Our PhD Students

I am a first-year doctoral student at the Doctoral School of the University of National Education Commission in Krakow, specializing in mathematics since October 2024. I completed my bachelor’s studies at the State Higher Vocational School in Tarnów in the year 2021, majoring in mathematics with a specialization in mathematics and computer science in finance. I earned my master’s degree at the Pedagogical University of the National Education Commission in Krakow in 2023, specializing in teacher-oriented mathematics. Additionally, in 2024, I completed postgraduate studies in teaching chemistry.

My bachelor’s thesis, titled “Ellipse, Hyperbola, and Parabola in the Metric Approach”, focused on investigating the geometric properties of conic sections in the most well-known metrics. Fragments of this thesis formed the basis of a scientific article titled “Conic Curves in Jungle River Metric”, published in the journal Annales Universitatis Paedagogicae Cracoviensis | Studia ad Didacticam Mathematicae Pertinentia. My master’s thesis, titled “The Equation Characterizing Linear Similarities”, aimed to explore characteristic equations that describe geometric similarities in linear spaces. The main findings of this work contributed to a better understanding of geometric relationships and their applications in functional analysis.

My research focuses on functional analysis and the geometry of Banach spaces. In my studies, I will examine the geometric properties of Banach spaces characterized by exact and approximate orthogonality relations. The goal of this research is to deepen our understanding of the structure of Banach spaces.

I am also a certified chemical technology technician. In my free time, I conduct extracurricular lessons for primary, secondary school students, and university students, helping them develop their mathematical and chemical skills. Outside of academia, I am passionate about the Christmas season, winter as a time of year, and mountain hiking. I enjoy solving logic puzzles, playing board and computer games, watching Świat według Kiepskich, and building LEGO models.

Artem Susolia – an ethnic Ukrainian who was born in Myrhorod, Ukraine.
In 2017, he arrived in Poland and began studying at the University of Silesia in Katowice. In 2022, he graduated magister at Jagiellonian University in Krakow in the discipline of political science and administration. Currently he is a doctoral student at the Doctoral School of Pedagogical University in Cracow. Academic interests: international relations, history of international relations, transformation processes and democratization in the world.

Doctoral Student in the field of literary studies in the Doctoral School of the Pedagogical University of Crocow (since 2020). Graduated from the theatre studies at Jagiellonian University (2019). His main research interest is 20^th century’s theatre (especially the theatre of the absurd and the Japanese theatre and dramaturgy of that period).

His dissertation is going to be dedicated to theatrical and dramaturgical works of Japanese writer Abe Kōbō (1924-1993). The dissertation will focus on the matters of the changes that occurred in Abe’s dramaturgy throughout his career (both at a theme and formal level) as well as the actor’s training methods Abe introduced within self-founded theatre group – Abe Kōbō Studio.

He submitted a doctoral thesis entitled “Analiza dramaturgicznej i teatralnej twórczości Abe Kõbõ”

Krzysztof Szastok – a doctoral student at the University of the Commission of National Education in Krakow in the discipline of legal sciences and a trainee judge at the National School of Judiciary and Public Prosecution.

He graduated from law studies at the Jagiellonian University in Cracow defending his master’s thesis entitled “Death row phenonemon: definition and analysis of case law”.

His scientific interests include issues of substantive criminal law and legal history.

A PhD candidate in sociology, holding an MA in political science (master’s thesis defended at the Pedagogical University on the origins of the dictatorship of Suharto in Indonesia).
His academic interests include economic sociology, labour sociology, political economy and twentieth-century history. He is currently preparing a doctoral dissertation combined radical sociology of labour and political economy.

She is a PhD candidate in linguistics and holds an MA in English Philology. She completed her undergraduate and graduate studies in English Philology with a specialization in Translation Studies at the University of the National Education Commission in Kraków. She was awarded her MA degree in 2025 for a thesis devoted to the translation of selected excerpts from Chłopki by Joanna Kuciel-Frydryszak.

Her research interests focus on the translation of non-fiction literature, issues related to the translation of non-standard language, and the role of the translator as an intercultural mediator. An important area of her research also includes challenges connected with rendering social and cultural realities in translation.

Her planned doctoral dissertation will examine the translation of Romuald Spasowski’s autobiography, with particular emphasis on the language of diplomacy and its functioning in translation.

e-mail: d751439@doktorant.uken.krakow.pl

A doctoral student at the Pedagogical University in Cracow in the field of political science and administration. A graduate of master’s studies in political science at the Jagiellonian University and the first and second degree studies in politics and administration at the Cracow University of Economics. In his master’s thesis he explored the issue of communication in the candidate-citizen relationship during parliamentary elections (master’s degree in political science) as well as the issue of economic current of companies-ideas (master’s degree in politics and administration).

