Work / Studies In Poland, is it easy to survive on part-time jobs? [259]


That's correct. A select few who have figured out a way to earn a good living in Poland. They have little sympathy for economic refugees. Any jobs they have would go to family and friends, or at least someone from the same caste/clan/class as them. There is no solidarity among Indians as Indians. If someone is not from the same caste/clan/class, they might as well be from Mars.


Obviously. The overwhelming majority of Indians applying for student visas to Poland are economic refugees who intend to abscond. The second largest group are victims of education-related scams. Genuine students are a distinct minority. Even so, the majority of the genuine students do not finish their studies in Poland, and either return home, or make their way west, legally or illegally. Those very few who are studying in Polish are most likely to finish. Those studying in English are overwhelmingly likely to drop out.

By far the majority of Indian students in Poland never find work at all during their stay. The few that do are those very few who have learned Polish and those who have saleable high-level programming skills. The rest don't stand a chance.

Work / Studies In Poland, is it easy to survive on part-time jobs? [259]

@mafketis

The number of Indian children who have learned even basic conversational Polish wouldn't fill a single school bus.


I answered the OP's question. If any "consultant" told him that he will be able to find work in Poland, they are lying in order to defraud him. And no, no "Indian community" is going to help him find a job, or want to have anything to do with him.

USA, Canada / Sending money to Poland from the USA? [48]

@nanchan

There is no economical way to send piddling amounts of money to Poland, and enclosing it in a letter is ill advised because of the reasons johnny reb listed above. Theft by postal workers is still a major problem in Poland.

Work / Studies In Poland, is it easy to survive on part-time jobs? [259]

@Dirk diggler

"Many", no. A few, yes. A couple of hundred, at most, have been here for at least five years and have actually settled.

Few Indians have any interest in settling in Poland because much higher wages are to be earned in the West. With absolutely nothing to hold them in Poland, they move westward rather quickly, legally or illegally. Of the four thousand or so Indians who are supposed to be in Poland, a good number have absconded to live and work illegally in the west.

Work / Studies In Poland, is it easy to survive on part-time jobs? [259]

@jon357

You are aware that there are less than four thousand Indians in the whole country, about a third of which are students, mostly fake and a few real, and the overwhelming bulk of the rest are transient workers biding their time to move onto richer countries. Few of these are interested in any sort of "Indian community" in Poland, or anything about Poland at all, except in regards to its utility as a stepping stone. That leaves precious few genuine long-term residents capable of building a community of sorts. And those precious few have absolutely no interest in helping economic refugees.

Work / Studies In Poland, is it easy to survive on part-time jobs? [259]

@jon357

Any "Indian community" in Warsaw would have little interest in (yet another) economic refugee. They know the drill.

Work / Studies In Poland, is it easy to survive on part-time jobs? [259]

@jon357

This "student" is not a real student, and has no intention of studying, in Poland or elsewhere. He is an economic refugee who has paid some "consultant" or "agent" to find him a way into the EU. He was too clueless to figure out that the "consultant" was a scam artist preying on desperate, gullible and clueless economic refugees like himself. The "consultant" arranged for admission to a sham "school", probably in return for a kickback from the "school". The "school" gets to keep the rest of the "tuition", regardless of whether the "student" is granted a visa to Poland or not. The "consultant" is making money from both sides. If granted entry into Poland, the "student" considers his lost money well spent, as he will abscond to live and work illegally in a richer country, probably the UK. If not granted entry, there is nothing he can do, as he was himself part of the fraud. The Polish government couldn't care less because these "students" are absconding, so it's someone else's problem.

As far as critical thinking skills go, you seem to lack any yourself. You let yourself be convinced that this was a genuine student. You fell for the line that there is a legitimate school in Józefów that grants genuine MBAs (there isn't). And you failed to register that this "student" has absolutely no interest in living and studying in Poland, but was bound for greener pastures at the earliest opportunity. In fact, the overwhelming bulk of the foreigners you seem eager to settle in Poland are using it merely as a stepping stone to the richer countries of the EU. If you can't recognize a cookie-cutter case of one of the most common immigration scams, that doesn't say much about your critical thinking skills.

