Scholarships in Bolesławiec Municipality: PLN 300 for a Student with a 5.9 Average? The Municipality Explains the Amounts

A reader asked us to look into the amounts of this year’s Mayor of Bolesławiec Municipality scholarships. A resident of Bolesławiec Municipality was surprised that her son, who had a grade average of 5.9, was to receive an academic scholarship of PLN 300 this year.

The woman added that at the Municipal School Services Office she heard that approximately 190 scholarships had been awarded, meaning the funds had to be divided accordingly.

The resident compared this year’s amounts with those she remembered from previous years. In her message to the editorial office, she wrote:

I also have two adult daughters, and I remember that just a few or a dozen years ago scholarship amounts were significantly higher. About 10 years ago, the lowest amount was, if I remember correctly, approximately PLN 500, while the average scholarship was around PLN 1,000. Three years ago, in turn, my older daughter received a scholarship of PLN 1,200.

The reader also drew attention to other municipal expenses:

I therefore have the impression that there are currently no shortages of funds for other municipal expenses—such as organizing lavish harvest festivals or purchasing a car for the mayor—yet there was not enough money for appropriate support and recognition for children achieving very good academic results.

194 scholarships instead of 80

The response from the Mayor of Bolesławiec Municipality, Andrzeja Jańca, shows that 214 applications were submitted in the 2025/2026 school year. After verification, 194 scholarships were awarded, and the total amount allocated for their payment was PLN 89,800.

For comparison: in the 2024/2025 school year, 80 scholarships were awarded for a total of PLN 78,700. A year earlier, in the 2023/2024 school year, there were 52 scholarships, and the total amount was PLN 57,600.

This means that over two years, the number of scholarships awarded increased from 52 to 194. The pool allocated for the benefits increased from PLN 57,600 to PLN 89,800.

The municipality explains that the increase in the number of scholarship recipients resulted from a change in the rules for awarding the benefits. Scholarships are awarded on the basis of Resolution No. XV/82/2025 of the Bolesławiec Municipal Council of September 24, 2025.

“Under the previously applicable regulations, as is currently the case, there was a division into academic, sports and artistic scholarships. The fundamental change introduced by the new resolution, however, involved easing the criteria entitling applicants to seek a scholarship, particularly those concerning achievements in subject-specific and thematic competitions and sports events,” istotne.pl reported the mayor.

As the municipal head explains, the purpose of the changes was to include a larger number of students in the scholarship system:

The purpose of the change was to enable a larger number of talented students to be covered by the municipal scholarship system and to recognize their achievements not only at the highest levels of competition. The result of the new, broader criteria was a significant increase in the number of students meeting the conditions for receiving a scholarship.

How much were this year’s scholarships?

In the 2025/2026 school year, academic scholarships ranged from PLN 300 to PLN 2,300. Sports scholarships were awarded in amounts ranging from PLN 200 to PLN 600.

In the previous school year, academic scholarships ranged from PLN 700 to PLN 2,500, while sports scholarships ranged from PLN 300 to PLN 1,000.

The comparison provided by the municipality therefore shows that the lowest benefits in both categories were lower this year than the year before. At the same time, the number of students receiving scholarships increased considerably.

What about the student with a 5.9 average?

One of the most important questions was whether a student with a grade average of 5.9 could in fact have received an academic scholarship of PLN 300.

The municipality does not confirm such a case. “The documentation held by the Municipal School Services Office concerning scholarships awarded and paid does not indicate that a student whose academic scholarship was awarded on the basis of a grade average of 5.9 received a scholarship of PLN 300. Students achieving such a high average received higher scholarships, in accordance with the total score they obtained,” the municipal head noted.

The municipality emphasizes that the grade average alone does not determine the amount of the scholarship. “The amount of an academic scholarship is not established solely on the basis of the grade average. Under the applicable regulations, the total number of points earned by the student is taken into account,” the mayor explained.

Points are awarded for the average grade in compulsory educational subjects, achievements in subject-specific and thematic competitions and, in the case of eighth-grade students, their eighth-grade examination results.

Mayor:

A grade average of 5.8 or higher corresponds to 160 points, but this does not automatically mean that a scholarship of a specific amount will be awarded. The student’s final number of points may be higher depending on their other achievements.

The final amount of the benefit also depends on the number of students meeting the criteria and the funds planned in the budget. “At the same time, the regulations state that the decision to award a scholarship and determine its amount is made by the Mayor of Bolesławiec Municipality, while the award amount is determined taking into account the amount of funds planned in the Municipal budget,” we read in the response.

Therefore, as the municipality emphasizes, “PLN 300 is not an amount assigned in the resolution to a grade average of 5.9. It results from applying the rules currently in force for determining scholarship amounts, taking into account the student’s achievements, the score obtained, the number of students meeting the criteria and the funds allocated for this purpose.”

More students, but lower minimum amounts

Data from the last three years show a clear change. In the 2023/2024 school year, 52 scholarships were awarded for a total of PLN 57,600. A year later there were 80, and the municipality allocated PLN 78,700 for this purpose. In the 2025/2026 school year, the number of scholarships rose to 194, with a total amount of PLN 89,800.

The municipality indicates that the lower individual amount of some benefits this year is primarily a consequence of including a much larger number of students in the system.

“These data show that after the new rules were introduced, there was a very clear increase in the number of students who could receive scholarship support. The lower individual amount of some scholarships in the 2025/2026 school year is therefore primarily related to the significant increase in the number of students meeting the criteria set out in the regulations,” explains the head of the Bolesławiec Municipal Office.

Will the rules be changed?

For now, the municipality is not declaring any specific change to the regulations or an increase in funding. The 2025/2026 school year is the first year in which the new rules have been in force.

Mayor:

The operation of the new rules will be analyzed, particularly in terms of the number of applications submitted, the number of students meeting the criteria and the amounts of benefits awarded.

As he adds, the amount of funds allocated for scholarships is determined each year in the budget of Bolesławiec Municipality.

And he announces:

Any decisions concerning changes to the regulations or an increase in funding may be made after assessing the first full year in which the new rules are in operation.

We will return to this topic.