Katowice is a dynamically developing city which only recently have been really perceived not as a city of 300,000 citizens, but as the central city of a Metropolis* of over 2 million inhabitants (Metropolis GZM). Access to this large labor market, Katowice’s strong position as an economic, administrative and educational center, have attracted a lot of interest from both current and new investors.
  • 2.1 M people in the range of 25 km & 8.5 M citizens in the range of 100 km from Katowice
  • 1,701 people/sq km in Katowice & 839 people/sq km – population density for Metropolis – significantly higher than the average for Poland (122 people/sq km)
  • 19 universities  and 91,083 students and 22,862 graduates annually in Metropolis
  • Over 90% students can speak English and over 7,000 students participate in foreign philology studies programs
  • 38 different foreign languages are used in business service centers
  • over 250,000 companies in Metropolis, 56,000 in Katowice where work well-educated people
  • 33,400 people employed in business services sector in 140 centers BPO, SSC/GBS, IT and R&D

In Katowice we implement educational projects:

  • THE ‘CORPORATE READINESS CERTIFICATE’ project was launched in Katowice in 2013. Project partners include Accenture, EY, ING Hubs Poland, and Kyndryl. CRC is targeted at university students and aims to provide opportunities for developing competencies and skills in IT and business services. Training is conducted by project partners and is free of charge for participants. Completion of the program is marked by an exam, with successful candidates receiving a certificate
  • P-TECH – a global program created by IBM, implemented in Katowice at two secondary schools from 2019 to 2023/24 by Fujitsu and IBM, and then Kyndryl. Since the program’s conclusion, both companies: Fujitsu and Kyndryl have continued their collaboration with the schools, developing original educational projects.
  • FUJITSU-TECH is a project designed for secondary school students, aiming to adapt education and students to the new realities of the IT job market. Participants gain knowledge in areas such as Blockchain, Data Science, Cybersecurity, AI, cloud computing, and quantum computing. In Katowice, students from the Śląskie Techniczne Zakłady Naukowe participate in the program, receiving substantive and mentoring support from the partner – Fujitsu Technology Solutions.
  • KYNDRYL FUTURE ACHIEVERS, launched in Katowice in 2023, is Kyndryl’s proprietary project. Similar to FUJITSU-Tech, it is intended for secondary school students and covers topics in IT, including artificial intelligence, mainframe systems, design thinking, project management, cloud computing, and mindfulness, along with a mentoring program. Participants in the program are students from Zespół Szkół Technicznych i Ogólnokształcących nr 2.
  • The project ‘KATOWICE, BUSINESS, AND MY FUTURE’ has been conducted in Katowice since 2022, aimed at third- and fourth-year secondary school students. Project partners include Ammega, Honeywell, Accenture, Kyndryl GSDC, Sii, as well as TDJ-Famur, Arche Consulting, Randstad, Hays Poland, and Manpower. The project’s objectives involve organizing expert-led meetings at schools to showcase career development opportunities within the partner companies. HR experts, who are partners in the project, discuss recruitment processes, and engage with students on topics such as future competencies, job market trends, career paths of the future, and building a professional CV.
  • THE ‘KATOWICE – CITY OF PROFESSIONALS’ program aims to promote education in vocational and technical schools, enhance the appeal of this type of education, and highlight the related career prospects. The program is conducted according to the following structure: Stage I – Introductory lesson in school; Stage II – Study visit to a company; Stage III – Visit to a technical/vocational school; Stage IV – Final summary lesson.

*The Metropolis is composed of Katowice and 40 towns and municipalities: Będzin, Bieruń, Bobrowniki, Bojszowy, Bytom, Chełm Śląski, Chorzów, Czeladź, Dąbrowa Górnicza, Gierałtowice, Gliwice, Imielin, Knurów, Kobiór, Lędziny, Łaziska Górne, Mierzęcice, Mikołów, Mysłowice, Ożarowice, Piekary Śląskie, Pilchowice, Psary, Pyskowice, Radzionków, Ruda Śląska, Rudziniec, Siemianowice Śląskie, Siewierz, Sławków, Sosnowiec, Sośnicowice, Świerklaniec, Świętochłowice, Tarnowskie Góry, Tychy, Wojkowice, Wyry, Zabrze, Zbrosławice.