Genuine students ask completely different questions. By far most of the "students" who post here are not genuine students. If the subject of part-time work comes up, guaranteed that they have been told by their "consultant" that work is easily available.

Work / Resign from current work (60 days notice period) after receiving job offer in Poland (work permit in 2 months) [9]


Norway restored border controls with other Schengen states earlier this year.

Work / Studies In Poland, is it easy to survive on part-time jobs? [259]


That school in Jozefów is a joke. An MBA from there is worth nothing on the job market, in Poland or anywhere else. If some "recruiter", "consultant" or "agent" is telling you otherwise, they are lying to steal your money.


It is practically impossible for foreign students to find work in Poland unless they speak Polish well. Make your plans on the very safe assumption that you will never be able to earn a single penny during your stay in Poland. If you need to earn to pay for your studies and stay, then Poland is not the country for you.

Life / Costs of doctor and students life in Warsaw? [7]

@Selene

First of all, when media are included, they often do not include internet/TV/phone. You might well have to arrange for those yourself on your own.

For 1500 PLN a month, you would be able to lead a frugal student lifestyle and even accumulate a modest rainy-day fund to pay for such things as (cheap) vacation, clothing, replacement computer and other occasional purchases. But you are not going to save up anything serious. If working and saving u serious money is a priority for you, then find another country to study in. Poland isn't the place for you if you want to save.

You had better learn how to shop wisely and cook using locally available ingredients. Eating, snacking and drinking away from home are rather expensive in Poland, as are things you may take for granted such as beef, seafood and fruits and vegetables out of season. If you can't cook or don't like cooking, your life is going to $uck until you learn and learn to like it.

As for your rent of the room, if it is a largish, comfortablish room in an apartment with a LARGE, convenient kitchen, the price is a little high, but not bad. If the kitchen is less than ideal, then look for another apartment. You're going to have to use that kitchen a lot, so you had better be comfortable cooking in it. A small kitchen $ucks bad, especially if you have to share it.

Good luck!

Study / Which is the best university to study international/european law and international relation in Poland? [29]

@WaqUp

Why do you want to get a masters at your age? Why in international relations? Why from Poland? Do you speak Polish? And where are you from?

Generally, a masters in international relations is not worth very much career-wise unless it is earned at a top school like Georgetown or Berkeley. Generally, degrees from English-language programs at Polish universities are not worth much on the job market.

A more specific answer would require more specific about yourself, your background and your goals.

Work / About Work permit for Student Visa in Poland [28]

@etudiant09

That depends where you are from and what kind of visa you have to study in France, and how long it is valid for. You're going to have to contact the Polish embassy or consulate nearest you. Nothing anybody says here is going to be helpful.

Study / How hard is it to get accepted to Wroclaw University of Technology? / Unis in general? [37]

@TEJAS PATIL

Is there any reason that you cannot get into a good engineering school in your own country?

Life / Best typical Polish city to live in ??!! [3]

Skierniewice has a reputation for being the "most average" Polish city, and is widely used in sociological studies for that very reason. Lived there myself for four years.

Classifieds / Food export, Poland to Sweden [11]

@Schill

Their R&D department is always open to new ideas. If you have a solid and concrete proposal, they will be willing to consider it. Same with Agros Fortuna. By the way, this is one market that is going to expand rapidly in Poland in the near future, so you will probably find out that the R&D team has already done some research into this area, and would appreciate your input.

Classifieds / Food export, Poland to Sweden [11]


Quite the opposite. Flash freezing is by far the best way to preserve food quality. Freezing in a normal home or restaurant freezer is going to compromise quality, and would require additives.

