Finance and Accounting at Cracow University of Economics (UEK): 2026/2027 Guide

 2. Financial Accounting (Department of Financial Accounting)

• Location: Pavilion F (Finance Pavilion) – computer and auditorium rooms.
• Form of elimination: “Big task” – a multi-hour test consisting of opening accounts, booking dozens of business operations, valuing assets and closing the balance sheet.
• Specifics: A legend item. One error at the beginning of the task (e.g. incorrect valuation of materials in the purchase price) results in the “roll-out” of the balance sheet and an unsatisfactory assessment. Students often take the dean’s office only to study exclusively this subject for a year.

3. Descriptive and Mathematical Statistics (Department of Statistics)

• Location: Pavilion C, rooms in the basement of the Main Building.
• Form of elimination: Multiple-choice tests with negative scoring and computational tasks.
• Specifics: Verification of data interpretation skills. FiR students often cope with calculations, but rely on the interpretation of results (e.g. verification of statistical hypotheses). Failure to pass the statistics in the first term usually means the need to fight in the September campaign.

4. Econometrics and Forecasting (Department of Econometrics)

• Location: Pavilion C, IT laboratories.
• Form of elimination: Defense of a project carried out in Gretl or MS Excel software + theoretical exam.
• Specifics: A subject blocking a diploma seminar. It requires a combination of economic knowledge with advanced computer science and statistics. The problem is the interpretation of the random component and heteroscedasticity.

5. Corporate Finance (Department of Finance)

• Location: Pavilion F and Sports and Didactic Pavilion (S).
• Form of elimination: Extensive case studies on NPV, IRR and WACC valuation.
• Specifics: Examiners emphasize financial logic. It is not enough to substitute data into a formula; The choice of funding must be justified. The pass rate in the first term oscillates around 55-60%.

6. Tax Law (Department of Law)

• Location: “Księżówka” building or Pavilion C.
• Form of elimination: Written exam (test + short case studies).
• Specifics: Material with enormous volume. The variability of regulations makes archival question exchanges often useless, which loses students based on materials from older grades.

The most difficult semester: Why is Semester 3 critical?

From the auditor’s perspective, Semester 3 (the beginning of the second year) is the moment when there is an accumulation of material that is unbearable for the average student. This is the so-called “Black Quarter”, where during one semester the student must pass:

1. Advanced financial accounting.
2. mathematical statistics.
3. Civil and Commercial Law.
4. Public finances.

An analysis of the timetable shows that students then have up to 30 contact hours per week, which, with the need to prepare accounting projects (often taking up 15-20 hours of own work per project), leads to chronic sleep deprivation. In addition, in Krakow during this period (November/December), campus logistics become cumbersome – Pavilion F and Pavilion C are separated by a distance that forces rapid movement in low temperature conditions during short breaks, which increases sick leave and results in missing notes.

Rescue procedures: Condition, Commission, Conditional entry

If a student fails a course in the retake session (September), he or she enters the administrative path. UEK is one of the most expensive universities in Krakow in terms of fees for repeating classes.

• Costs: The rate for 1 ECTS point in the field of FiR (full-time studies) in the 2026/2027 cycle is approximately PLN 120 – 150.
• Debt calculation: If a student “knocks down” Financial Accounting (7 ECTS) and Microeconomics (6 ECTS), the cost of conditional enrolment will be approx. 1820 – 1950 PLN. The fee must be paid in one lump sum or in installments (requires a separate application to the Bursar in Pavilion G).
• Deficit regulations: At the first cycle (bachelor’s degree), the allowable credit deficit after the first year is usually 12 ECTS. Exceeding this barrier by 1 point results in immediate deletion from the list of students.
• Board exam (Commission): Final procedure. The student has 7 days from the announcement of the results of the amendment to submit an application to the Dean of the College of Finance. The application must be substantiated (e.g. procedural errors, a grossly different range of questions than in the syllabus). The real chances of passing the commission at FiR are about 15-20% – the committee consists of three professors, and the exam is usually oral and extremely detailed.

