A vision for BUT’s development
In her inaugural address, Assoc. Prof. Marta Kosior-Kazberuk, DSc, PhD, Eng., Rector of Bialystok University of Technology, outlined the direction of the university’s development. She emphasised that its mission involves not only educating professionals, but also making a real contribution to the economy, security and social development.
– As a university rooted in Podlasie, we listen to our region’s current needs. We take on technological challenges, research and support the implementation of innovations, and also seek to build and strengthen the region’s resilience in a broad sense at various levels – said Assoc. Prof. Marta Kosior-Kazberuk, DSc, PhD, Eng., Rector of Bialystok University of Technology.
This commitment translates into concrete action. Bialystok University of Technology has joined the process of strengthening villages in Podlasie. Together with the Podlaskie Voivodeship, the Łukasiewicz Research Network – ITECH and the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, it is developing an innovative smart village concept that could become a permanent element of national and regional development policies. The project is called RURALSTRAT and is being implemented under the GOSPOSTRATEG programme.
In September 2026, Bialystok University of Technology and the regional government of the Podlaskie Voivodeship signed a letter of intent to implement the strategic RE:SPACE initiative. Its aims include establishing a Regional Centre for Shaping Resilient Spaces – a living laboratory and a platform for designing, testing and implementing solutions that strengthen the voivodeship’s security in technological and digital, infrastructural and climate, and food-related dimensions.
For local entrepreneurs, RE:SPACE means straightforward, rapid access to modern research infrastructure, opportunities to create prototypes and more efficient knowledge transfer from the university to business. Equally important, the project addresses a key challenge facing Podlasie: retaining ambitious young people in the region by creating attractive local career and research prospects for them.
Investment in digital infrastructure and the development of dual-use technologies (for the civilian and defence sectors) will be important elements of the university’s strategy over the coming years:
– Our most important task, which we will begin next year, is to construct a separate building for the Faculty of Computer Science. Part of the building will house the Podlaskie Centre for Digital Technologies. Responding to society’s actual needs, we would like to develop projects focused on dual-use technologies there. In planning cooperation with our social and economic environment, we will concentrate on four pillars: artificial intelligence and data analysis, cybersecurity, autonomous and drone technologies, and biomedicine – announces the Rector.
Bialystok University of Technology’s research activity is reflected in concrete figures. Between January and September 2026, the university’s researchers secured funding for 39 projects with a total value of almost PLN 54 million. These achievements are complemented by six projects implemented under the prestigious Horizon Europe programme, worth more than PLN 20 million.
BUT’s development also rests on international and inter-university cooperation, including within the Via Carpatia Polytechnic Network (formed together with Lublin University of Technology and Rzeszow University of Technology), the Across European University and integration initiatives such as the ‘WINGS z PB’ and ‘PB Dostępna 2.0’ projects.
Broadcast of the inauguration ceremony for the 2026/2027 academic year at Bialystok University of Technology. 1 October 2026
The university in figures
Despite demographic challenges, Bialystok University of Technology enters the new academic year with a clear increase in interest in studying. A total of 8,113 students will begin their studies at the university – over 600 more than a year earlier. They include 3,100 newly admitted students (2,408 on full-time programmes and 692 on part-time programmes).
These admission results reflect BUT’s educational offering, tailored to the labour market and young people’s expectations. This year’s new programme at the Faculty of Computer Science – cybersecurity – proved a hit. It complements the popular programmes launched last year, such as electromobility, agro-eco-business, transport, project management and Data Science.
The Doctoral School of Bialystok University of Technology, which educates young researchers in eight disciplines, has gained fresh energy. Twenty-eight new doctoral students have joined its community, which already numbers more than 140 people.
The international character of the Bialystok University of Technology campus is strengthened by the presence of 332 students from around the world. On 1 October, young people began their studies at the university from countries including China (as part of the International School of Engineering, ISE), Ukraine, Belarus, Türkiye, Spain, India, Egypt, Morocco, Taiwan, Bhutan and Belize.
Young people also have strong links with Bialystok University of Technology: this year, 270 pupils will attend BUT’s Academic Secondary School, including 81 first-year pupils.
Representatives of Bialystok University of Technology’s new intake
Representatives of all six BUT faculties, as well as newly admitted doctoral students, international students and pupils of BUT’s Academic Secondary School, took part in matriculation – the ceremonial oath-taking.
