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Practical information for mobile students



INFORMATION FOR INCOMING STUDENTS


I. GENERAL INFORMATION
1. Poland
Poland: it is more than a thousand years of complicated yet grand history with outstanding people creating the Polish history and the history of the world, people like Nicolas Copernicus who “stopped the Sun and moved the Earth”, king Sobieski, who defended Vienna against the Turks, Maria Curie-Sklodowska, who discovered radium and polonium, a great composer Frederick Chopin, Polish airmen fighting in the battle of England, about whom Winston Churchill once said “Never in the field of human conflict was so much owed by so many to so few”, Lech Walesa, Zbigniew Boniek, Andrzej Wajda, Arthur Rubinstein, Czeslaw Milosz, Pope John Paul II.
Poland: a 16th century power, merely a duchy in the 18th century, 6 years of Nazi occupation during the Second World War, 44 years of communism and a source of its decline. Here the first in Europe democratic constitution was established in 1791, and 2 years later the first Ministry of Education.
Poland: the very heart of Europe, crossing of cultures and trade routes, a land of mountains, sea, lakes and woods, amber, bigos, Arabian horses. It is famous for Polish hospitality and swiftly developing economy. 15 years after gaining its sovereignty, it is a member of NATO, since 1st May 2004 a member of the European Union and since 1st January 2008 hopefully a member of Schengen zone.

2. Lodz
Until the 15th century Lodz was a tiny village in the very centre of Poland. Although it was granted the city rights in 1423, finally in the 19th century it did develop as a town of textile industry. Lodz owes its industrial prosperity to German, Russian, Jewish and Polish manufacturers who invested their capital here and connected their lives with the town. They all found this new place of living taste like “the Promised Land". Lodz was growing with emerging factories, residential quarters for factory workers as well as magnificent villas and palaces for factory owners.
A dynamic development of Lodz was stopped in 1914 by the First World War, and as a result of purposeful devastation of machines and equipment the economic continuity of the town's development was broken for many years. Another German occupation again wrecked achievements of the city, which already in 1939, at the beginning of the Second World War, was incorporated within the borders of the Third Reich. At that time Lodz lost over 60 percent of its inhabitants.
Nowadays Lodz is the second largest city in Poland, famous for its Film Academy and one of the longest streets - secessional Piotrkowska Street, part of which is paved with bricks bearing names of Lodz citizens. Piotrkowska Street is well known not only due to its length and art nouveau mansion houses but also thanks to more than a hundred pubs, restaurants and open-air cafés.
In Lodz there is a splendid Museum of Modern Art, Museum of Textile Industry, the greatest in Europe monumental complex of factory premises and residential buildings called Księży Młyn and a unique Jewish cemetery. Here you can find theatres, cinemas, concert hall, banks, department stores, modern culture, entertainment and trade centre called Manufaktura, 21 higher education institutions including 6 public universities with 65,000 students and 15 non-public universities with over 50,000 students. There is also Lodz University of Technology – more than 60 years of scientific research, teaching, inventions, praiseworthy graduates and their exquisite lecturers.

II. PREPARATION OF YOUR STAY
1. Preparation of your stay
1.1.  Visa

Different entry and stay regulations apply in Poland to nationals of the countries belonging to the European Economic Area (EEA), which include the Member States of the European Union and Iceland, Norway and Liechtenstein, and nationals of other countries, further on referred to as third countries.
Nationals of the EEA countries do not need a visa in order to enter Poland. During the first three months, they may stay in the country on the basis of a valid travel document, e.g. a passport. Those intending to extend their stay are required to register in the Voivodship Office and to have health insurance and sufficient resources to cover the costs of stay. This may be confirmed, for example, by a document awarding a scholarship or grant, or by a contract of employment.
You may register your stay in the Department for Foreigners of the Voivodship Office.
Nationals of third countries are required to obtain a visa, before their entry into Poland, in a Polish consulate in the country from which they intend to come to Poland. More information can be found on the website of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs www.msz.gov.pl

If you intend to prolong your stay in Poland, remember to apply for the prolongation of visa or residence permit in advance – 45 days before visa or residence permit expires.

Łódź Voivodeship Office
Łódzki Urząd Wojewódzki
Wydział Spraw Obywatelskich i Cudzoziemców
Piotrkowska 103, 90-425 Łódź
phone: (48 42) 664 17 14, 664 17 15
www.lodzkie.eu

2. Getting to Lodz
2.1. How to get to Lodz

You are strongly advised to arrive in Poland on a weekday, and if possible during office hours. Access to student accommodation cannot be arranged in the late evening or at weekends. You may also have difficulties in finding a hotel room late in the evening. Refer to the information sent by the administrative office to find out the date you should arrive on in Lodz.

