The Institute of Social Policy of the University of Warsaw

Doctor Habilitatus Cezary Żołędowski, The Director of the Institute of Social Policy, The University of Warsaw

The Institute of Social Policy (IPS) of the Warsaw University is one of Poland's oldest academic centres offering to students education in the field of social policy and research on social policy, understood as science and a kind of state policy.

Studies majoring in social policy aim at providing students with comprehensive education and qualifications for employment in the capacity of a social policy expert, e.g. in central government and local government administration, in non-profit sector, institutions of social economy, in research institutions, analytical centres, tertiary level schools and the mass media. Currently there are approximately 1000 students attending classes at 7 different lines of studies. The Institute has numerous staff. Our lecturers guarantee high quality of teaching; the most talented students have the opportunity to undertake studies at partner universities in many European Union countries.

IPS staff carry out research in many fields, such as: theory of social policy and development, social issues and critical life situations, decision-making processes in social policy, social assistance and social work, labour market and unemployment, local social policy, international comparative social policy, European social policy, migration and migration policy, social economy. I would like to invite you warmly to become acquainted with the didactic offer, as well as research and scientific achievements of the Institute of Social Policy.

Contact data

The Institute of Social Policy of the University of Warsaw
Nowy Świat 67 Street, room 110 (the secretariat), 00-927 Warsaw
tel./fax: +48 022 8266652, tel.: +48 022 5520286
e-mail: Adres poczty elektronicznej jest chroniony przed robotami spamującymi. W przeglądarce musi być włączona obsługa JavaScript, żeby go zobaczyć.

Departments

1. Department of Social Security - head: a professor of the Warsaw University, Doctor Habilitatus, Gertruda Uścińska
2. Department of the Theory and Methodology of Social Policy - head: a professor of the Warsaw University, Doctor Habilitatus, Adres poczty elektronicznej jest chroniony przed robotami spamującymi. W przeglądarce musi być włączona obsługa JavaScript, żeby go zobaczyć.
3. Department of Social Policy in Local Environment - head: Doctor Habilitatus, Barbara Rysz-Kowalczyk
4. Department of Migration and Ethnic Relations - head: a professor of the Warsaw University, Doctor Habilitatus, Adres poczty elektronicznej jest chroniony przed robotami spamującymi. W przeglądarce musi być włączona obsługa JavaScript, żeby go zobaczyć.
5. Department of Civic Society Development - head: a professor of the Warsaw University, Doctor Habilitatus, Adres poczty elektronicznej jest chroniony przed robotami spamującymi. W przeglądarce musi być włączona obsługa JavaScript, żeby go zobaczyć.
6. Department of Social Labour System - head: Professor Doctor Habilitatus, Małgorzata Szylko-Skoczny

Introduction

IPS UW belongs to the community of the Faculty of Journalism and Political Science of the Warsaw University (FJPS). Organisational history of the Institute has been a three-stage process. The first one began in 1969, when the Social Policy Department was established within the Institute of Political Science. In 1975 the Department was transformed into a Chair, while in 1977 the Institute was established and we were organisationally separated from the Institute of Political Science.

Over 1000 students presently attend classes at the Institute of Social Policy. It employs 45 academic workers, including 11 professors, and has 14 doctoral degree students.

Social policy is an interdisciplinary science e.g. concerned with social issues and problems and their rational resolution on a broader scale. Its traditions in Poland date back to at least 1920, when the Socio-Economic Institute was established, and back to 1924, when the Polish Society for Social Policy was brought to life.

Social policy was a major at the politology line of studies. On 28 June 2002 IPS and the Institute of Political Science received the Certificate of the Quality of Education from the University Accreditation Committee for five years. For many years politology at the FJSP has ranked first in the rating of "Polityka" weekly. Since academic year 2007/2008 we have offered studies in social policy as a major with independent teaching curriculum.

ISP prepares staff for institutions of broadly understood social policy, providing education both to young persons having just graduated from secondary school, as well as practitioners wishing to supplement their professional experiences with theoretical knowledge. We offer full-time master degree programme, extramural master degree programme, bachelor and supplementary as well as post-graduate study programmes.