– Engineering studies are much more than acquiring knowledge and preparing for a future profession. They teach logical thinking, the search for solutions, cooperation and responsibility. You have chosen very good degree programmes. Being an engineer is a way of life – Assoc. Prof. Marta Kosior-Kazberuk, DSc, PhD, Eng., Rector of Bialystok University of Technology, told them.
Faculty representatives taking the oath:
- Faculty of Architecture: Anna Rutkowska, Tomasz Sebastianiuk;
- Faculty of Civil Engineering and Environmental Sciences: Kinga Raszkiewicz, Franciszek Gorlo;
- Faculty of Electrical Engineering: Klaudia Gruszewska, Krystian Waszczuk;
- Faculty of Computer Science: Amelia Bańkowska, Paweł Wasilewski;
- Faculty of Engineering Management: Nika Chodakowska, Kuba Niewiński;
- Faculty of Mechanical Engineering: Patrycja Bućko, Mikołaj Bytys.
– I have been involved in mechatronics and robotics for years – I attended BUT’s Academic Secondary School and took part in numerous tournaments – says Patrycja Bućko, a newly admitted mechatronics student at the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering. – I won admission to university in the El-Robo-Mech competition three years running! That is why choosing the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering was completely natural for me. Familiar surroundings, excellent facilities and the chance to develop my passion where I took my first steps – I simply could not imagine studying anywhere else.
Paweł Wasilewski will study cybersecurity at the Faculty of Computer Science. He made this choice consciously, with future service in the Border Guard in mind.
– I spent four years in a computing class, so I have solid foundations. Cybersecurity attracted me because it perfectly combines the world of advanced technology with the prospect of a practical career. Mathematics put wind in my sails, and I am sure I can do it! – says Paweł.
Kuba Niewiński decided to study financial management and accounting at the Faculty of Engineering Management:
– The world of finance has fascinated me since childhood. Interestingly, my first class at Bialystok University of Technology was… in year five of primary school, during Saturday classes at the Podlaskie Children’s University! I am confident about the standard of teaching; now it is time for new challenges and meeting great people.
The new doctoral students admitted to the Doctoral School of Bialystok University of Technology in the 2026/2027 academic year were represented by:
- Sebastian Szyjka, MSc, Eng.; discipline: automation, electronics, electrical engineering and space technologies
- Katarzyna Protasiuk, MSc, Eng. (discipline: information and communication technology)
- Krzysztof Słoma, MSc, Eng. (discipline: civil engineering, geodesy and transport)
- Damian Izbicki, MSc, Eng. (discipline: environmental engineering, mining and energy)
- Piotr Mielańczuk, MSc, Eng. (discipline: mechanical engineering)
- Kacper Snarski, MSc, Eng. (discipline: biomedical engineering)
- Konrad Wilamowski, MSc, Eng. (discipline: forest sciences)
- Marcin Robert Czubaszek, MSc (discipline: management and quality sciences)
Piotr Mielańczuk, MSc, Eng., is returning to a research career after several years, joining BUT’s Doctoral School.
– I decided to do a doctorate after turning forty – proof that it is never too late to pursue a passion for research. My project concerns the development of advanced materials technologies in cooperation with a local company. We want to make our regional industry independent of foreign suppliers. With the help of my supervisor, Prof. Krzysztof Kurzydłowski, and the equipment available in the university’s laboratories, I want to take these plans to the next level.
Marcin Robert Czubaszek, MSc, a graduate of the Faculty of Engineering Management, wishes to develop his research interests at BUT’s Doctoral School: – In my research, I study the use of autonomous AI agent systems in a production environment. I am interested in the management perspective: how implementing artificial intelligence changes an organisation and people’s day-to-day work.
The group of more than 330 international students who began their studies at Bialystok University of Technology in the 2026/2027 academic year was represented by:
- Kelden S. Wangmo from Bhutan
- Ritesh Ahir and Bhiancy Oodhub from Mauritius
- Wen Hsuan Huang from Taiwan
- Roaa Sameh Ro-a Sa-meh from Egypt
- Amina Ben Adi from Tunisia
- Emerson Matthew Gilharry from Belize
- Paz Gómez from Uruguay
- Kateryna Zakharchuk from Ukraine.
The academic community of Bialystok University of Technology also includes the pupils and teachers of the university’s Academic Secondary School. Assoc. Prof. Katarzyna Halicka, DSc, PhD, Eng., Vice-Rector for Education, welcomed the secondary school’s first-year representatives into the academic community: Natalia Dziemianowicz, Julian Kazuczyk, Michał Kowalewicz, Maria Lipińska, Szymon Poddaniec and Gabriela Zaremba.
