Poland does not return Ukrainian children: new statistics

Hundreds of thousands of international students are already studying at Polish educational institutions, among them Ukrainians, who make up the majority.

According to a new analytical report by the Polish Education Center, in the 2024/25 academic year, about 383,000 foreigners will be studying in Polish schools and universities, of whom 237,000 are children and adolescents.

The largest number of international students is Ukrainian. Studies show that approximately 84% of students with foreign passports in Polish educational institutions have Ukrainian citizenship, totaling more than 200,000 children from Ukraine.

This situation significantly affects the educational landscape in Poland, as Ukrainian schoolchildren make up about 3% of the country’s schoolchildren. Suppose we talk about geography: children from Ukraine study in 65% of the 21,000 schools in Poland, while students from other countries are represented in only 27% of educational institutions. This indicates a large presence of Ukrainian schoolchildren in Polish schools.

The study, prepared by the authors, contains about 60 pages of statistics, infographics, and dynamic changes, demonstrating how Ukrainian children are integrated into the Polish education system and how their numbers are growing.

Against this background, an important question arises about the future of Ukrainian children in Poland and their return to Ukraine. Experts believe that this information attracts Poland’s attention not only for academic reasons. Demographic challenges, labor shortages, and the need for future specialists require the country to consider the younger generation of Ukrainians.