By air:
There is a possibility to fly directly to Lodz but only by cheap flights from chosen European cities: Paris, London, Rome. Other connections are via Warsaw Okęcie Airport by domestic flights but they are not regular and you would better check in advance if they are available at the time convenient to you (www.lot.pl; www.airport.lodz.pl)

From Warsaw Okęcie Airport you can also take:
a train from the Central Railway Station in the centre of Warsaw, it takes about three hours to get to Lodz.

It is also possible to take taxi from Warsaw to Lodz but it is not recommended since it costs about 300 PLN. 

2.2. Your Mentor help 
If you wish, TUL students can support you before and during your stay in Lodz.
Student mentor contact prospective exchange student by e-mail a few months before the arrival. If you are interested in mentor assistance, please check your mail box regularly and do not forget to send a response.
Your Mentor will help you to settle in and make your first days in Lodz easier. Mentor will pick you up from the train station, take you to student hall of residence and help you with the shopping.


III. Other practical information

Identification Card
Each student enrolled in the Technical University of Łódź is issued a picture identification card. The card verifies that the holder is eligible to receive University library and certain other campus privileges and services. It also entitles a student to discounts on train, bus and tram fares, as well as museum, theatre and cinema tickets. Neither the card nor its privileges may be transferred.
International Student Cards
ISIC is the most popular international student card for people under 26 authorizing its holder for discount while visiting museums, at cinemas, for transport, night’s rest, etc. The ISIC card costs 57 PLN and it is valid for one year.
Euro<26 is another very popular card for students. It is meant for people under 26. It entitles the holder to have both health insurance and discounts. It costs 60 PLN and is valid for one year.
Climate
The Polish climate can be very changeable. The summer (June to August) may be warm, sometimes really hot with temperatures above 25°C. In autumn, from September to November, it can be cold and wet. In winter, at least between December and March, southern Poland is always covered with snow. In December, January and February there can be heavy snowfalls with temperatures, sometimes down to even-15°C. Spring comes in April/May. Rainfall may occur during all seasons, especially in autumn and spring.

The number of hours of daylight varies from 7.5 at the winter solstice, in December, to 17
hours at the summer solstice, in June.

Clothing
Staying in Poland for one semester or one year requires different kinds of clothes. Make sure that you have clothes that will protect you from all types of weather. Sweaters and a warm coat or anorak are essential for the winter months. If possible, have one waterproof coat for rainy days and sturdy shoes. You will need winter clothes from October/November until March.
Smoking and drugs
Nowadays in Poland, smoking is prohibited in most public places. This applies also to the Technical University of Lodz. Soft and heavy drugs are strictly prohibited. The use of drugs is
illegal and leads to prosecution if one is caught.
Banking
If you want to open a bank account in Poland you can do it either on the spot or via Internet prior to your arrival. One of the banks which offers such a possibility is mBank and its website is: http://www.mbank.com.pl
There are several banks near the University including branches of the biggest banks of Poland: Bank PKO BP, Bank PEKAO SA. A few small branches are open in the hall of the building of the Faculty of Chemistry. Banking hours are normally 9 a.m. - 6 p.m. Monday to Friday and 9 a.m. - 3 p.m. on Saturday.
Credit Cards
In Poland it is possible to pay by credit cards (VISA, Master Card, American Express etc.). They are widely accepted in hotels, tourist offices and some shops in all large Polish cities.
Money exchange
Banks and many private offices (Kantor) provide money exchange in the city centre. Some of them take a commission.
Shopping hours
Shops are usually open Monday-Friday 10 a.m. - 6 p.m., Saturday 10 a.m. - 3 p.m. Shops are mostly closed on Sundays. These opening hours are the standard to which there are many  exceptions.
Most grocery stores are open much longer than the hours mentioned above e.g. Monday-

Friday 6 a.m. (or 7 a.m. ) - 7 p.m. (or 8 p.m.). Outside these opening hours it is possible to buy some products at night shops and filling stations. Some of these are open 24 hours a day. In Łódź there are many supermarkets opened seven days a week like Tesco, Carrefour, Biedronka, one of them - Tesco in 93 Pojezierska is opened non-stop.