Graduates of our studies find employment e.g. in: central and local administration institutions (ministries and central government agencies, institutions of voivodship, poviat and municipal level), insurance companies, human resources departments of enterprises, personal coaching agencies, social insurance institutions (ZUS, KRUS), institutions specialising in the use of EU structural funds, public employment services, employment agencies, training institutions, institutions of social dialogue and local partnership, institutions concerned with social and occupational rehabilitation of the disabled, social assistance institutions, institutions for regional and local development, NGOs (public utility organisations, associations, organisations of employers and trade unions), international organisations.

Studies and Students

General information
Our membership in the European Union sets new tasks before social policy and social policy experts; tasks defined, among others, by the European Employment Strategy providing for shaping of active social policy with a view to promoting employment and reducing social marginalisation.

Efficient use of European Union funding requires proper preparation of a staff of social policymakers, including professional social workers (employees of social services), capable of and competent to develop projects of ventures and carry them into effect, solve difficult problems of individuals and families, prevent social marginalisation. We will need a staff of creators of regional and local social strategies, evaluators of projects' implementation and their effects.

Therefore students learn about origins and development of the institutions of social sphere in Poland and in Europe, sectors and areas of social policy and their mutual interconnections, local, regional, national, international and supranational dimensions of social policy, as well as main sources of information about social sphere.

Students learn to understand key notions and theories of social policy and other fundamental social sciences, connections between values and principles of social policy on the one hand, and economic and political interests on the other; they learn to diagnose social problems and issues, and design solutions to social problems.

To acquire proper qualifications, the students will find various topical blocks in the plan of studies: social policy and its constituent disciplines, sociology and its sub disciplines (sociology of family), several legal and economic subjects. They learn such disciplines as: social psychology, social assistance, philosophy, ethics, social work, labour market policy, comparative social policy, knowledge about the European Union and many others.

Profile of a graduate of unified full-time studies majoring in 'social policy'

Studies with major in 'social policy' aim at preparing graduates to work in the capacity of a 'social policy expert' (occupational classification code number: 244205) and to implement operational tasks in the scope of social policy in state institutions, self-government structures and NGOs.

Graduates of our studies acquire in-depth theoretical knowledge in the field of social policy and about methods of diagnosing and resolving social problems and issues in individual, group, local, national and supranational dimension. They also acquire basic politological, sociological and economic knowledge, and knowledge about causes and symptoms of social problems and issues; about methods of preventing, resolving and mitigating those phenomena; about legal and financial instruments of social policy; about responsibilities and functioning of the institutions of social sphere (social insurance, social assistance, labour market, local self-government, NGOs).

Graduates should possess the following skills: to apply and develop theoretical indications of social policy; to research and deepen the analysis of social realities; to perform a critical analysis of the processes of emergence and resolution of social problems and issues; to forecast the course of social processes; to design solutions to individual and group social problems; to search for innovative methods for implementation of the tasks of various social policy entities; to stimulate cooperation with European structures creating and implementing tasks in the field of social policy.

Graduates should possess the skills to diagnose social problems and issues of various social communities and to design solutions to existing problems; to provide support to persons, families and groups in need of intervention; to draw up social projects; to evaluate interventions of various entities. They should also acquire the skills to use computer programmes and take advantage of literature in foreign languages.

About social policy

Polish traditions
Social policy is an interdisciplinary science on social issues and problems and their rational resolution. Its traditions in Poland date back to at least 1920, when the Socio-Economic Institute was established, and back to 1924, when Polish Society for Social Policy (PTPS) was brought to life. Scientists establishing the first of the aforementioned institutions studied mainly living conditions, and their analyses of the diaries of the unemployed, farmers and emigrants are classics of Polish social sciences. The first PTPS publication, 'Aims and tasks of social policy', pointed out e.g. to the significance of rational social policy and of stimulating 'broader society circles for cooperation in resolution of several problems afforded by social issues'.Demagoguery and dilettantism were deemed as main obstacles to attainment of those objectives. Research and education in the field of social policy still give hope to overcome those obstacles. It is also worthwhile to mention the Institute for Social Affairs, which was established in 1931 and dealt with 'Scientific research, propaganda and pedagogical works in the scope of labour protection, social insurance, labour market, unemployment, emigration and social care'.

After WWII the Stalinist bureaucratic machinery disregarded social policy; for example. they did not allow for reactivation of PTPS. It was not until 1956 that social policy as science could develop a little more freely; but addressing topics uncomfortable for the authorities was still hampered.