Classifieds / Food export, Poland to Sweden [11]

@Schill

The kitchen is easy. What is difficult is finding a company that is able to flash-freeze large quantities of food and store and transport it properly.

Hortex specializes in frozen vegetables, and also produces some prepared foods, as well, so they have the kitchen facilities for your project. They are also located in the center of the garden agriculture region of Poland, so there is a ready source of high quality fruits and vegetables. A lot of the additives you mention are not necessary in the case of frozen foods, so that will not be a major problem. Hortex also has expertise in properly packaging frozen foods, and in shipping them to foreign markets. You're not going to find many restaurant kitchens that have the necessary expertise and equipment to produce and ship frozen meals without a major investment in resources. That approach might work with fresh prepared meals that are going to be sold immediately very near the place of production, but freezing and shipping require high tech and expert experience.

Classifieds / Food export, Poland to Sweden [11]

@Schill

You can pitch your proposal to Hortex in Skierniewice. They are a major producer of frozen foods in Poland, and are close to the logistical center of Poland, Łódż. Another company you can try is Agros Fortuna in Łowicz.

Work / Information about jobs for Indian students in Poland [286]

@karthik bethi

No more than getting a good engineering degree from a good engineering school in India.

Study / International business master degree - which Poland's university should I study? [5]

@Egemen

If you are from a developing country, and wish to emigrate to a richer country, then either study in your target country, or in your own country. As it is very unlikely that Poland is your target country, a degree from any Polish university will be worth less than a degree from either your target country or your home country.

A Masters in International Business is worth zero on the job market unless a) you are a top student in a top program in a top school (neither SGH or Montreal is a top school); or b) you already possess abundant business experience, especially the type that proves that you can make money for your future employer. The qualification is not worth much. Skills and experience trump that every time. If you do not have solid profit-making business experience, a masters is not going to help you, and would be a complete waste of time and money. Your time would be better spent getting profit-making business experience first. You can then revisit the question of earning a masters in five years or so.

There is a glut of inexperienced graduates with business-related degrees and no profit-making experience. Most of those will end up in low-paid jobs very far from the board room. Very few successful businessmen learned how to do business in college or grad school. Most were working in business already, either for themselves or for good employers, in their teens, or even earlier. No amount of schooling is going to make a businessman out of someone who hasn't been doing business since puberty.

Now, what their is a shortage of is graduates with solid quantitative skills: advanced applied mathematics. For a person from a developing country, this is by far the easiest set of skills to sell on the international market. A degree in financial engineering, financial mathematics, econometrics or actuarial science will open up a lot more doors than one in international business.

Work / About Work permit for Student Visa in Poland [28]

@Deepti

Paid internships? Probably not. Internships in Poland are either unpaid or very poorly paid.

If you need to earn money to finance your studies, then Poland is not the country for you. Make your plans on the very safe assumption that you will never be able to earn even a single penny during your stay in Poland.

Work / Studies In Poland, is it easy to survive on part-time jobs? [259]

@jon357

For their courses taught in Polish, certainly, especially within Poland. As well as for some, not all, of the programs taught in English, predominantly the highly selective degrees for mature, experienced managers with a specific interest in Poland and the region. A lower level MBA taught in English is not worth very much, though.

MBAs even from the best schools have decreased in value as there is now a global glut of MBAs, with a concurrent drop in ROI.

Work / Studies In Poland, is it easy to survive on part-time jobs? [259]

These joint programs are worth less than an MBA earned on campus in Montreal. There are a few graduate degrees in English at SGH that are worth something, but they are for mature students with prior managerial experience and a specific interest in Poland and the region.

Many, if not most, of the Economic Universities in Poland have similar joint programs. Wrocław offers a similar program in conjunction with some university in Ireland (Limerick, I think). It says a lot about the programs at these schools that they are not able to market these programs without adding some "cachet" derived from the name of a foreign university.

