Prof. Marcin Pałys, former Rector of the University of Warsaw, has been re-elected Chair of The General Council for Science and Higher Education (PL: Rada Główna Nauki i Szkolncitwa Wyższego), Poland’s most important advisory and consultative body in matters relating to science policy and higher education.

The decision was taken at the inaugural meeting of the Council’s new 2026–2029 term, held on 16th January. This marks Prof. Pałys’s second consecutive term as Chair of the Council.

The 32-member Council for the new term includes representatives of academic and vocational higher education institutions, research institutes, the Polish Academy of Sciences, employers’ organisations and trade unions, as well as representatives of students and doctoral candidates.

Prof. Marcin Pałys served as Rector of the University of Warsaw from 2012 to 2020. Since 2024, he has held the position of Vice-President of the European University Association, and since 2021 he has been a member of the Governing Board of the Magna Charta Observatory, an organisation dedicated to safeguarding fundamental academic values.

The Council also includes Kamil Bonas, a student of the University of Warsaw.

The General Council for Science and Higher Education is the most important representative body of the academic community in Poland. It performs an advisory and consultative role in matters concerning national science policy and higher education and cooperates with the Ministry of Science and Higher Education, as well as other public authorities.

Among the Council’s key responsibilities is the provision of opinions on the principles governing the functioning and development of the higher education and science system, draft legal acts, and the state budget in the area of science and higher education.