The term 'DISSERTATION COVERED BY CONFIDENTIALITY CLAUSE' refers to cases where restrictions apply on the availability and disclosure of doctoral dissertations and their defences due to theuse of legally protected secrets (in particular, classified information, confidential data, or information constituting trade secrets) in their preparation, or due to the protection of intellectual property. These restrictions concern:

1. access to these works;
2. the publicity of their defence;
3. their inclusion in systems used by the university.

The procedure for applying a confidentiality clause to a dissertation is set out in Dean's Information No. 17/2024-2028, dated 25 April 2025.

If the author uses information that is legally protected when preparing their doctoral dissertation (including information made available by the institution that constitutes, or may constitute, a trade secret — for example, information protected under separate regulations, such as that relating to the planned independent commercialisation of research included in the work, patent descriptions, strategies, know-how, implementation, etc.), they must submit a written statement to the Dean of the Doctoral School requesting that the doctoral dissertation be covered by a confidentiality clause. The template for this statement is specified in Appendix 1 to Dean's Information No. 17/2024-2028.

The confidentiality clause may apply to dissertations carried out on the basis of agreements between the interested entity and the University, particularly implementation-based agreements. In the statement, the author of the doctoral dissertation justifies applying the confidentiality clause and presents the supervisor(s)' opinions.

Further details regarding the process of applying confidentiality to a dissertation during the doctoral degree award process, as conducted by the Scientific Discipline Councils, can be found at: https://nauka.pwr.edu.pl/en/responsibilites/academic-degrees/doctor-of-science-degree/dissertation-covered-by-confidentiality-clause