On January 15, a ceremonial award presentation for the second edition of the Competition for the Best Thesis in Public Finance, organized by the Institute of Public Finance (IFP), took place at the Senate of the Republic of Poland. The event brought together representatives of academia, public administration, and the financial sector, as well as the competition’s laureates—young researchers addressing key challenges facing the country’s public finances.
The ceremony was opened by Patrycja Satora, Vice President of the Institute of Public Finance, who emphasized that from the very beginning the competition was conceived as a space for young people who are not only interested in public finance, but also have the courage to speak on the subject in a reliable, analytical, and socially responsible way.
“When we created this competition together with Sławomir Dudek, the founder and President of the Institute of Public Finance, we were guided by one fundamental assumption: without knowledge of public finance there can be no good public debate, and without such debate there can be no durable and stable state institutions,” said Patrycja Satora.
As she stressed, public finance is a complex system that requires understanding and responsibility. “The stability of public finances is not an end in itself. It is a common good—one that lies in the interest of citizens and determines the quality of the state,” she added.
The Vice President of IFP also expressed her conviction that this year’s laureates will be heard from again in the future. “Their knowledge, determination, and experience can genuinely strengthen the quality of public debate and public policy in Poland,” she said.
During the ceremony, Kazimierz Kleina, Chair of the Senate Committee on Budget and Public Finance, highlighted the fundamental role of public finance in the functioning of the state. “Public finance is a foundational issue. The operation of the state is built upon it, which is why it is so important to seek out young people who are already addressing this topic at the stage of their thesis work,” the senator noted.
The newly appointed President of the Institute of Public Finance, Paweł Wojciechowski, drew attention to the role of the younger generation in building stable and credible public finances. “There is no strong state without sound public finances. This competition is not only a generational bridge related to public debt, but above all a bridge of intellectual capital and rigorous research that will serve future generations,” he said, encouraging the laureates to remain engaged with the subject and to speak openly and courageously about public finance.
Ernest Pytlarczyk, Chief Economist at Bank Pekao S.A., the Competition’s Patron, also spoke about the special significance of the initiative, noting that in today’s environment fiscal policy is at the center of public debate and investor interest. He emphasized the high quality and maturity of the submitted theses, as well as their use of modern analytical methods, including quantitative techniques and elements of machine learning.
Representatives of the Competition’s Partners underscored the importance of education and long-term thinking about leadership.
Robert Szcześniewski, President of Soonly Finance, highlighted the symbolic and substantive importance of the venue. “There is no better place than the Senate of the Republic of Poland, where ideas in the field of law and public finance are turned into specific regulations and laws that later affect various sectors of the economy, the functioning of the state, and the lives of citizens. It is worth remembering that these ideas often begin modestly—as conclusions and hypotheses contained in one of thousands of theses. A competition like this allows them to be noticed and brought into the light,” he said.
“At Soonly Finance, we paid close attention to the theses that could in the future be translated into real regulatory solutions. There was a wide and impressive range to choose from, and the topics addressed by the authors proved to be highly relevant and timely,” he added, encouraging the laureates to continue developing their research and to persevere in their academic work.
Marcin Dobrzański, Vice President of TFI PZU, spoke about the importance of education and long-term investment in human capital.
“The PZU Group has for years taken part in initiatives that have a real connection to education and the development of new leaders. As the father of four daughters, I have a strong sense of participating in a generational relay and of responsibility for the world we leave to the next generations. We would like it not to be worse—and ideally, to be better,” he emphasized.
“That is why we decided not only to support the competition, but also to fund a paid internship for one of the distinguished participants, Zuzanna Nowak. We believe that combining solid academic knowledge with practical experience is the best way to prepare young people to take on responsible roles in the financial and public sectors in the future,” he added.
The special guest of the ceremony was Dr. Sławomir Dudek, founder of the Institute of Public Finance and the first Chair of the Fiscal Council in Poland.
