How can I appoint a meeting with the career councillor?
Individual consultations with career councillors can be appointed by any professional dance artist. Consultations are free of charge and confidential.
Individual meetings are appointed by the coordinator of the programme, Monika Kaszewska (e-mail: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it., phone no. 22 657 20 05), on Thuesday from 11 am to 5 pm, and Wednesday from 2.30 pm to 5 pm. E-mail inquiries are usually addressed within 2 business days.
For more information on the consultations, please click here: meetings with career councillors
Is it only possible to meet with the career councillor in Warsaw?
Career councillors mostly work in Warsaw, however it is also possible to appoint consultations elsewhere. Our career councillors can make it to any Polish city provided that they are scheduled to consult at least 4 persons.
Is the meeting with the career councillor mandatory to apply for the scholarship?
Yes, at least one meeting with the career councillor is required in order to file a scholarship application. The reference issued by the career councillor is an integral part of every scholarship application.
We recommend that you meet with the career councillor at your earliest convenience in order to maximize the process of building your individual professional transition and to better fill out your scholarship application. As per our experience and first hand testimonies from dancers, a meeting (or a series of meetings) with the councillor helps the applicant make an informed choice regarding their transition path, and improves the quality of their scholarship application.
I am not planning my professional transition as of now – can I appoint a meeting with the career councillor nonetheless?
Yes, the free consultations with the career councillor and psychologist are available to any professional dancer, regardless of their age and work experience.
Professional development and career planning are long-term processes which often span months, if not years. We therefore encourage everyone to benefit from meetings with professionals working with the Programme as soon into your professional career as possible.
I know what courses/studies I want to complete – am I still required to meet with the career councillor?
A face-to-face meeting with the career councillor is mandatory because their written reference forms an integral part of the scholarship application. The councillor may also assist you in proper professional development and education, and help you fill out the scholarship application.
What should I do if I have no idea what I would like to do professionally once I give up my stage career?
Meetings with the professional councillor have proven to be very effective in such situations – the councillor will assist you in determining your predispositions and fortes, while also helping you plan your new career and choose the most adequate transition path.
Who can apply for the scholarship?
Applications for the scholarship can be filed by any professional dance artist with at least 12 years of documented work experience as dancer-performer.
In special cases (e.g. injuries prohibiting one from continuing their stage career), the documented work experience may be shorter.
Detailed information on the calculation and documentation of work experience can be found below, in point II.
Who can help me in filling out the scholarship application and budgetary calculations?
The persons you may turn to when filling out the documentation include specialists working with the programme:
Monika Kaszewska (coordinator) responds to basic queries related to the programme and appoints meetings with career councillor.
Anna Čemeljić (scholarship application coordinator) assists in preparing scholarship application budgets.
Dobrosława Choryńska-Chudy and Ewa Warchoł (career councillors) assists candidates in a logical and efficient professional transition planning, maximizing applicants’ predispositions and streamlining their choices in ways that ensure their success on the job market. Dobrosława and Ewa also direct applicants towards the most effective solutions for a given transition path, and offer advice at every stage of preparation of the scholarship application.
For more information on the project team, click here.
Am I obliged to inform my employer about my professional transition plans?
There is no such obligation; the entire preparation and realization of your individual professional transition plan implemented as part of the Programme is confidential.
Dancers do not have to notify their current employers about receiving support from the Programme at any stage of its implementation (meetings with career councillor, psychologist, queries to coordinators, participation in workshop, preparation and filing of the application, implementation of activities related to professional transition using scholarship funds).
The Programme’s website will publish the list of scholarship recipients only once they complete their professional transition using scholarship funds.
Will anyone know that I have submitted the application?
No. Individual consultations, as well as the preparation and implementation of the scholarship application is confidential, which means that no-one apart from the applicant themselves may inform others of the fact. The access to the application throughout its preparation, evaluation and implementation is restricted to the career councillor, project coordinators, and evaluation committee. Each of those entities are obliged to keep the aforementioned information confidential and are prohibited from disclosing the personal data of scholarship applicants.
How can I calculate my work experience?
Your work experience is the sum total of all your employment periods as dancer-performer. Work experience does not include: ballet school education, dance studies or other tertiary dance education, work experience as dance teacher, choreographer and other dance professions. Work experience may include: maternity leave, child care leave, and medical leave. For ways to document your work experience as dancer, please refer to the Scholarship programme terms and conditions in point III below.
I have no permanent employment contract and have worked based on one-off engagements – will such contracts be sufficient to document my work experience as professional dancer?
Yes, contracts for the performance of a work (Polish: “Umowa o dzieło”), which regulate your engagement as a dancer-performer of an artistic piece, may be included in calculating your work experience, provided that the income from those contracts amounts to a minimum of 70% of your total professional income. In practice, this means that e.g. 2-3 contracts for single performances annually will not be enough – you must document that dancing is your main source of income.
I have not kept all of my contracts to-date, is there any other way for me to document my work experience?
In special cases (e.g. if you have lost some of your contracts), you may document your work experience by providing programmes, posters, information about your performances posted online, or photographs documenting your presentations.