Talent pool

Potential of the Metropolis is based on over 91,000 students, including 50,848 in Katowice, studying at 19 universities. The dominant categories of studies are business & administration (almost 15,000 students), ICT technology – broad approach (almost 8,000 students) and technical & engineering subgroup (over 10,000 students). The most active Silesian universities are: Silesian University, University of Economics in Katowice, Silesian University of Technology or University of Medicine.

List of universities

Fields of study

At universities, many faculties are created to educate students/graduates in faculties that respond to the needs of ITO, BPO, SSC, R&D sectors, e.g. IT with Big Data Analytics, Cloud Computing, Cyber-Physical Systems, Mobile application development, Analysis of Large Data Sets, Gaming, etc., finance and accounting, finance and accounting with Finance and Accounting for Business – in English, business logistics or philology: English, German, etc. In addition, universities carry out various types of cooperation with investors, which aims to acquire new knowledge and gain practical skills. An example of such cooperation is the Corporate Readiness Certificate educational program run since 2014, in which partners are IBM, Accenture, ING Tech Poland.

University of Silesia

University of Silesia in Katowice (US), one of the largest and most dynamically evolving Polish higher education institutions, offers innovative solutions in the field of education and a friendly space for conducting research. The education process is tailored to current market trends and responds to its demand through functioning of Faculty of Humanities, Faculty of Natural Sciences, Faculty of Science and Technology, Faculty of Social Sciences, Faculty of Law and Administration, Faculty of Arts and Educational Science, Faculty of Theology and Krzysztof Kieślowski Film School. At 84 fields of study (incl. 5 in English) and 216 specializations (incl. 12 in English, 1 in English and German) are educated almost 22,000 students (in 2022). US cooperates with many companies, scientific units, business environment institutions and local governments within almost 2,000 contracts, agreements, and letters of intent.

Silesian University of Technology

The Silesian University of Technology (SUT) is a friendly and open university that comprehensively supports its students and helps to develop their passions and interests. Since 2019, the Silesian University of Technology is in the prestigious group of 10 best universities in Poland with the status of a Research University. This is the result of in-depth assessments of an international team of experts checking the university’s potential and research activity.

The university educates in nearly 60 fields of study (including almost 30 in English) within 12 scientific disciplines. We conduct studies in 14 units, including 13 faculties and 1 institute, which covers the entire scope of engineering activities. This means that everyone will find what they are looking for in their dream studies, but if that was not enough, the Silesian University of Technology also educates in the field of business analytics, applied linguistics and management, including project management. Currently, over 16 thousand students study at the Silesian University of Technology.  The university offers first-degree studies (Engineering and Bachelor’s), second-degree studies – Master’s, education in a doctoral school called “Joint Doctoral School” and post-graduate studies. In addition to academic knowledge, students gain valuable professional experience, and carry out part of their education in the form of Project Based Learning, developing specific solutions in interdisciplinary groups, thanks to which they broaden their horizons. The university cares for the professional future of students through close cooperation with many Polish and foreign companies, as well as through dual education.

University of Economics in Katowice

The University of Economics in Katowice (UEKat) is one of the oldest universities in Upper Silesia, one of the five public economic universities in the country, the largest in the region educating about 8,000 in the field of socio-economic sciences. Polish and foreign students. It offers 25 study programs (also as part of English-language programs) related to business and entrepreneurship, communication, analytics, IT and econometrics, finance, administration, economics, insurance, logistics and management. At the same time, it closely cooperates in various areas with the socio-economic environment. Annually UEKat completes an average of 2.5 thousand jobs. graduates, at that time students and employees go on over 500 trips abroad, and about 800 people improve their competences during postgraduate studies. UEKat belongs to 74 international networks and consortia. It is the first university in the province. Silesia with the international institutional accreditation CEEMAN International Quality Accreditation (IQA) – one of the most prestigious and valued in the field of managerial education.