral) is a university document confirming that you are a student and are being sent to this organisation for an internship. It is often issued by the university internship supervisor or the dean’s office once the placement has been approved.

Program praktyki

The program praktyki (internship programme) sets out what you should learn: which processes, departments and types of work. It is usually drawn up by the university for each degree programme, and the organisation confirms that it can deliver it.

Other documents

Depending on the university and the placement, you may also need:

• accident insurance (ubezpieczenie NNW);
• medical certificates (for example, for internships in healthcare or the food industry);
• an application for approval of your placement (wniosek, deklaracja);
• an application to have your job recognised as an internship, if you already work in your field.

During the internship: keeping the dziennik praktyk

Dziennik praktyk

The dziennik praktyk (internship logbook) is a daily or weekly record of what you did. The usual format is a table with the date, a description of tasks and the number of hours. The workplace supervisor usually signs the logbook or individual pages.

Tips for keeping the logbook:

• fill it in every day, or at least at the end of each week, because it is hard to remember everything a month later;
• describe specific tasks rather than writing “getting to know the company” every day;
• link your entries to the internship programme, which makes it easier for your supervisor to give you credit;
• do not record the organisation’s confidential information without permission.

If the format is unclear, see our internship logbook (dziennik praktyk) service: entries structured on your template and linked to your department’s programme.

After the internship: sprawozdanie, opinia and zaświadczenie

Sprawozdanie z praktyki

The sprawozdanie (internship report) is a written document in which you describe the organisation, your tasks, the skills you gained and your conclusions. Length and structure vary: at some universities it is two pages, at others a full report with sections. A typical structure:

1. a brief description of the organisation;
2. a description of the tasks you carried out, linked to the internship programme;
3. the knowledge and skills you gained or applied;
4. conclusions and an assessment of the internship.

The report has to reflect your own experience and match your logbook. If you need help organising the text or checking it against the template, see our internship report (sprawozdanie z praktyk) service.

Opinia from the workplace supervisor

The opinia (evaluation) is written by the workplace supervisor: how you carried out your tasks, what competences you showed and what grade they suggest. It is often a university form that the supervisor fills in and signs. Make sure your supervisor has the form in advance — they may be busy at the end of your internship.

Zaświadczenie o odbyciu praktyki

The zaświadczenie (certificate of completion) confirms the dates and number of hours. Sometimes it is part of the same form as the opinia; sometimes it is a separate document bearing the organisation’s stamp.

Getting credit

You hand all the documents to your university internship supervisor. They check the set and enter the credit (zaliczenie) in USOS, the university student information system. Some departments hold a short interview or ask you to give a presentation on your internship.

Keep scans or photos of all signed documents. If an original goes missing at the dean’s office or at the organisation, a copy will help you put the set back together quickly without going through the whole approval process again.

Internship documents at a glance

The division of roles in the table is a typical example; it may be different at your university.

Why internship documents get sent back

Typical situations:

• The agreement is not signed in time. The organisation takes a long time to approve it, so formally the internship cannot start. The solution is to arrange your placement early.
• The logbook is filled in at the last minute. The entries all look the same and lack detail, and your supervisor may ask you to add more.
• A signature or stamp is missing. The workplace supervisor has gone on holiday, and the opinia form has been left blank.
• The wrong template. The document has been completed on another faculty’s form or last year’s version.

If you already have a job

At many universities, work in your field can be recognised as an internship. This usually requires an application and a document from your employer describing your duties. Whether this is possible for you, and which documents are needed, is set out in the internship regulations.

Internship document deadlines

Internship dates and document deadlines depend on your programme and the type of internship (introductory, professional, pre-diploma). The general pattern is as follows:

• get the placement approved and the agreement signed — before the internship starts, often several weeks ahead;
• keep the logbook — throughout the internship;
• submit the full set of documents — by the deadline in the regulations, often within a few weeks of finishing or by the end of the semester.

Missing a deadline can mean no credit that semester. If you are running late, write to your university internship supervisor in advance, not after the deadline. If it is unclear which documents your department needs, start with our internship documents and porozumienie service, which begins with a free document list.