Welcome to the West Pomeranian University of Technology
The West Pomeranian University of Technology has its origins...well. The University historians will face a problem. Was it in December 1946 when Szczecin Engineering School was founded or in 1954 when the Agricultural Academy in Szczecin started to exist or maybe in 1956 when Szczecin Engineering School was upgraded to a university of technology? Or should we seek the beginnings in contemporary times? The 21st century might be the answer because its challenges gave birth to the idea of uniting two universities.
On 5 July 2007 the senates of the Agricultural Academy in Szczecin and Szczecin University of Technology passed a unanimous resolution on joining two universities. In January 2008 the Conventions of Student Governments as well as Doctoral Student Parliaments of both Universities adopted a similar position on it. A multistage and longterm legislative process was completed by the Sejm Act on the West Pomeranian University of Technology establishment of 5 September 2008 and by the signature of the President of the Republic of Poland of 30 September 2008. The West Pomeranian University of Technology officially started on 1 January 2009.
Consolidation of scientific and teaching potential of universities, scattered in Poland, seems inevitable in view of progressing slowdown in population growth, competition on higher education market and expectations as it comes to their influence on technology and economy development. Bringing a university into existence, besides enriching its teaching programme with new fields of study and specializations, creates a possibility of further, faster progress of new technologies in technical and natural sciences. Common achievements of Szczecin University of Technology and the Agricultural Academy in Szczecin in these scientific areas and their highly qualified staff launch new quality standars in education in Western Pomerania.
The West Pomeranian University of Technology (WPUT) has a chance to make use of an effect of synergy which originated from joining two well-known universities. Around 13 000 full-time and extramural students study in numerous facilities under the tutelage of over 1 100 academic teachers (including almost 280 professors and assistant professors). There are ten faculties at WPUT specializing in 44 fields of study:
Faculty of Biotechnology and Animal Husbandry
Faculty of Civil Engineering and Architecture
Faculty of Economics
Faculty of Electrical Engineering
Faculty of Computer Science and Information Technology
Faculty of Mechanical Engineering and Mechatronics
Faculty of Environmental Engineering and Agriculture
Faculty of Food Sciences and Fisheries
Faculty of Maritime Technology and Transport
Faculty of Chemical Engineering
New fields are constantly created as the answer to changing economic conditions and needs of the labour market. Both universities contributed to a system offering students a wide range of academic education: undergraduate studies, postgraduate studies, one-cycle five-year Master's degree studies, doctoral studies and a wide variety of post-diploma studies. The laboratories and study facilities of Szczecin University of Technology and the University of Agriculture in Szczecin were modernized in the last few years. This process has been continued at newly created WPUT. International cooperation concerning teaching processes and scientific projects will still be one of the priorities of WPUT.
The creation of the West Pomeranian University of Technology consolidated research teams dealing with: engineering, environmental protection, renewable energy, bio- and nanotechnologies, polymers, economics and industry and agriculture technologies. WPUT has powers to confer the PhD degree in 17 specializationsand the degree of assistant professor in 9 fields: electrical engineering. This is an enormous and precious potential which provides students with a proper preparation to their professional lives and the University itself with scientific development suitable for contemporary challenges.