And yes, an MBA from Duke, Northwestern or UCLA is worth a lot more on the job market than one from an English program at SGH, or one from the University of Montreal, for that matter. The reputation of the school counts for a lot.

Work / Studies In Poland, is it easy to survive on part-time jobs? [259]


Poland is not an English-speaking country, and most Poles do not speak English. The language there is Polish, which is not at all similar to English, and very difficult for foreigners to learn. Don't expect to speak even basic Polish for several years. Chances are very high that you will not learn more than a few common everyday expressions.

An MBA from a English-language course in Poland is unlikely to be respected much on the job market, both in Poland and elsewhere. English-language courses at Polish universities are mostly a joke, with very few exceptions.

It is just about impossible for foreign students to find part-time work in Poland. Youth employment is very high, and even Polish students have difficulty finding work. Make your plans on the very safe assumption that you will never be able to earn a single penny during your studies and stay in Poland. If you are unable to finance your studies 100% without working, then Poland is not the country for you, nor are any of the other countries in eastern and central Europe where youth employment is very high (Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Slovakia, Czech Republic, Hungary, Romania, Bulgaria, Greece, Macedonia, Serbia, Slovenia, Croatia, Montenegro, Albania, Italy, Spain and Portugal). Anyone who says it is easy for foreigners to find jobs in these countries is lying.

Budget at least 1500 PLN a month for a frugal student life, plus all travel, visa and permit costs. So about 2000 PLN in all. That's if you are lucky enough to get student housing. Otherwise, it will cost substantially more, up to 3500 PLN a month, or more, depending on the lifestyle you are used to.

If you can't afford to study at a good school in a richer country, you best option is to study at a top school in your own country.

Genealogy / HELP ME ABOUT MY SURNAME: KOPERNICKI / KOPERNICKY [4]

Izydor was a physician and professor. It was his brother Walerian who was the linguist. Here is Izydor's article from Polish Wikipedia:

pl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Izydor_Kopernicki

Genealogy / HELP ME ABOUT MY SURNAME: KOPERNICKI / KOPERNICKY [4]

@MAJMONID

Your questions cannot be answered on the basis of the information you have provided, which is just the surname. It could be Polish, or it could be something else. You need solid documentation in the form of official documents. Without that, all you can do is make wild guesses.

Work / Career in Poland - working in finance / investment banking / venture capital / private equity [19]

@Polska1234

It's incredibly difficult to break into the law field in Poland unless you have very strong connections, preferably strong family connections, the more generations the better. Unless you are a top student at a top school and have very strong connections, studying law is an extremely poor choice. Most people who graduate from law school never work a single day as a lawyer.

Life / Indian community in Poland [43]

@Kashish

There are about 2000 to 3000 Indians in the whole country, so about 300 in the whole city of Poznań. Almost all of them are young single male students or transient workers, primarily in IT. Very, very few have be there longer than two years, and very few are married. Even fewer have families. There is no "community", though if you look hard enough you will probably find a few friends to hang out with. You will have to relax your attitudes about region/cast/clan/class, though, or chances are that you will be entirely alone.

Work / Information about jobs for Indian students in Poland [286]

In terms of return on investment, production engineering is about the poorest choice you can make, and not very useful for finding a good job in Poland or the EU. The management courses won't be of much value unless you already have a good deal of experience already.

Pick a more lucrative field of engineering, like petroleum, geological or biomedical engineering, and it will be much easier for you to find work and earn high wages.

Language / Too many English words in the Polish language! [709]


The bulk of Germanic borrowings into Polish pertaining to business, civic administration, trade, shipping, seafaring and technology were not from Hochdeutsch, but from Hansa Plattdeutsch, which was the lingua franca of the North Sea/Baltic region for most of the late middle ages. That's why a lot of Polish borrowings look a bit different from their Hochdeutsch cognates, and often look a lot like Dutch, which is more closely related to Plattdeutsch than to Hochdeutsch.