ABSTRACT
Polish higher education radically changed following the political transformation of the late 1980s, when new types of institutions started to emerge in response to changing social aspirations with regard to higher education. A new legal framework enabled private institutions to become state recognized higher education providers, and a variety of stakeholders (individuals, international and domestic foundations, associations and companies) could establish a non-public higher education institution, after meeting the requirements set by the Ministry of National Education. However, while the diplomas they awarded were recognized by the state, the non-public institutions did not enjoy equal access to the state financial support system subsidizing teaching in higher education and were excluded from the system of state funding for research (Duczmal 2006).