The phrase "social policy" has also appeared in name of a Polish ministry. The Ministry of Labour and Social Policy was established in 1987, with a minor change in the name in 1999. Later it was combined with the Ministry of Economy, but this solution did not last long and eventually, in 2004, the Ministry of Social Policy responsible for the government administration unit dealing with social security (e.g. social insurance except health insurance, social assistance, NGOs) was created. The following government returned to the concept of combining labour and social policy under a single ministry and so presently we have again the Ministry of Labour and Social Policy. This marks a return to a very long tradition, because the Ministry of Labour and Social Policy was already in existence in Poland in the interwar era (until 1932)..

Academic community and education
The Socio-Economic Institute was re-established in 1957 at the then Central School of Planning and Statistics (in 1990ties the traditional name - the Warsaw School of Economics - was restored); among other things it continues the interwar period research traditions. In the period 1990-2002 it carried out competitions for diaries of emigrants, Poles in Lithuania, Poles in the East, a new generation of Polish farmers, the unemployed.

In 1969 in the Institute of Political Science (in operation since 1967) the Social Policy Department was established, followed by the phase of a Chair, and since 1977 it was an independent Institute of Social Policy within the Faculty of Journalism and Political Science of the Warsaw University. The most important role in this process was definitely played by professor Antoni Rajkiewicz, even today a tireless researcher and didactician. Research carried out by the academic staff of IPS is of interdisciplinary and multi-layered nature, from theories of social development and social policy and methodological studies to narrowly defined empirical research and legal analyses.

Other academic centres more strongly connected with the tradition of social policy include the Chair of Social and Economic Policy (the University of Economics in Katowice), the Chair of Labour and Social Policy (the University of Economics in Poznań), the Chair of Sociology and Social Policy (the University of Economics in Wrocław), the Department of Social and Economic Policy (the Institute of Politology of the University of Wrocław), the Department of Social Policy and Methodology of Social Research (the Institute of Political Science and Journalism of the University of Silesia), the Department of Social Problems and Social Planning (the Institute of Sociology of the University of Warsaw), the Department of Social Policy (the Institute of Sociology of Mikołaj Kopernik University), the Chair of Social Policy (the Institute of Sociology of the Catholic University of Lublin).

It is also worthwhile mentioning the scientific institutions of non-academic nature: the Institute of Labour and Social Affairs and the Social Policy Programme of the Institute of Public Affairs..

Beside the PTPS reactivated in 1993, the integrating function for the scientific community of social policy in Poland is fulfilled by the Committee on Labour and Social Policy Studies of the Polish Academy of Science (PAN) and the annual conference in Ustroń Wielkopolski held since 1970ties. Beside this conference, until 1980ties there was also the tradition of conferences in Płock, with a greater participation of practitioners and more stress on the issues of local social policy. A few years ago an IPS initiative helped restore this tradition. Leading scientific periodicals in Poland include the annual Problems of Social Policy - Studies and Discussions (published by the aforementioned PAN Committee) and the monthly Social Policy (published by the Institute of Labour and Social Affairs). Many other magazines focus on individual sectors of social policy, e.g. Labour and Social Security, Social Work, Labour Market.

Education in the field of social policy at the university level gained independent status in 1987, but in 1992 social policy was deleted from the list of the lines of tertiary education studies, despite protests of the scientific community. The Institute of Social Policy initiated efforts aimed at restoration of this line of studies, which succeeded at the University of Warsaw in 2006. Social policy also appears as a national line of studies, owing to many years of efforts on the part of IPS community.

International dimension
Social sciences have been closely related to social policy since the very beginning. In 1873 Verein für Socialpolitik was established in Germany, bringing together both scientists and practitioners (until 1936, i.e. until self-dismantling, the Association published 190 reports; it was reactivated after WW II and it is still in operation). Its goals included 'elevation, education and inclusion of lower classes into the existing [social] order'.

In the Anglo-Saxon world it is worthwhile mentioning the British organisation Social Science Association (The National Association for the Promotion of Social Science, 1857-1886), which mainly aimed at scientifically supported social reforms, including ones in the field of public health, fight against crime and "social economy" (industry, trade and social affairs). By 1884, 28 congresses were held, with the total of over 4000 papers sent and later published in 28 post-congress volumes Transactions. Members of SSA included Edwin Chadwick and John Stuart Mill. In 1967 the Social Administration Association was established, and in 1980ties its name was changed to the Social Policy Association. It is very active, holds annually a national conference and publishes scientific periodicals in the scope of social policy, and recently also a series of manuals. British traditions in the area of social policy as an academic discipline are very strongly associated with the person of Richard Titmuss (1907-1973). In the USA it is worthwhile pointing attention to the organisation called the American Public Human Services Association, which is focused to a greater extent on the practice of social policy. Worthwhile of recommendation are its publications, such as e.g. Crossroads: New Directions in Social Policy.

