Procedure for concluding agreements with foreign entities

(Applies only to agreements within the competence of the IRO)

According to the provisions of the University of Warsaw Statute, the person authorized to conclude agreements with foreign partners on behalf of the university is the Rector (see § 36 sec. 10 of the Statute: “The duties of the Rector include /…/ concluding cooperation agreements with foreign entities, with the Senate being informed of the agreement immediately after its conclusion /…/”).

The IRO, in accordance with its scope of responsibilities, is responsible for the following types of agreements:

1. Direct university cooperation agreements (at the request of a foreign university or a UW unit);
2. Agreements within the framework of EU educational projects;
3. Including agreements under the Erasmus+ programme;
4. Agreements with foreign entities regarding one-time initiatives (e.g., organizing conferences, exhibitions, etc.).

NOTE!
Agreements related to the implementation of national and international research projects, including those funded by NCN, NCBR, NPRH, MNiSW, and EU funds, are the responsibility of the Research Services Office and the Office for International Research Liaison.

Questions regarding the conclusion and renewal of agreements related to joint international study programmes and double or multiple degree programmes, as well as consultations on their procedures, should be directed to the Working team for joint international studies and double or multiple degree programmes at: joint.studies@uw.edu.pl.

UW RECTOR’S ORDINANCE No. 71
dated April 9, 2020, concerning the procedure for the establishment of study programmes and changes to study programmes at the University of Warsaw.

a) Agreements Concluded at the Request of the Foreign Entity

A foreign institution submits a proposal for concluding an agreement to the Rector or the Vice-Rector for Cooperation and Human Resources. The further procedure is determined by the Vice-Rector for Cooperation and Human Resources.

Responsibilities of the International Relations Office:

• Notifies UW units about the proposal to conclude an agreement and initially discusses its scope;
• Checks the formal correctness of the agreement, i.e., verifies whether an agreement with the given foreign university already exists and recommends the appropriate type of agreement: framework agreement, annex, “faculty-level” (i.e., executed by a single UW unit), etc.;
• Negotiates the text of the agreement with the foreign entity to define the fields and scope of cooperation as well as the source of funding;
• Submits the draft agreement for review by the UW Legal Office;
• Submits the draft agreement to the Vice-Rector for Cooperation and Human Resources for approval;
• Prepares the final version of the agreement in both English and Polish*;
• Obtains the signatures of the legal representatives of the contracting parties;
• Prepares a report for the Rector and the Senate regarding the conclusion of the agreement with the foreign entity;
• Registers the agreement in the USOS system;
• Provides a copy of the concluded agreement to the units responsible for its implementation;
• Archives the original of the concluded agreement;
• Enters the agreement into the POL-on system.

*Agreements may be concluded:

• Solely in English;
• In Polish and in the language of the foreign entity;
• In English and in the language of the foreign entity (in which case a clause stipulating the supremacy of the English version must be included).

b) Agreements Concluded at the Request of a UW Unit

A Dean or Head of a primary UW unit that wishes to establish academic cooperation with a comparable unit of a partner institution shall contact the Vice-Rector for Cooperation and Human Resources with a request to approve the conclusion/extension of an agreement with the foreign entity.

The request should be sent as a scanned copy to the International Relations Office at: international@adm.uw.edu.pl

Within the request, it is necessary to:

• Justify the need to sign the agreement;
• Demonstrate the prospective benefits of the agreement for the unit;
• Specify the sources of funding for the implementation of the agreement, particularly the costs of travel, accommodation, stay, and insurance (specifying the types of insurance) for persons departing and arriving, as well as tuition fees in cases of agreements involving the exchange of students and doctoral candidates;
• Provide the contact details of the employee responsible for implementing the agreement;
• If applicable, determine issues of intellectual property resulting from joint research, in accordance with the Regulations on Acquisition, Use, and Protection of Intellectual Property at the University of Warsaw.

NOTE!

1. Every agreement must be coordinated with the UW Legal Office.
2. Faculty-level agreements may be signed by the Dean, provided that the appropriate power of attorney has been obtained from the Rector. A request for granting a one-time authorisation to conclude an agreement should be submitted to the International Relations Office (Krakowskie Przedmieście 26/28, Kazimierzowski Palace, 2nd Floor, Room No. 24) or sent along with the draft agreement to international@adm.uw.edu.pl.
3. After the agreement is concluded, its original(s) should be transferred to the International Relations Office.

Responsibilities of the International Relations Office:

• Checks the formal correctness of the agreement, i.e., verifies whether an agreement with the given foreign university already exists and recommends the appropriate type of agreement: framework agreement, annex, “faculty-level” (i.e., executed by a single UW unit), etc;
• Submits the draft agreement for review by the UW Legal Office;
• Submits the draft agreement to the Vice-Rector for Cooperation and Human Resources for approval;
• Prepares a report for the Rector and the Senate regarding the conclusion of the agreement;
• Registers the agreement in the USOS system – IRO module;
• Archives the original of the agreement;
• Enters the agreement into the POL-on system.

The register of concluded agreements is available on the IRO website.

The Dean or Head of a UW unit submits the “Application for Approval of Participation in the Project” to the Vice-Rector for Cooperation and Human Resources.

The application, together with the attachments (project, letter of intent, etc.), should be sent as a scanned copy to the IRO or submitted in person at the International Relations Office (Krakowskie Przedmieście 26/28, Kazimierzowski Palace, 2nd Floor, Room No. 24).

University of Warsaw employees interested in concluding an Erasmus agreement are requested, as a first step, to:

• Contact the mobility coordinator in their unit.
• Contact Ms. Ewa Rak from the IRO (ewa.rak@adm.uw.edu.pl, tel. 22 55 20 560).

Erasmus Partners List

Regardless of whether the agreement is to be concluded at the request of the foreign entity or at the request of a UW unit, the application for concluding the agreement must be sent as a scanned copy to the IRO or directed to the Vice-Rector for Cooperation and Human Resources and submitted in person at the International Relations Office (Krakowskie Przedmieście 26/28, Kazimierzowski Palace, 2nd floor, Room 24), while simultaneously sending an electronic version of the agreement to: international@adm.uw.edu.pl.