Over 300 university students and early-stage researchers meet at the first Quantum Careers Symposium
Organized by the Master in Quantum Science and Technology Barcelona, in collaboration with the Quantum Flagship and QTOM, this year’s Quantum Careers Symposium was dedicated to careers in quantum science and technologies. The event was held in Barcelona and streamed online, open to all STEM university students and early-stage researchers.
In April 2022, the emblematic Barcelona building of La Pedrera hosted the Quantum Careers Symposium, inspired by the CARLA project and supported by the Quantum Flagship and the pilot project QTOM. This symposium was focused on giving students from all over Europe an introduction to the field of quantum technologies and possible competencies they will need in case they wish to fulfil their professional path in this field. The event included over 25 talks, given by 30 speakers from different European companies, such as Algorthmiq, Quside, IQM, IBM Quantum and Luxquanta, as well as several institutions and research centers. The Quantum Flagship projects CiViQ, macQsimal and QIA gave an overall introduction to this ambitious initiative and its underlying projects and showed the audience the vast range of research and development initiatives that Europe is carrying out in quantum technologies.
All the sessions gave a glimpse of the many career paths and job opportunities available in the field of quantum technologies, which are currently facing a high demand in recruiting for different profiles. Participants also had the opportunity to meet and network with the representatives of the companies, research institutions and projects.
A successful event
More than 300 students from 36 countries participated in the event, most of them with a background in physics or engineering. Most of the attendees were master's students (31%), followed by undergraduate students (27%), PhD students (14%), employees (12%), postdoctoral researchers (6%) and those who were on a career break (4%).
Bringing all of us together and seeing the interest that companies and researchers have for us was great. And on top of this, we had the chance to talk with everybody if we wanted to. I also liked that the mood of the event was informal, casual, and relaxed, allowing us to engage with the current quantum initiatives. I know companies and research teams are more than happy to have access to all these young people with this knowledge, but it's a win-win situation I guess. Overall, I absolutely love the idea of the event and the execution.
Quantum master student
Participants rated the event highly, and 90% indicated that both their interest in pursuing a career in quantum technologies and their knowledge about the different career options had increased. As a result, the Quantum Flagship plans to keep organizing this symposium in the future. Stay tuned for more!
For more details see the event booklet here.
