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Karkonoska Akademia Nauk Stosowanych w Jeleniej Górze | |
Former name | Kolegium Karkonoskie, Karkonoska Państwowa Szkoła Wyższa, |
|---|---|
| Type | Public |
| Established | July 1, 1998 |
| Affiliation | Socrates-Erasmus |
| Students | 764[2] (2022) |
| Address | 18 Lwówecka Street , , Lower Silesian Voivodeship , Poland[3] 50°54′50″N 15°43′48″E / 50.914°N 15.730°E |
| Language | Polish |
| Nickname | AZS KANS Jelenia Góra |
| Website | www |
The Karkonosze University of Applied Sciences (Polish: Karkonoska Akademia Nauka Stosowanych w Jeleniej Górze or simply KANS) is a public university in Jelenia Góra, Lower Silesian Voivodeship, Poland. It was established on 1 July 1998 as Karkonosze College (Polish: Kolegium Karkonoskie),[4] and has beared its current name since 2 May 2022.[5]
This college is financed by the Ministry of Science and Higher Education. The educational aim of the college is to provide higher education to people who have no possibility of studying at far-removed academic centres, such as Wrocław.[6].
The impulse to create the first college of Jelenia Góra which would have its headquarters in the city was the working of Polish Sejm on a law that would allow to create State Higher Vocational Schools. This idea was supported by local politicians, Mayor of the city and representatives of College of Rectors of Universities from Wrocław and Opole. The efforts were finalized in July of 1998 by the creation of a college which allowed for studies at the bachelor level, which, as the only state college of its type, was named "Kolegium Karkonoskie". It was also one of the very first six State Colleges created in Poland.[7].
The duties of the very first rector were given by the Minister of Education Mirosław Handke to chemist Tomasz Winnicki, who uptook the mission of creating the new college from zero.[8]
The first academic year begun on 1 October 1998 in two newly created Institutes: of Education and of Languages and Literatures, which became a successor of liquidated at the time Teacher's College in Jelenia Góra.[9]
In 1999 the third educational unit was created - the Institute of Technology.[10] One year later, there were 2 new Institutes: of Western Languages and Institute of Medical Education.[11] The creation of the Institute of Western Languages began the process of joining the college with Teacher's College in Jelenia Góra. On other hand, the Institute of Medical Education was created based upon the Vocational Set of Medical School in Jelenia Góra-Cieplice. The Karkonosze College was one of the very first State Colleges in the country to get permission for establishing bachelor studies in medical sciences.[12].
When celebrating the new academic year 2003/2004, the was an official opening of a new campus of the college, located at 18 Lwówecka Street. It was also a celebration of 5 years of functioning of the college.[13] In the next academic year, all of the educational and administrative units were in one place. The important changes in the functioning of th college came in academic year 2007/2008, because it was reorganized, transforming the previous 5 Institutes: of Education, Slavic Languages, Technology, Western Languages and of Medical Education in three Faculties: of Humanities, Natural Sciences and Technical.[14] After some years, these got converted into just two: of Social Sciences and Humnanities and of Natural Sciences and Technology. In incoming years new academic building were opened - in 2007 new Library and Scientific Information Centre.[15] In 2010 the Karkonosze College changed its name into Karkonosze State College in Jelenia Góra. On 2 May 2022 the name got changed into Karkonosze Academy of Applied Sciences in Jelenia Góra. It was possible, because the Polish President, Andrzej Duda in August of 2021 signed the novelisation of the law concerning State Colleges of Vocational Education. The new law allowed for a State College - after fulfilling some requirements - to get a name of "Academy of Applied Sciences".[5]
KANS offers studies in part-time and full-time mode - bachelor, bachelor of engineering (which last for 7 semester or 3.5 years) or singular master (which last 5 years). There are 16 degrees to choose from (in 2025)[16]:
The university also offers non-degree postgraduate studies (Polish: studia podyplomowe)[17]:
In academic year 2020/2021 KANS offered the following educational courses[17]::

At first, headquarters of various institutes and rectorship were localized in various parts of Jelenia Góra[18]:
Established in 1999 Institute of Technology was using buildings made avilable by Wrocław University of Tehcnology branch in Cieplice. Before that, the City of Jelenia Góra has gifted KANS with a villa for needs of rectorate and administration for renavations on Zamojski 7 Street[19]. At that moment there was a plan of making the university campus in Cieplice, which was related to the possibility of claiming a building which was housing Teacher's College on Cieplicka 16 Street. It became a property of KANS in 2000, and was housing the Institute of Technology[20]..
In the same year, there were created the Institute of Medical Education and the institute of Western Languages. The university classes of the first one were happening in object of former Medical schools of Anna Rydlówna in Cieplice (Leśna 5 Street). that school possessed a gym hall, remade into an auditory and a dormitory, which got adapted into a student residence hall. the second institute was a former Teachers' College of Foreign Languages, whose building were located at Wolności 38 Street.[21].
The main campus of KANS was finally located in the North-west part of the city, on the right side of the Bóbr river on Lwówecka Street 18. It was once a college and military barracks with a park - the whole area is 12,5 ha. It became the property of the college on 1 October 2003.[19] In the first order, the place on campus was reserved for library and Center of Scientific information of KANS, Department of Teaching, inter-institute Facility of Job placements, and plenipotents of Rector for College development and disabled People.[22]
With the beginning of academic year 2004/2005, all didactive and administrative units were moved to the new campus. it was then where project of rebuilding former military mensa into library and Center of Scientific Information, which was finalized in the summer of 2007. The college is since then using the building located on Lwówecka 18 Street.[23].
KANS, from the moment of creation, is cooperating with the universities and academies of Wrocław, such as University of Wrocław, Wrocław University of Technology, Wrocław Medical University, Wrocław University of Economics and Wroclaw University of Health and Sport Sciences[24].
The university has contacts with universities from Czechia and Germany, which cooperate via Academic Coordination Centre of Euroregion Neisse-Nisa-Nysa. The universities have formal agreements of cooperation, with KANS hoping in future to recruit new students from the area of European space of education and research.[25].