The University of Gdańsk is a partner of the European Quantum Academy
‘Quantum technologies are recognised as one of the key technologies of the future,’ says dr Adrian Kołodziejski, who leads the European Quantum Academy (EQA) project on behalf of the University of Gdańsk. This is a prestigious, ambitious undertaking involving over 70 institutions from across Europe, including universities, research institutes and technology companies. As a partner, the University of Gdańsk is responsible for analysing skills needs, organising educational initiatives and higher education in the Central and Eastern European region. It has received funding for these activities under the European Commission’s Digital Europe programme.
The European Quantum Academy (EQA) project is a large-scale educational and coordination initiative funded under the European Commission’s DIGITAL-2025-SKILLS-08 programme, with a total budget of over €9.6 million. The grant amount for the University of Gdańsk is approximately €179,000.
‘The project aims to create a pan-European system for education and skills development in the field of quantum technologies and to prepare specialists to work in one of the most promising fields of modern science and technology.
The University of Gdańsk is participating in the project as a partner responsible, among other things, for activities related to higher education, the analysis of skills needs and the organisation of educational initiatives in the Central and Eastern European region,’ reports dr Adrian Kołodziejski, who is leading the project on behalf of the University of Gdańsk.
Too few qualified specialists
The project answers the growing demand for qualified personnel in the quantum technologies sector, which are considered key to Europe’s future innovation, security and technological sovereignty. The fragmentation of educational activities and the diversity of national programmes currently constitute a significant barrier to the development of a single labour market in this field. EQA aims to overcome these limitations by integrating and harmonising programmes and establishing common quality standards.
‘Education in this field is urgently needed, as quantum technologies are recognised as one of the key technologies of the future. In the coming years, they may have a significant impact on, amongst other things: cybersecurity, the development of artificial intelligence, the design of new medicines and materials, as well as telecommunications and data processing,’ adds dr Adrian Kołodziejski. ‘The problem is that the number of specialists with the relevant skills is currently too small in relation to market needs and the pace of technological development.
This applies to scientists and engineers as well as teachers, programmers and specialists working in industry; therefore, the aim of the EQA project is to prepare a new generation of specialists who will be able to develop and apply quantum technologies in practice,’ says the scientist.
One coherent system
One of the strategic objectives of the European Quantum Academy is to build a sustainable European structure integrating educational activities from secondary school level, through higher education, to lifelong learning and professional development.
‘The aim of the EQA is to create a long-term European system of cooperation in the field of quantum education, one that will continue to function even after the project itself has ended. Currently, many educational initiatives related to quantum technologies operate locally or independently of one another. The EQA project aims to bring these activities together into a single coherent system, covering various stages of education and professional development. In practice, this involves, amongst other things: developing new degree programmes and courses; delivering training for students, PhD students and teachers; organising international summer schools and hackathons; building educational platforms and online tools to facilitate collaboration and knowledge exchange; and fostering cooperation between universities and industry. An important element of the project is also levelling the playing field between European countries and regions, so that access to modern quantum education is not limited solely to the largest research centres,’ explains the project leader.
Universities from across Europe participating in the project are also to develop harmonised curricula at Master’s and PhD level, in line with the European Competence Framework for Quantum Technologies (CFQT). A third key objective of the project is to increase access to experimental and digital infrastructure, enabling practical, scalable learning, including through virtual laboratories and remotely accessible quantum platforms. Another important task is to analyse employment trends, shape the labour market in the quantum sector, and actively engage the community.
The Digital Europe Programme (DEP) is a European Union initiative aimed at supporting the digital transformation of the European economy, public administration and society.