If I started working as professional dancer after 1 January 2009, how long should my period of employment be to entitle me to file a scholarship application?
1 January 2009 is the watershed date. Each day of documented work as professional dancer after 1 January 2009 entitles you to apply for the scholarship in the Programme.
Can I receive funds to participate in more than one course/training/workshop, etc.?
Yes, it is possible to plan several courses, trainings or workshops, provided that the applicant thoroughly justifies the need to complete several different (cycles of) courses, trainings, workshops in their application.
Can I use the scholarship to establish my own business?
Recipients are prohibited from financing direct costs of establishing their own business, but they may receive organizational assistance: career councillors may help the applicant seek organizational support (including financial assistance) for individuals who plan to establish their own business, and assist them in applying with those organizations. Scholarship recipients may also use the scholarship to finance courses and trainings preparing them to run their own business.
Can I include the purchase of handbooks, equipment or specialist software in the budget?
Applicants are expected to use the scholarship awarded as part of the Programme for their professional development; it cannot be used to purchase any materials, equipment, etc.
Do I have to pay for studies/trainings/courses out of my own pocket?
Putting up one’s own money is not required. Selected studies, trainings, or courses should be paid for solely once the applicant is granted a scholarship. Once the scholarship committee grants it, a scholarship contract is drawn and signed by both parties, and the recipient receives the first tranche of the scholarship—these funds should be used to cover all professional transitions expenses throughout the first year of the scholarship. Subsequent tranches are paid out at the beginning of each consecutive year of the scholarship.
I am in the middle of my course/studies, can I apply for the reimbursement of my expenses so far?
The scholarship does not include the reimbursement of previously incurred expenses, but it may be used to cover the remainder of the applicant’s course/studies.
When can I apply for the subsidization of my cost of living?
Only the candidates disabled from taking up gainful employment due to the mode of their education (full-time studies, several-months course with classes on weekdays, etc.) or gratuitous internship may apply for the subsidization of the cost of living throughout their transition education.
Can I apply for additional subsidies for living expenses if I lose my job during my professional transition?
Once the application is accepted, and the applicant receives the scholarship, it is impossible to apply for additional funding, including subsidization of the cost of living.
Can I be compensated for additional expenses if the cost of my course/commute/lodging goes up in the course of my professional transition?
Once the applicant’s professional transition plan is accepted along with the original budget, receiving additional funding as part of the Programme is impossible.
I plan to commute to my course/studies by car, how can I document the travelling expenses?
Car commute should be documented based on the applicant’s statement. In this case, travelling expenses can be reimbursed up to the price of public transportation fares en route of the applicant’s commute (this provision should be adopted when calculating travelling expenses in the applicant’s scholarship budget).
How should I settle the costs incurred throughout my professional transition education?
All expenses incurred in the course of the applicant’s professional transition must be documented by invoices or bills issued to the scholarship recipient.
When will I be notified of receiving the scholarship?
Scholarship recipients are notified by phone or by e-mail within three weeks from the date on which they submitted their application.
Once the scholarship is awarded, what subsequent formal steps are involved?
Once the applicant is notified of being awarded the scholarship, the applicant receives a contract template which they verify and fill out.
Why do I have to abandon my stage career within a year from the end of the scholarship?
It is paramount that the theoretical knowledge gained in the course of the scholarship be used within the shortest possible period following the completion of the applicant’s professional transition. Practices, internship, or taking up a new job in the new profession during the applicant’s professional transition or directly afterwards enable the applicant to gain professional experience and new qualifications required to bolster their skills en route to the new career path, which directly translates into their prospects on the job market. A person who applies for a job in a given profession directly after completing their training is more desirable and credible to their prospective employer than a person who has stuck with their former career despite completing their training in a new profession.
Where can I learn more about the workshops?
For detailed information on the workshops, please click here.
Every dancer may also subscribe to the newsletter and receive e-mail updates on the upcoming workshops organized across the country, as well as the proposed workshop topics.
Who can participate in the workshops?
The workshops are addressed to all active or retired professional dance artists. Participation in the workshops is free of charge.
Are the workshops organized solely in Warsaw?
The workshops are organized nationwide, provided that a group of at least 5 participants commits to the idea and proposes convenient dates (the workshops may take place on any day of the week). If you are interested in participating in the workshops, you should contact Monika Kaszewska by phone or e-mail (This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it., phone no. 22 829 20 05 (Mondays, 2 pm – 5 pm, Tuesdays 9 am – 5 pm).
Can I register for the workshops if I have not planned to begin my professional transition yet?
The workshops are addressed to all professional dancers, whether active or retired, regardless of their age, work experience, and professional situation. You are more than welcome to attend them.
Do I have to participate in the workshops in order to receive subsidies?
The workshops provide applicants with an additional chance to benefit from the knowledge and assistance extended by the career councillor and psychologist. Participation in the workshop is not a mandatory precondition, however applicants are strongly encouraged to use this opportunity. As per our experience and first hand testimonies from dancers, those who participate in the workshops find it much easier to plan their professional future and fill out the scholarship application.
