Are you a researcher looking for funding? Do you help administer research projects and need answers? Or are you still weighing up your options for a career in research? Join us in Katowice this May for the National Science Centre Days. Registration for the workshops is now open.
The National Science Centre Days are held once a year in one of Poland’s academic cities. On 6 and 7 May, the NCN office will symbolically change address. At the invitation of the University of Silesia, the leader of the Academic Consortium, we are returning to Katowice to meet researchers from Silesian research institutions, as well as the administrative staff who manage grants day to day. We are also delighted to welcome those involved in research data management, along with students considering a career in research. The programme includes panel discussions, hands-on workshops and talks.
Over the two days in May, we will be talking about what basic research is, how competitive research funding works, and what opportunities the National Science Centre offers researchers at every stage of their careers: from those just taking their first steps in research, through PhD holders with several years’ experience, to the most seasoned scientists pursuing pioneering work. In the workshops, we will share tips on what to look out for when designing your research and completing an NCN proposal, and on how to navigate the requirements set out in funding agreements when delivering and reporting on a project.
New research horizons and their impact: open discussions
On 6 May, we invite you to a series of open events held under the banner “New Research Horizons”. The panel discussions will explore, among other things, the tension between caution and breakthrough in research. Together with researchers from Silesian institutions and members of the NCN Council, we will consider how the design of the grant system affects how bold researchers dare to be when planning their work. We will also discuss the pressure to be productive in academia and its impact on research ethics, both under the current evaluation system and in light of the rules for reporting on grants. We will reflect on how the various formal requirements researchers face shape their everyday decisions about disseminating their results. To close the NCN Days on 7 May, we will talk about the invisible costs of success, discussing the wider challenges that researchers working in Poland grapple with daily, as well as the mechanisms of professional burnout.
Workshops at the NCN Days
The 2026 NCN Days will be packed with workshops for a variety of audiences.
Workshops for researchers – 7 May
If you are planning to apply for a research project grant, join our proposal evaluation workshop, run as a mock session of an expert team evaluating proposals – known as a mock panel. The workshops are led by Scientific Coordinators: NCN staff who work with the experts day in, day out, and who are responsible for organising the work of the panels and evaluating project proposals submitted to NCN. During the workshops, participants will step into the experts’ shoes. They will work with real proposals, whose authors have agreed to their use for training purposes. The proposals have been modified to include the most common mistakes made by applicants. By adopting the expert’s perspective, participants will learn what to pay attention to when working on their own projects.
Registration is open until 31 March.
Research data management workshops – 7 May
The workshops are intended for those who deal with research data management on a daily basis: researchers, administrative staff (e.g. in libraries, project support offices and research departments) and students. We will talk about what to look out for when completing a Data Management Plan, in terms of both NCN requirements and the good practices and standards adopted by research communities. The workshops will include group work.
Registration is open until 31 March.
Workshops on administering NCN projects – 6 and 7 May
This session is intended for administrative staff of research institutions and will run as full-day workshops on 6 and 7 May. The event will be led by NCN staff directly involved in administering research projects and liaising with the staff of research institutions. We will cover a range of issues arising over the life of a project, from the signing of the funding agreement through to completion. Among other things, we will explain how to amend an agreement, how to prepare interim and final reports, and how to settle and close a project. There will also be time for detailed questions from participants. Participation in these workshops is open exclusively to administrative staff of the universities and institutions co-organising the NCN Days. To register, please contact the department responsible for the administrative support of research projects at your home institution.
Motivational workshops for researchers – 7 May
A new addition to the NCN Days programme is a motivational workshop entitled “Giving the Researcher’s Mind a Break: an Antidote to Academic Overload”. It is open to active researchers who would like to learn practical strategies for protecting their wellbeing and preventing burnout. Registration for the workshop will be handled by the University of Silesia; details will follow shortly.
OUTLINE PROGRAMME OF THE NCN DAYS 2026
Organisers of the NCN Days 2026
The NCN Days are organised by the National Science Centre together with the University of Silesia, leader of a consortium of seven Silesian public universities: the Academic Consortium – Katowice City of Science. The consortium comprises: the Karol Szymanowski Academy of Music in Katowice, the Academy of Fine Arts in Katowice, the Jerzy Kukuczka Academy of Physical Education in Katowice, the University of Economics in Katowice, the Silesian University of Technology, the Medical University of Silesia and the University of Silesia in Katowice. All NCN Days events will take place on the University of Silesia campus, on Bankowa and Uniwersytecka Streets in Katowice.