Year 2006 marked the 80th anniversary of the establishment of Schweizerische Vereinigung für Sozialpolitik (called in French: Association suisse de politique sociale). A conference called 'Social state and effective economy - a contradiction' was held to celebrate this occasion.

Interest in social policy continues to grow, which becomes clear when we look through library catalogues of well-known British and American universities. In English language alone, over 3800 items in the field of social policy can be found in those catalogues. The number of books written on that topic regularly rises: there were 155 of them in 2002, 76 in 1982, and 10 in 1962. Moreover a three-volume International Encyclopedia of Social Policy was published by Routledge publishing house of world fame. It contains over 750 entries on 1770 pages, written by researchers from world over.

Social policy and politology
Social policy is an interdisciplinary science, meaning it can hardly be subordinated to any of more classical disciplines such as: economics, sociology, law, or less classical ones, such as politology (called 'political sciences' in Polish tradition dating back to pre-WWI times). Economists, sociologists, lawyers or politologists are surely interested in certain aspects of social policy, but most frequently arranged according to assumptions characteristic of a given discipline. Interdisciplinary approach requires e.g. a broader view and creation of interdisciplinary research teams.

Unfortunately, unlike English, Polish language (and many others) does not usefully differentiate between the term politics (understood as fight for power in the state and over the society) and policy (rational actions on social scale, resolving social problems), leading to terminological confusion. Politologists are mainly interested in politics and its impact on policy, whereas the main subject of social policy science is policy and "detailed policies" thereunder. This division is also visible at the level of scientific movement 'Polish Political Science Association' and 'Polish Society for Social Policy' are two separate bodies (just like in the United Kingdom).

The UK has extensive tertiary level education in the field of social policy, and in the USA the same concerns public policy and policy analysis. Those lines of studies have much in common with political science, i.e. politology, but classical politologists are more interested in political parties, election systems, the state, political systems, international relations, than in how social issues and problems are or should be resolved, or what lives ordinary people must live in our and other societies.

Our researches - description of selected scientific achievements and implemented projects of the Institute of Social Policy (IPS) over 2000-2010

1. IPS participation in international research projects and EU projects including international and research components

2. Major national research projects implemented in IPS in the last few years and selected projects with participation of IPS employees

“Research on migration systems of various migrant groups and their integration into the Polish labour market, e.g. highly qualified persons, foreign students at Polish universities, students from foreign schools of higher education undergoing training/on-the-job training in Poland; staff seconded by foreign companies, temporary workers from neighbouring countries”, project coordinator – Prof. Dr hab. Małgorzata Szylko-Skoczny, project funded by the EU European Social Fund under measure 1.11 of the Operational Programme “Human Capital", 2008-2010.

“Educational migrations to Poland – socio-economic consequences” in cooperation with the Migration Research Centre, Warsaw University,  Project manager: Dr hab. hab. Cezary Żołędowski, 2008-2010.

Research for the National Labour Inspectorate on the possibility of making use in Poland of the arrangements applied in other countries to combat illegal employment, manager: Prof. at Warsaw University, Dr hab. G. Firlit-Fesnak.

Nationwide research: “Adequacy of women’s education and qualifications for the labour market demand” under SOP Human Resources Development, 1.6 (b) “Multifaceted diagnosis of the situation of women on the labour market” – project commissioned by the Ministry of Labour and Social Policy, funded by ESF, implemented through the Polish Society of Social Policy, manager of the whole project: Prof. Dr hab. J. Auleytner; Coordinator: Prof. Dr hab. Grażyna Firlit-Fesnak, collaborators: Justyna Godlewska, M.A., Anna Kurowska, M.A.,  Małgorzata Ołdak, M.A.
Research “Working Poles 2007”, the continuation of the research whose first stage was carried out at the end of 2005 and the beginning of 2006 (“Working Poles 2006”), IPS participation – Dr Jacek Męcina.

3. Number of implemented research projects and targeted projects financed or co-financed with funds allocated to science

4. Post-doctoral theses written by IPS employees or promoted by IPS

5. Doctoral theses promoted by IPS scientific staff