USOS mechanics and the “War for Tokens”

For a student of Finance and Accounting at CUE, the USOSweb system is not just a database of grades, but a tool that can decide on the timely completion of studies. One of the most stressful processes is token registration for foreign language courses and subjects of free choice (the so-called OGUNs).

Registration for language courses: The trap of the B2+ level

At the Faculty of Economics and Business, the choice of a foreign language (often conducted in the Language Pavilion or in the buildings at Sienkiewicza Street) is associated with the need to pass the B2+ or C1 level. The technical problem is that the pool of places in the “business” groups (Business English/German) is limited. A student who does not “click” on a place in the first round is assigned to a group with a general profile or during hours that interfere with the Accounting exercises in Pavilion F. This results in the so-called administrative back – the course is not connected to the stage in USOS, which suspends the settlement of the semester and generates an artificial deficit of ECTS credits.

Group exchange and manual addition

If a student does not get into the selected exercise group, the only way is the so-called “group exchange” on year groups. However, the formal procedure requires a visit to the facilitator during his consultation hours (often in small rooms in Pavilion C or Księżówka) and obtaining written consent to add it. Then, with such “consent”, you should go to the Dean’s Office of the College of Finance. Failure to complete this formality during the first two weeks of the semester results in absences from the list in the USOS system, which is the basis for issuing a grade of 2.0 without the possibility of taking the exam.

Diploma Barrier: JSA, APD and Undergraduate Exam Systems

Many students of the Faculty of Philosophy at CUE drop out on the last straight – not because of a lack of knowledge, but because of the technical rigors of the graduation process.

JSA (Uniform Anti-Plagiarism System) on FiR

CUE applies strict parameters in the JSA system. Diploma theses in Finance are often based on the analysis of legal acts and accounting standards (e.g. the Accounting Act, IAS). If a student cannot use citations correctly, the JSA system shows a high similarity rate (often exceeding the acceptable 20-30%). Supervisors in the Department of Financial Accounting rarely allow such work to be defended, which results in failing the diploma seminar (10-15 ECTS) and being removed from the list of students at the very end of their studies.

Bachelor’s Exam: “The Great Verification”

The final exam at the Faculty of Electrical Engineering is not a formality. It consists of three questions: one from the field of study, one from the specialization and one about work.

• A database of exam questions (often numbering over 100 issues) is published on the website of the College of Finance. Questions in the field of Financial Theory and Financial Analysis require a synthesis of knowledge from three years. Failure to pass the defence results in the need to resume studies on the day of the defence in the following year, which is associated with the Rector’s fee for “repeating the seminar”.

ACCA and CIMA accreditations – Does this increase the level of difficulty?

The Faculty of Engineering at CUE has prestigious international accreditations, such as ACCA (Association of Chartered Certified Accountants) and CIMA. Although they are an asset on the labor market, they drastically increase the crossbar of credits.

The rigor of accredited exams

To obtain exemptions from ACCA exams, the student must pass specific subjects (e.g. Management Accounting, Audit, Taxes) with a grade of at least 4.0 or pass an external exam organized by the university in cooperation with ACCA.

• Result: Lecturers from the Department of Local Government Finance or the Department of Banking use answer keys that coincide with British standards. There is no room for a “description” here – either the financial result in the task is correct to two decimal places, or the task is zeroed. This generates additional stress and increases the number of people who give up the fight for accreditation, settling for a simple pass “with a three”.

Micro-logistics of the Rakowicka campus

The logistics of the UEK campus are theoretically simple, but the schedule of classes at FiR often puts students to the test of endurance.

15-minute breaks: GG vs Pavilion S

A typical scenario in the 2nd year: a lecture in the Main Building (GG), followed by exercises with PE in the Sports and Didactic Pavilion (S) or laboratories in Pavilion C.

• Problem: The distance between these buildings, although measured in hundreds of meters, during rush hour (when 2000 people change rooms) is difficult to cover in 15 minutes, especially when you have to leave your jacket in the cloakroom in the basements of GG.
• Impact on learning: Late entry fees in Financial Informatics (Building C) are punished with a grade of 2.0 in a given lesson unit. Three lapses in the semester often block the possibility of obtaining credit for exercises, which closes the way to the session.

