Education & Training
Readying the workforce of Europe’s quantum future.
The Quantum Flagship is driving Europe’s second quantum revolution. In order for this to succeed, there must be both a trained workforce capable of powering the emerging quantum industry, and a quantum-aware society which is accepting and open to the substantial impacts it may have on our daily lives. For both of these goals, education is a crucial lynchpin.
Education is firmly a community initiative, first coordinated by the QTEdu Coordination and Support action which has laid in place infrastructures such as:
- The European Competence Framework for Quantum Technologies, a map of skills and competences in QT which will be used to provide transparency for learning outcomes and industry needs.
- The QTEdu working groups & community pilots - 5 working groups and 11 experimental pan-european projects in education and training, each with their own focus areas and outcomes, pushing the boundaries of how quantum technologies are taught.
Growing out of the community actions have emerged two large European Projects in education & training funded by the Digital Europe Programme:
DigiQ: Digitally Enhanced Quantum Technology Master is the flagship project in Higher Education, in which 16 newly developed/augmented Quantum Technology Master degrees will emerge across Europe. DigiQ will produce:
- 30 innovative educational modules, openly accessible and available for all
- 50+ specialist Master’s courses in QT
- 4 year long Pan-European student networks
- a comprehensive mobility program placing students in top companies and research groups across Europe.
QTIndu: Quantum Technology Courses for Industry will develop targeted training programs to upskill professionals across many industries. These include business sectors such as pharmaceuticals, medical sensing, telecommunication, cybersecurity, and logistics, where QT is rapidly making an impact in how companies function.
QTIndu is funded by 5.6Mil Euros through the European Union’s Digital Europe Programme under grant agreement no. 101100757.
Finally, within the QUCATS, future community infrastructure is the responsibility of the European Quantum Readiness Center (EQRC).
The EQRC is composed of three unites:
- Analysis, wherein we are preparing for the impact of Quantum Technology on society by analysing the possible futures which will arise resulting from it.
- Resources, where community-developed and didactically validated modules for outreach, education, and training are available for all who wish to develop their quantum readiness, and
- Accord: Commitment to best practices addressing six principles, each serving as a fundamental component of our efforts to drive change and enhance readiness in the European Quantum landscape, including both quantum and non-quantum organisations. Adoption of the principles will bring about a wide range of benefits to the European Quantum landscape, including addressing the leaky pipeline, enabling wider outreach and inspiration, facilitating standardisation and transparency, and providing greater accessibility.
Principles of the European Quantum Readiness Center
All organisations contributing to Europe’s Quantum Readiness are welcome and encouraged to create an accord and be recognised for their contribution to the second quantum revolution.