Rector Prof Arkadiusz Wójs talks about plans for the next four years, developing social sciences, strengthening cooperation with the environment, supporting student activity and ensuring that Wrocław Tech is an open, accessible, safe, inclusive and supportive university.

The first of October marked the start of the new academic year at Wrocław University of Science and Technology, which was also the first inauguration of the second rector's term. Is managing a university easier with four years' experience?

Prof. Arkadiusz Wójs, rektor Politechniki Wrocławskiej: It is certainly different. Four years ago we started our term in the middle of a pandemic. Then came Russia's invasion of Ukraine and all its serious social and economic consequences. Despite these adversities, together we developed and implemented a new statute and a strategy for the development of the university. On these foundations we can build further.

In addition, we carried out a fairly large reorganisation of the support system, including the creation of the Centre for Innovation and Business, as well as the establishment of the largest Faculty of Information and Communication Technology in the country and the first Faculty of Medicine at a Polish technical university. We also introduced an extensive system of training and incentive programmes for employees, achieved the best result in the history of the Wrocław Tech in the evaluation of scientific research and joined the European alliance of universities Unite!.

So today, thanks to the tremendous efforts of our community, in all key areas of operation, Wroclaw University of Science and Technology is in much better shape than it was four years ago. And this automatically opens up wider prospects for further development. For example, the dynamic development of the doctoral school - to a role and size known from leading Western universities.

The university's strategy states that Wrocław University of Science and Technology is to be a modern multidisciplinary technical university following the Western model. All that is still missing is a strong representation of the social sciences.

This is one of the challenges for the coming years. In the current term, one of the priorities is the development of academic staff, the creation of new scientific disciplines and fields of study, and will be complemented by integration with technical and science faculties, support for the development of selected areas of the humanities and a deep commitment to holistic engineering education.

The universities in the West to which you refer have a strong influence on their environment, not only industrially but also socially. Will Wrocław Tech be willing to take on such responsibility?

It's not a matter of wanting to, it's our duty! The innovation ecosystem emerging around our university will include, among other things, laboratories working for the university's strategic economic partners who co-fund them, or research and development centers of large corporations located on or adjacent to the campus.

The manifestation of our social responsibility must also have a greater impact on the development of the city and the region. Especially in emergency situations such as the September flood. Thanks to our experts, we had up-to-date information on the state of rivers, dams, embankments, measurements, models and possible scenarios. These experts are now serving their knowledge in Lower Silesian localities where real disasters have occurred.

I believe that when the next disaster comes, thanks to our scientists we will be able to defend ourselves even more effectively and help others.

The university is not only employees, but also students. There are many young, creative people at Wrocław Tech. How do you want to support them?

It's true. When I see what great vehicles, robots or solutions our students are creating, I know that their level is not far from what is happening at the best foreign universities.

So our task is to help them strengthen their potential and provide support for the further development of the projects they create with such passion. Hence the concept of an entrepreneurial university that we developed, and that we developed in the previous term. A key element of our expansion in this direction will be the Student Innovation Campus, modeled on the best examples from American or European universities.

We will create a place where students will have at their disposal - around the clock - workshops, laboratories, co-working spaces, as well as training spaces. In addition, we will provide much-needed rest and relaxation rooms and incubation spaces for start-ups or spin-off/spin-out companies. It's all part of our strategic approach to making the Wrocław University of Science and Technology campus even more welcoming, green and accessible for everyone.

The university community therefore faces many challenges. In meeting them, can employees also count on the university's support?

I can't imagine it could be otherwise, and this applies not only to employees, but also to students and doctoral students. We are growing rapidly in research and teaching areas, but we are not forgetting to pay more attention to our community. This is another of the main points of our development for the coming years.

We know where more help from the university is needed. That's why this term I have appointed Prof. Karolina Jaklewicz as vice-rector for community development and integration. No university in Poland has a person in the top management who deals exclusively or primarily with the subject of the university community.

We have taken this step because we are committed to supporting our staff, doctoral students and lecturers not only in their ambitious and far-reaching plans, but also in their daily functioning. I referred to such a university model using the metaphor of an OASIS: Open, Accessible, Safe, Inclusive & Supportive University.

The time has come to put this model into practice.

The interview appeared on October 31, 2024, in „Rzeczpospolita”, in a supplement entitled “Rectors about their universities.”