During the inauguration of the new academic year, speeches were given by Bartłomiej Pieczyński, Eng., the new President of the Bialystok University of Technology Students’ Union, and Dominika Nowińska, MSc, Eng., President of the Bialystok University of Technology Doctoral Students’ Union.
Guests’ voices: security, cooperation and a strong Podlasie brand
The inauguration of the academic year at Bialystok University of Technology brought together representatives of national and local authorities, the academic community and the university’s social and economic partners. The many greetings and wishes shared a common theme: a technical university plays a leading role in building a resilient, modern economy and a secure future for the region.
Marcin Kulasek, Minister of Science and Higher Education, wrote about prospects for higher education development and planned investment in a special letter: – We are beginning the new academic year knowing that Polish science has recovered almost PLN 3 billion. The increase in spending on science highlights the key role of research and education in building a modern economy and a secure state – emphasised the Minister.
A message from Paulina Hennig-Kloska, Minister of Climate and Environment, was read out by Barbara Okuła, a Member of the Sejm. The letter congratulated our university on its consistent implementation of environmentally friendly solutions, including the strategic ‘My Green University’ initiative: – Your university understands that lasting economic development is impossible without energy and environmental security. I wish Bialystok University of Technology to remain a place of bold ideas and responsible innovation – wrote the head of the Ministry of Climate and Environment.
Maciej Żywno, Deputy Speaker of the Senate of the Republic of Poland, referred to the university’s role as a technological leader in the region. In his address, he emphasised its openness to the business environment and effective use of European funding: – Developing technology shows that it is technical universities that will shape the future of every country and region. Bialystok University of Technology is an open institution that actively cooperates with the local community, local authorities and business.
Łukasz Prokorym, Marshal of the Podlaskie Voivodeship, highlighted the strategic partnership between the regional government and the university: – Bialystok University of Technology is the foundation and driving force of our region’s development. Major infrastructure challenges lie ahead – the construction of new railway lines and intermodal hubs. These projects cannot be delivered without the knowledge, skills and support of the university’s engineers. Creating modern degree programmes is also our joint response to demographic challenges and a chance to retain young people in Podlasie – said the Marshal.
Tomasz Klim, Deputy President of Białystok, conveying greetings from President Tadeusz Truskolaski, recalled the remarkable journey Bialystok University of Technology has made since 1949. He also addressed the students directly: – An engineer is someone who not only solves problems, but takes responsibility for whether a bridge will hold, a building will be safe and a program will work correctly. At a time when artificial intelligence suggests many answers, the ability to ask the right questions and think critically becomes particularly valuable. I believe these studies will give you not only knowledge, but also the courage to follow your own paths – emphasised the Deputy President.
Michał Gąsowski, Deputy Governor of the Podlaskie Voivodeship, shared a personal reflection, recalling when he himself began studying at the Białystok university:
– Exactly 30 years ago, I took the student oath within these same walls. Looking back, I can tell you one thing: I could not have made a better choice. I wish you not only academic success, but lasting friendships too, because those formed at the University of Technology stay with you for life – said the Deputy Governor.
Inaugural lecture: How should engineers be educated in the world of AI?
The inauguration ceremony culminated in a lecture by Anna Prończuk-Omiotek (AnnaPRO), a respected expert in artificial intelligence, marketing and digital transformation who has worked with more than 400 businesses, including Allegro, T-Mobile and Santander.
Her presentation, ‘How should engineers be educated in 2027? Skills for the future in the world of AI’, addressed practical aspects of using artificial intelligence in engineering education, flexibility of thinking and the ability to combine technical knowledge with modern storytelling and technology.
Let us shape the future together!
The 2026/2027 academic year promises to be a period of intensive research, building investment and further strengthening of relationships with the social and economic environment.
The spirit of the Bialystok University of Technology community on the threshold of new challenges is best summed up by the Rector’s words: – We do not know exactly what the coming years will bring. But we can be certain of one thing: the future is not something we should simply wait for – we can and should shape it together!
Music for the ceremony was provided by the Bialystok University of Technology Choir, conducted by Prof. Wioletta Miłkowska.
The inauguration was organised by the Promotion Office of Bialystok University of Technology.
The broadcast on the official Bialystok University of Technology YouTube channel, featuring sign language interpreter Krzysztof Cis, was produced by the Platon TV Academic Television team.
See the photo gallery from the official inauguration of the 2026/2027 academic year at Bialystok University of Technology, held on 1 October 2026.