Specifics of IT and Macroeconomics

1. Computer Science in Finance (ERP/SAP Systems)

• Location: Pavilion C, computer rooms.
• Form of elimination: Competency tests in financial and accounting software (often Symfonia or SAP).
• Specifics: The student must conduct a full accounting cycle in real time. If the system detects an error in the assignment of the invoice, it will not “close” the month, resulting in a 2.0 rating. It is a subject in which students “lecture” themselves technically, despite having a good knowledge of accounting theory.

2. Macroeconomics (Advanced Level)

• Location: Pavilion F or GG.
• Form of elimination: Written exam based on complex models (IS-LM, AD-AS).
• Specifics: Macroeconomics at the Faculty of Economics and Business of the University of Economics is not about GDP. This is pure macroeconomic mathematics. Students often fail to derive a formula for the money creation multiplier, which is a critical error. The pass rate in the September campaign with Makro rarely exceeds 60%.

“Last chance” procedures

When a student of the Faculty of Philosophy does not manage to pass all the subjects in the September campaign (e.g. due to an illness confirmed by a doctor at Rakowicka Street), he or she can apply for an extension of the exam session.

Formal conditions for the extension

The application must be submitted to the Dean before the end of the retake session.

• Deadlines: Typically, the session is extended by 7-14 days.
• Risks: If the student does not obtain an entry in USOS during this time, he loses the opportunity to apply for a condition  (conditional enrollment), because the system closes the academic year on 30 September. Failure to settle by that date results in the automatic generation of a deletion decision. Many people from FiR fall into this trap, waiting for the results of “queries” with professors, which take place after the official date of the session.

Why does Krakow “suck” FiR students?

Krakow is the second market for modern business services centers (BPO/SSC) after Warsaw. Companies such as State Street, Shell, HSBC and Capgemini have their offices in the areas of Czerwony Maki (Ruczaj) and Zabłocie.

The “Junior Accountant” trap

Students of the 3rd year of FiR take up full-time jobs en masse, tempted by benefits and corporate prestige.

• Conflict: Working from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. makes it impossible to participate in compulsory seminars in Księżówka.
• Result: Countless hours spent in office buildings at Armii Krajowej Street or Pawia Street translate into a lack of time to study Econometrics. As a result, a student who already earns PLN 6000 net loses the status of a CUE student, which in the long run blocks his promotion to the position of Senior or Manager (diploma required). This is the most common reason for drop-out for non-academic reasons.

Internships and formal requirements

Internships at the Faculty of Electrical Engineering of the UEK usually last 3-4 weeks (120-160 hours) and have 4 ECTS credits assigned. They are often seen as a “formality”, which is a mistake.

• Conflict of terms: Many people postpone internships until September, which interferes with the September campaign. Failure to complete the internship on time (no entry in the USOS by the end of September) generates a point deficit that may decide to delete it.
• Location of companies: CUE students most often end up in corporations in Krakow’s business centers: Quattro Business Park (Bora-Komorowskiego Street), Bonarka City Center (office buildings) or Enterprise Park (Zabłocie). It takes 25 to 45 minutes to get from the campus at Rakowicka to these locations by public transport (MPK), which should be included in the daily schedule.

Cost of Studying and Logistics in Krakow (Impact on Results)

Krakow is a logistics system that does not forgive planning mistakes.

• Access: The CUE campus is compact, but students often have to use external libraries (e.g. the Voivodeship Public Library on Rajska Street). It takes only a few minutes to take tram lines 2, 5, 10 or 50 from the Tunel under UEK Main Station, but during rush hours, traffic jams on Lubomirskiego and Rakowicka Streets can delay reaching the colloquium by a critical 15-20 minutes.
• Flat vs Results: Students living in cheaper districts (e.g. Nowa Huta, Bieżanów) lose about 90-120 minutes a day on commuting. This time, accumulated on a weekly basis (10 hours), is the difference between passing and freeing the Stats.
• Paid work: Krakow offers FiR students a job in accounting (Junior Accountant) as early as the 2nd year. Although earnings (approx. PLN 4500-5500 gross) are tempting, they “suck” the time needed to study blocking subjects, which is the most common cause of cancellations in the 3rd year of studies.