His current research interests include social communication, especially political communication. In his dissertation he deals with the issue of political transfers in the Third Republic of Poland, ethics in politics and multimodal transfers. Dissertation is carried out under the scientific supervision of Professor Agnieszka Walecka-Rynduch.

Doctoral student of the University of the National Education Commission in the discipline of literary studies. A graduate of cultural studies.

During her undergraduate studies, she examined the literary works of Konstantin Paustovsky, analyzing the presence of Romantic motifs in Socialist Realist prose. Her master’s thesis focused on an analysis of the literary works of Jean-Paul Sartre.

Currently, as part of her doctoral research, she is studying the “Poetics of the Poles” based on the journals of 20th-century Polish polar explorers. She is also interested in the literature and culture of Scandinavian countries.

PhD student at the Doctoral School of the Pedagogical University of Cracow in the field of art studies. Graduate of art history at John Paul II Catholic University of Lublin. Independent curator and educator of contemporary art. Expert in cultural accessibility, ally of persons with disabilities.

Author of the projects and exhibitions combining social issues with contemporary art and education. Recipient of the Bogna Olszewska Scholarship by from the Museum of Modern Art in Warsaw and the Bogna Olszewska Nieograniczona Foundation (2024). Winner of the Lublin Mayor’s Award in the field of cultural promotion for the Accessible Gallery project (2022). Recipient of a scholarship from the Mayor of Lublin (travel scholarship, Porto, 2019). Winner of the Żurawie – Lublin Cultural Awards in the category of cultural animation (2017).

In her academic work, she analyses the impact of contemporary art exhibitions on viewers, develops and tests accessibility tools, and studies the art of self-advocates. In her doctoral dissertation, she develops the concept of accessibility aesthetics by analysing selected examples of Polish contemporary art exhibitions.

A graduate of Psychology with a clinical specialization at the University of the National Education Commission, Krakow. His scientific interests focus on cognitive neuroscience, self-regulation, and new technologies for optimizing brain function. The foundation of these research pursuits is his personal interest in a healthy lifestyle and factors influencing general psychophysical well-being.

The research project carried out at the Doctoral School constitutes an extension of the topic undertaken in his master’s thesis regarding the influence of transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) on the biological basis of temperament. Currently, his research expands the neuromodulation paradigm to include mindfulness training in order to verify the synergistic influence of prefrontal cortex stimulation and mental training on executive attention and physiological markers of self-regulation.

Sadaf Tahir, born in Islamabad, Rawalpindi, has started her doctoral school journey at Department of Political Science and Public Administration, Pedagogical University of Krakow since 2022. Before starting PhD, she was working as Assistant Director (Coordination) at Higher Education Commission (Pakistan). She has also served in a number of national and international development organizations in different capacities.

Sadaf graduated from the department of Public Administration, Fatima Jinnah Women University. Her PhD thesis topic is “University-led SDG Multi-Stakeholder Partnerships as Policy Advisory System: Rethinking the Role of the Government” supervised by prof. dr hab. Jacek Sroka.

Research interests: public sector institutions, higher education, public policy

Michał Tokarz jest doktorantem w Szkole Doktorskiej Uniwersytetu Pedagogicznego im. Komisji Edukacji Narodowej w Krakowie, w dyscyplinie sztuki plastyczne i konserwacja dzieł sztuki. Absolwent Grafiki oraz Art&Design  na Uniwersytecie Pedagogicznym im. KEN w Krakowie.

Głównymi zainteresowaniami artystyczno-badawczymi są zagadnienia związane z relacjami ludzi pomiędzy sobą, oraz w sytuacji człowiek – przestrzeń, człowiek – przedmiot.

Działania artystyczne zwykle opiera na osobistych doświadczeniach, pozwalających mocniej zaangażować się w przedstawianą historię. Projekty artystyczne oscylują wokół antropologii wizualnej, kulturowej i socjologii. W swoich realizacjach korzysta często z materii organicznej oraz z obiektów ready-made. Posługuje się szerokim spektrum mediów artystycznych, zarówno tradycyjnych, jak i nowych.

W swojej pracy doktorskiej zajmuje się badaniem figury domu rodzinnego pod kątem zamieszkiwania oraz kształtowania się mieszkańca i domu we wzajemnej relacji.

PhD student in the discipline of biological sciences. A graduate of MA studies in the field of biology with teaching nature and health education at the Pedagogical University in Krakow and postgraduate studies in chemistry with elements of environmental protection at the AGH University of Science and Technology in Krakow.