Transport
Łódź has an extensive tram and bus network, all available for the same price and with the same tickets. City transport begins operation around 5 a.m. and continues till 11 p.m. There are a few night buses lines as well. You need to purchase tickets from a newspaper stand – kiosk (RUCH) in advance and must validate it on the tram or bus using one of the „punchers”. You can purchase a daily, weekly or monthly pass. One ticket costs 2.60 PLN (normal price) for 20-minute ride. The price for students is 1.30 PLN. It is also possible to buy 40-minute tickets which cost 3.40 PLN (normal price) and 1.70 PLN (reduced price). The monthly pass for unlimited travel on city transportation is 80.00 PLN - normal fare and 40.00 PLN - students’ fare (May 2013). You can combine different tickets to obtain the needed fare. Once you have your ticket validated you can change buses and trams according to the time limit indicated on your ticket.
Use only taxis with a TAXI sign on the roof and a meter. The less expensive are the taxis marked with 919 or six digit phone number (remember to dial direction first: for Lodz it is +42). Insist on the meter being turned on. If not, you  can be overcharged.
There are 3 mainline Polish Railway (PKP) stations in Łódź (Łódź-Chojny, Łódź-Widzew, Łódź-Fabryczna).
The student ID card authorises the holder to buy half-fare tickets in Poland for local transportation (50% discount) and train transportation with 30% discount.

The detailed information on the system of local transportation can be found on: www.mpk.lodz.pl

 

Telephones
Telephones in Poland are handled by the state-run Telekomunikacja Polska S.A. and private operators: Dialog, Netia. Public telephones require magnetic cards you can buy at any post office (Poczta) or a newspaper stand – kiosk (RUCH). You can also use different cards called “tele2”, “telepin” or “dzwoneczek” which can be purchased in newsagents RELAY and INMEDIO. You can make international calls from most phones. In the telephone directory you will find a lot of useful information such as area codes, how to call long  distance, etc. It is cheaper to use telephone during the off-peak hours – typically after 6 p.m. and 10 p.m. on weekdays and on Saturdays and Sundays.
● local calls – dial zero, the direction (area code) and then seven-digit local number.
● long distance calls within Poland – dial 00, then dial the direction (area code) and a number (Lodz direction is 42, Warsaw - 22).
● international calls – dial 00, then dial the country code + area code and local number.

Emergency Services:
998 fire brigade
997 police
999 ambulance

112 can be dialed from all Polish mobile phones. It is an integrated system of help.
There is no charge for these calls.

Service numbers:
118 913 information on local and Polish numbers
9051 operator of international calls
118 912 information on international numbers
Postal service
Most post offices (Poczta Polska) offer a wide range of services. They are open from Monday to Friday, usually 8 a.m. - 8 p.m., and selected ones open also on Saturday. The main post office which is situated in 38 Tuwima Street opens 24 hours a day.
You can buy post stamps and postcards, send telegrams, faxes, or make telephone calls there.

Standard Postal Services:
Priority Economical
Domestic post cards and letters (50 g) 2.00 PLN 1.30 PLN
International postcards and letters (50 g) 2.80 PLN 2.20 PLN

INFORMATION FOR OUTGOING STUDENTS
 

GENERAL RULES OF ERASMUS EXCHANGE FOR STUDIES AT LODZ UNIVERSITY OF TECHNOLOGY

GENERAL RULES OF ERASMUS EXCHANGE FOR STUDIES AT TUL

1. Every student of TUL has the right to participate in one exchange for studies under Erasmus.
2. Students can study under Erasmus in a partner university holding Erasmus University Charter, with which TUL has signed Erasmus bilateral agreement.
3.    Application rules:
A.   Students  apply via on-line system mobility.p.lodz.pl by choosing maximum three universities in order of THEIR preference
B.  Application process takes place in the period: January – March
C. Final application results are known in mid April at the latest
D. The  following factors are taken into account in the application process
- arithmetical average of grades for the recent two semesters of studies
- grade in foreign language – level B2
- individual assessment by the faculty exchange coordinator based on the study programme studied by the specific candidate in relation to the offer of a partner university
4. After having been preliminarily enrolled to a partner university a student fills in application form of a partner university, learning agreement and provides transcript of his/her academic record. The documents are sent to the partner university by the Unit for Internationalisation of Education. The students are responsible for submitting the documents on time.
5. The final decision upon student’s acceptance is issued by the partner university.
6. On the basis of the acceptance letter the agreement between TUL and the student is signed, and the grant is paid.
7. A beneficiary of Erasmus grant is obliged to provide himself/herself with proper health, civil liability and accident insurance for the period of stay abroad.
8. All possible changes to the original learning agreement have to be confirmed in written form and approved by three parties (student, home institution, receiving institution). The changes can be introduced no later than one month after beginning of the period of studies.
9. Not later than 30 days after exchange period completion the student is obliged to submit to the Unit for Internationalisation of Education of TUL confirmation of his/her stay at the partner university and transcript of records.
10. The exchange period is recognized at TUL if the student fulfills the assumptions of the learning Agreement (with possible – approved changes). The decision upon recognition is taken by the Dean for Studies.


Date of record:2008-12-09
Date of actualization:2015-12-14

Submitted by:
Agnieszka Michałowska-Dutkiewicz

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