The most important questions about Finance and Accounting of the CUE

What to do if the USOS system blocks the registration due to the failure to connect the item?

In the USOS UEK system, errors often occur during the so-called token registration for language courses or subjects of free choice (OGUN). If the student does not attach the course to the appropriate programme and stage of study within the deadline (usually 14 days from the beginning of the semester), ECTS credits will not be credited. In such a situation, you should immediately go to the Dean’s Office (Hall C, ground floor) with a paper application for “manual attachment of the object”. If the deadline has passed, the only path is to request the reinstatement of the deadline to the Vice-Dean for Student Affairs. Ignoring this error results in the lack of settlement of the semester, which USOS interprets as a lack of progress in learning and may become the basis for initiating the deletion procedure.

What are the chances of postponing the date of the exam at the Department of Financial Accounting?

These chances are close to zero. The Department of Financial Accounting at CUE is famous for its iron term discipline. Exams in Pavilion F are planned six months in advance. The only real basis for postponing the date (or setting an additional date) is a documented hospital stay or death in a close family. An ordinary sick leave issued by a primary care physician is often questioned if it does not contain an annotation about the inability to move. Students often try to negotiate dates by the Starosts of the Year, but in the case of “kiler” subjects, the departments usually refer to the official session schedule published on the university’s website.

Can I return to studies in the resumption mode after being deleted for the ECTS deficit?

Yes, it is possible to resume studies, but it is subject to strict conditions. In accordance with the CUE Study Regulations, a student may resume studies for the same semester from which he or she was deleted, no earlier than after one semester. The key problem is the differences in the program. If the syllabus has changed in the meantime (which often happens at FiR due to changes in the Accounting Act), the student must pass additional subjects. The cost of renewal is not only the fee for the missing ECTS, but also the reactivation fee. Resumption for a diploma seminar after being deleted due to failure to submit a thesis on time is formally easier, but it involves the need to pay “seminar credits” (usually 10-15 ECTS).

What are the real rates for repeating a semester at CUE?

Repeating the semester is the most expensive rescue option. If a student has not obtained credit in most subjects and his deficit exceeds 12 ECTS, he cannot take the condition – he must repeat the semester. At FiR, the cost of repeating the entire semester (30 ECTS) is an expense of 3600 – 4500 PLN. In addition, there is the loss of a year and the need to re-attend all classes, even those that have theoretically been passed (unless the teacher agrees to rewrite the grade, which is not obligatory when repeating the semester). In USOS, the status of “repeating the stage” then appears, and the student loses the right to the rector’s scholarship for the entire next year.

Is there a “continuous session” at the Faculty of Law?

Officially, the CUE uses a session system (winter/summer). However, in practice, accounting departments often use the model of the so-called “credit colloquia”, which take place in the last week of classes. If a student fails such a colloquium, he or she is not admitted to the exam in the main session. This de facto means that for a FiR student, the session begins as early as mid-January and mid-June. The break between semesters at FiR often does not exist, because students spend it in the library, preparing for kindergarten.

Where is the best place to look for an apartment in Krakow in terms of CUE logistics?

The most logistically effective are the areas around Rakowicka Street, Lubomirskiego Street and Topolowa Street. They allow you to walk to the university in 5 minutes, which saves about 40 hours a month on commuting. A good alternative is Grzegórzki (near the Mogilskiego Roundabout) – from there you walk 10-15 minutes to the UEK. Students also often choose Czyżyny, from where it takes about 15-20 minutes to get there by tram 5, 52 or 4. Districts such as Ruczaj or Skawina are discouraged – collisions in the FiR timetable and long commutes to MPK during rush hours are the most common cause of late tickets and, as a consequence, laboratory failures.