A teacher of biology, chemistry and nature in a primary school near Krakow. Member of the Polish Association of Natural Science Teachers. OKE matriculation examiner in biology.

Her research interests focus particularly on human biology. The subject of the future doctoral dissertation will be the study of the content of xenobiotics in human fetal tissues and their transfer from the mother’s body to the child’s body during pregnancy and breastfeeding.

I am a PhD candidate in the field of social sciences, specializing in pedagogy, at the University of the National Education Commission in Kraków. I completed both my bachelor’s and master’s degrees in social and care pedagogy with elements of educational therapy. My research interests focus on the education of individuals with special needs, working with people at risk of social marginalization, the integration and inclusion of children in educational and social environments, as well as methods of supporting the development of children and young people. I am a member of the University Council for Science and Culture and a certified bibliotherapist.

PhD candidate at the Institute of Law, Economics and Administration of the University of the Commission of National Education in Krakow (UKEN). She is a graduate in Law, with research interests in analytical jurisprudence and constitutional law. Her doctoral dissertation, “The Transformation of Moral Norms into Legal Norms: An Analytical Jurisprudence Perspective”, is supervised by dr hab. Czesław Kłak, with dr Dorota Ferenc-Kopeć as assistant supervisor.

My name is Nhat My Tran from Vietnam. I am currently a member of Kien Giang University, Vietnam, and a first-year PhD student in Biological Sciences at the Institute of Biology and Earth Sciences. My research project, titled ‘Elemental pollution from waterfowl hunting in wetlands – an experimental model for transfer and remediation’, focuses on developing sustainable solutions to address the problem of heavy metal pollution in wetlands. I am excited about the opportunity to study and collaborate with everyone at UKEN. I wish you all the best of luck!

My name is Van Pham Tran, I am from Vietnam.

In 2024, I am a first-year PhD student in the field of Education with a special interest in digital transformation in teacher training. Currently, I am pursuing research on digital transformation in Geography teacher training.

My research orientation focuses on systematizing digital transformation’s theoretical and practical basis in Geography teacher training at Educational Universities. The goal is to assess the current status of digital transformation applications in training, and identify strengths, limitations, challenges, and opportunities. Based on that, I propose solutions to optimize the integration of digital technology to improve training quality.

In the context of the Industrial Revolution 4.0, digital transformation in education is increasingly focused on, becoming an inevitable requirement for teachers and training institutions. My research hopes to contribute to improving the quality of Geography teacher training through the effective exploitation of digital technologies, supporting Educational Universities in Vietnam to adapt and develop in the digital age.

I am a PhD student at the Doctoral School of the University of the Commission of National Education in Krakow, specialising in Pedagogy, starting from October 2024.

I am a lecturer at the University of Science and Education, University of Danang, Vietnam. I received a bilateral scholarship from Poland and Vietnam to pursue my doctoral studies.

My research focuses on investigating the challenges of developing Teacher Educators’ Digital Competence in Vietnamese Higher Education during the Digital Transformation Era. This study examines factors at many levels to provide comprehensive insights and strategies for enhancing digital competence among Teacher Educators in Vietnam.

PhD student at the University of the National Education Commission in Krakow in the discipline of legal sciences. She defended her master’s thesis titled: “Forensic expert opinion in a criminal procedure”.

As part of her doctoral studies, she pursues her academic interests in criminal procedure, criminology and medical jurisprudence.

Beside PhD studies she works in a corporation in the legal department, she deals with crimes related to anti bribery & corruption and anti-money laundering (ABC,AML) .

I am a PhD student in the humanities in the discipline of history. I completed my bachelor’s (2021) and master’s (2023) studies at the Pedagogical University of Cracow in the field of history. The topic of my bachelor’s thesis was Family life of saint women of the ruling courts in Poland, Bohemia and Hungary in the 13th century and my master’s thesis was entitled Convents of the Beguines in Silesia and Lesser Poland in the Middle Ages. In addition, I completed my bachelor’s degree in Historical Tourism and Cultural Heritage (2022) on the basis of my thesis Sir Lancelot over the river Bóbr – proposition for a touristic offer for the Ducal Tower in Siedlęcin. During my studies I actively participated in the activities of the Student Research Circle of the Institute of History and Archival Studies.

My research concentrates on medieval history. I am preparing a dissertation on the sociotopography of the town of Kazimierz near Krakow in the Middle Ages (XIV-XV c.) under the supervision of Professor Jerzy Rajman. My research interests revolve around towns and burghers, monastic life, hagiography and courtly culture.