“I am pleased that market practitioners have joined the competition, bringing a different, non-academic perspective. This is what makes this initiative unique—we combine a research perspective with a practical one and look at public finance very broadly,” Sławomir Dudek said.
As he noted, the competition directly fulfills the mission of IFP, which is to promote stable and transparent public finances, simple and predictable taxes, and to defend citizens’ right to understand the state budget. “The best way to do this is through young people, encouraging them to take up this subject in their theses. If this results in a thousand theses, and several dozen make it to the competition, then knowledge and awareness of public finance in Poland will systematically grow,” he emphasized.
Referring to current fiscal challenges, Dr. Dudek pointed out that this is an exceptionally good moment for research in this area. He also drew attention to the role of the Fiscal Council, which he chairs. “No Fiscal Council can succeed on its own. It needs engaged, informed citizens. It is up to you—young researchers—whether we will be able to reliably assess the government’s fiscal policy and convey that assessment to the public,” he appealed to the participants.
A particularly strong response from the audience was prompted by the remarks of Zbigniew Jakubas, entrepreneur and long-time partner of the Institute of Public Finance, who announced significant financial support for the competition.
“I have supported the Institute of Public Finance since its inception, and today I have some good news. First, I will continue this support. Second, I would like to contribute to the competition’s prizes, because I believe they are too modest. That is why I have decided to double this year’s prize amounts, and additionally allocate PLN 30,000 for this purpose next year,” he announced.
Zbigniew Jakubas also emphasized the importance of courage and responsibility in thinking about public finance. “Courageously try to change the world and speak openly about difficult issues,” he urged the laureates.
Referring to the subject of one of the awarded theses, he drew attention to the relationship between the taxpayer and the state. “I pay taxes in Poland and I do not try to evade them. The problem arises when doubts appear about how effectively they are being spent. That creates discomfort—especially when the citizen is honest and the state is not always equally fair toward the taxpayer,” he stressed.
His speech was a strong expression of support for the idea of transparent public finances and evidence that responsible business can and should actively support the development of public debate and the economic education of the younger generation.
“Investing in education and young people is an investment in the future of the state and the economy,” Zbigniew Jakubas emphasized.
Laureates and Honorable Mentions – Second Edition of the IFP Competition
This year’s edition of the competition was summarized by Konrad Walczyk, Secretary of the Competition Jury, who drew attention to the growing academic quality and increasing diversity of research perspectives.
“I read all the theses submitted to the competition, and I can say with full conviction that their overall quality was clearly higher than last year. A particular value is the expanding research perspective—alongside economics papers, we also saw analyses in legal studies, as well as works approaching public finance from sociological and political science perspectives. For me, as an economist, the opportunity to learn about these viewpoints was extremely valuable,” he said.
The Competition Jury, composed of representatives of academia, public administration, and the financial sector, awarded prizes in three categories: Best Bachelor’s Thesis, Best Master’s Thesis, and the Patron’s Award.
The winner in the Best Bachelor’s Thesis category was Marianna Droszcz for the thesis “EU Anti-Corruption Policy,” defended at Adam Mickiewicz University in Poznań.
The award was presented by Jury member Professor Grzegorz Kuca, who highlighted the criteria for evaluating theses.
“A good thesis is based on three pillars: an appropriate choice of research problem and methods, reliable substantive analysis, and high editorial standards. Only the combination of these elements allows a thesis to be described as very good. The winning thesis fully met these criteria,” he said, congratulating the laureate.
Upon receiving the award, Marianna Droszcz emphasized the importance of academic support and inspiration.
“I am extremely grateful to the Jury for recognizing my work. Preparing it was a major challenge, but also an important intellectual journey for me. I would like to extend special thanks to my supervisor, Dr. Małgorzata Ratajczak—her lectures inspired me to explore the public finances of the European Union and the issue of combating corruption. Today’s recognition is a great motivation for my further development,” she said.
