Patriotic Students to help defend Poland

With Russian territorial aggression on the rise Poland’s Ministry of Defense is starting a new program to give university students military training as part of a volunteer-based “Academic Legion,” which upon completion will see the students enlisted into the country’s reserve forces. 

It is not a new idea.  The Academic Legion (German: Akademische Legion) was a military organization formed by university students in Vienna during the Revolutions of 1848.

The new Polish initiative, which begins this Fall, is a joint venture between the Ministry of Defense and the Ministry of Science and Higher Education. 

Patriotic Students in Poland

There will be 10,000 openings for the training of privates and non-commissioned officers. Starting in November universities will start classroom training . During the holidays students will undergo practical field training.

The students will be given 30 hours of lectures and theoretical studies followed by a 22-day boot camp. The volunteers will then be sworn into the Polish military reserve.

Females training in Poland

A recent survey conducted of university students showed 45 percent would enlist “without needing to be persuaded.” The most eager to enlist were students from eastern and central Poland, according to the MoD’s survey.

Under communist rule, each university in Poland gave its students mandatory week-long military training. Then the Polish People's Republic was an ally of the Soviet Union, the current Polish government sees Russia as a threat.