Poland faces tutoring shortage as demand outpaces supply

During the early summer holidays, tutoring companies across Poland reported that all places for the 2026/2027 school year were filled before the end of the break, with many even lacking reserve lists. Parents, fearing poor results in the upcoming matura and eighth‑grade exams, are pre‑booking children and are willing to pay higher fees for preferred tutors. A CBOS poll shows about 80 % of parents allocate money for extra lessons, and 34 % specifically pay for tutoring, with average monthly costs around 950 zł per child, rising to over 2 000 zł for exam preparation. The surge is driven partly by an unusually large cohort of roughly 386 000 students set to sit the matura in 2027, increasing competition for tutoring slots. Experts warn that reliance on private tutoring intensifies educational inequality, as only affluent families can afford sustained support, and call for improvements in teachers' working conditions and the public school system to mitigate the trend.