The award for Best Master’s Thesis was presented to Joanna Niespodziańska for the thesis “Psychological Aspects of Taxation from the Perspective of Public Authorities and Taxpayers,” Poznań University of Economics and Business.
The award was presented by Professor Elżbieta Adamowicz, a member of the Jury, who emphasized both the high academic level of the work and the research maturity of the laureate. “A university is sometimes seen as an almost magical place, but from the perspective of an academic teacher, it must be said clearly that it is above all very hard, systematic work. Joanna Niespodziańska’s thesis is an excellent example of this,” she noted.
As she emphasized, the laureate addressed a highly relevant and difficult research problem, posing the question of the essence of taxes—“to pay or not to pay?” “The author analyzes this issue both from the perspective of public authorities and taxpayers. It is a topic that is interesting, socially important, and at the same time requires great research sensitivity. The methodological workshop is excellent, and the whole work is characterized by high analytical maturity,” Professor Adamowicz added.
The award was accepted on behalf of Joanna Niespodziańska by Dr. hab. Arkadiusz Bernal of the Poznań University of Economics and Business.
In the second edition of the IFP Competition, a Special Patron’s Award, established by Bank Pekao S.A., was presented for the first time.
By decision of the Patron, the award was given to Bartłomiej Ramotowski for the master’s thesis “Predicting Fiscal Distress of Local Governments with Machine Learning Methods: Empirical Evidence from Poland (2010–2023),” defended at the University of Warsaw.
The Jury also granted honorable mentions to the following authors:
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Filip Drętkiewicz – Master’s thesis: “Tax Competition Among Municipalities Based on the Example of the Tax on Means of Transport,” Poznań University of Economics and Business
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Maria Kaszuba – Bachelor’s thesis: “The Impact of Property Tax on the Real Estate Market in Selected European Union Countries,” Rzeszów University of Technology
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Zuzanna Nowak – Master’s thesis: “Financial Penalties in the Capital Market,” Kozminski University
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Gabriela Plawgo – Master’s thesis: “The Specifics of the Structure and Application of the Institution of Settlement in Public Finance Law,” University of Białystok
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Marcin Szemraj – Master’s thesis: “Financing of Sports Clubs by Local Government Units: The Example of Sports Teams from Kielce and Lublin in 2013–2023,” Maria Curie-Skłodowska University in Lublin
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Gabriel Żebrowski – Bachelor’s thesis: “The Effectiveness of the Polish Pension System in 2011–2022,” Warsaw School of Economics
An additional, practical dimension of support for young talent was the decision by the PZU Group to fund a paid internship for Zuzanna Nowak, author of the master’s thesis “Financial Penalties in the Capital Market” (Kozminski University).
The ceremony at the Senate of the Republic of Poland confirmed that the IFP Competition is becoming an important platform for dialogue between academia, public administration, and business, and an effective tool for supporting young leaders who will help shape the country’s financial policy in the future.
The implementation of the second edition of the IFP Competition would not have been possible without broad institutional support and the engagement of partners and honorary patrons. Special thanks were extended to the Competition’s Patron, Bank Pekao S.A., as well as to supporting partners: Soonly Finance, TFI PZU, Amazon Poland, the Freedom and Entrepreneurship Foundation, and the Warsaw School of Economics.
Appreciation was also expressed to the honorary patrons of the competition, including Senator Kazimierz Kleina and Professor Piotr Wachowiak, PhD, DSc, Rector of the Warsaw School of Economics.
During the ceremony, representatives of the Institute of Public Finance announced the launch of the third edition of the Competition for the Best Thesis in Public Finance. Growing interest in the competition, the high academic level of the submitted works, and the engagement of partners confirm the need to continue the initiative. The next edition is intended not only as a continuation of existing activities, but also as an impulse for the further development of young researchers and for deepening the public debate on the stability, transparency, and responsibility of public finances in Poland.
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