One of the most important events of the academic year is ahead of us, which will allow us to celebrate the new academic year together during numerous planned attractions and events. Join us during the Interuniversity Inauguration of the Academic Year 2024/2025 in the European City of Science Katowice 2024!
Those interested in participating in the ceremony are asked to complete the registration form (available in Polish and English).
Registration form in Polish
Registration form in English
Events accompanying the inauguration
The programme of the ceremony organised by seven universities of the Academic Consortium Katowice City of Science includes both events at the seat of the Polish National Radio Symphony Orchestra and accompanying events. We will start the celebrations at 11.00 a.m. at the Rawa Club in spinPLACE (Katowice, ul. Bankowa 5, building A, 4th floor), where we will listen live to ‘A Wish Concert’ – a special edition of the Radio Nowy Świat programme, hosted by Joanna Kołaczkowska and Prof. Ryszard Koziołek – Rector of the University of Silesia. It will also be a great opportunity to share the memories of your academic days, and participants who still have their student years ahead of them will be able to talk about what are their expectations for this time.
Lots of attractions await us at the Market Square in Katowice, where from 12.00 p.m. we invite you to visit the Research Camp of the European City of Science Katowice 2024. Its formula refers to ŚFN on Tour – away shows of the Silesian Science Festival KATOWICE – which will be a kind of a pre-taste of the eighth edition of ŚFN (which takes place in December). All interested people, regardless of age, will be able to see what scientists do on a daily basis, as well as how fascinating and close to all of us science really is. There will be workshops and exhibition stands prepared by scientists and students of the University of Silesia – the ‘MediujeMy’ student research group will invite you to participate in communication workshops, and at the ‘Faunatyka’ student research group stand you will be able to learn about the broadly understood world of zoology – from small insects to the skulls of large vertebrates. At the stand of the ‘Planeta’ student research group, we will discover the secrets of the microworld invisible to the naked eye – we will look at microscopic slides of human tissues, animals, microorganisms and plants.
And these are still not all of the attractions prepared on the Katowice Market Square! At 2.45–3.15 p.m. we will watch performances of university folk groups: Dance Ensemble “Dąbrowiacy” of the Silesian University of Technology, Student Song and Dance Ensemble “Katowice” of the University of Silesia and Song and Dance Ensemble “Silesianie” of the University of Economics in Katowice. Each of them will present a short, approximately 10-minute repertoire.
Lecture by Prof. Norman Davies and more
After the scientific and cultural events, at 3.40 p.m., the traditional march of Rector’s retinues will begin at the Katowice Market Square and continue through the city streets to the Polish National Radio Symphony Orchestra concert hall, where at 4.00 p.m. we will begin the next part of the celebrations. Participants will have a unique opportunity to listen live to the special guest of the event – Prof. Norman Davies! The author of best-selling books on European history and a world-famous English historian of Welsh descent will give a lecture ‘Knowledge and Ignorance: Does the West Understand Everything?’.
There will also be permanent elements of the inauguration ceremonies – speeches by rectors as well as matriculation and oath of students and doctoral students. Moreover, the whole event will be enriched by music performed by the Cieszyn Brass Band of the University of Silesia, the “Harmonia” Choir of the University of Silesia, the Academic Choir of the Silesian University of Technology, the Choir of the Medical University of Silesia in Katowice and the Choir of the University of Economics in Katowice. The culmination of the celebrations will be a ceremonial concert during which we will hear ballet music from the opera The Countess and Mazurka from the opera The Haunted Manor by Stanisław Moniuszko, as well as ‘Slavic Dances’ op. 72, no. 1, 2, 6 and 7 by Antonín Dvořák performed by the Polish National Radio Symphony Orchestra and the choirs of the Consortium universities: “Harmonia” Choir of the University of Silesia, Academic Choir of the Silesian University of Technology, Choir of the Medical University of Silesia in Katowice and Choir of the University of Economics in Katowice.
Join us during the celebrations on Friday, 27 September!
Photo by Małgorzata Dymowska