University of Silesia in Katowice

Dear Student, Doctoral Student, Participant of other education forms at the University of Silesia,

the most important message I want to give you is ‘Don’t be afraid to report the problems that you face within our academic community’.

The fundamental operating rules of my team are privacy and loyalty. When we receive a report from you, we will analyse the problem and tell you what can be done. We will not intervene with the University employees without informing you or agreeing with you on what the intervention will consist in. We will not disclose your personal data without your consent. However, because it will often be impossible to intervene without your data being disclosed, we will inform you that it is necessary and wait for your decision.

We want to promise you that your application will not be left without a response. You can expect to receive an answer within seven days. We cannot guarantee that the case will be resolved in your favour, but we will definitely try to recognise the problem and help as much as possible.

In order to make our cooperation effective, please submit your application in line with the instruction published on the website – this will help us keep our operations in order and ensures the proper response time. Please also remember that we do not consider anonymous applications.

In our activity we are also guided by the rule not to substitute for other university employees in performing their duties, or to substitute for students, doctoral students and participants of other education forms in handling their affairs. Before you contact the Ombudsman, depending on what your case is about,  contact an employee of your Dean’s Office, teacher, supervisor, or Degree Programme Director. Make sure that you did all that you could do on your own. If you come across any obstacles, feel disrespected or threatened, or decide that your rights have been violated – write to us.

The position of Student and PhD Student Ombudsperson has been established in order to ensure the protection of your rights. The mission of the Ombudsperson is to intervene, provide support and mediate in conflict and crisis situations. From the community perspective, the Ombudsperson is expected to act so as to improve the standards of treatment of students, doctoral students and participants of other education forms.

Student and PhD Student Ombudsperson
Agnieszka Bielska-Brodziak