From lathe operator to satellite systems engineer. Who can get a job in Poland's growing space sector? 

Warsaw will be home to a new European Space Agency centre – the first ESA facility located outside the Agency's founding member states. The ESA Director General Josef Aschbacher announced the new centre in July at a joint press conference with the head of the Polish government. The Warsaw centre will focus on security and dual-use technologies – solutions with both civilian and military applications.

According to the Polish Space Agency (POLSA), the centre's main tasks will include:

• crisis management – developing innovative solutions for civil protection,

• on-orbit operations – running simulations of advanced space missions,

• satellite service monitoring – analysing disruptions that affect their proper functioning.

Josef Aschbacher stressed that the decision marks an important step for Poland, which in recent years has become one of the driving forces in Europe’s space sector. He also noted that the technologies developed in Warsaw will also be key to Europe's future and security.

"Poland's successes in space are also Europe's successes in space. Poland is one of the leaders in areas such as investment in security, the defense industry and the space industry. The space and defense industries are very closely linked.. One cannot be done effectively without the other, and vice versa," said the ESA Director General during the conference.

Poland's space sector in numbers

The choice of Warsaw as the location for the new centre reflects Poland's growing role in the European space sector. Since joining ESA in 2012, Poland has developed its specialist expertise and infrastructure while increasing its contributions to ESA programmes. For ESA missions in 2026–2028, Poland has pledged a total of EUR 731 million, including nearly EUR 550 million for optional programmes (such as the development of satellite data–based services and robotics). According to the National Centre for Research and Development's (NCBR) 2025 report Kosmiczne Perspektywy (“Space Perspectives”), Poland’s space sector comprises around 400 companies employing nearly 15,000 people. Although still young and relatively small, the industry has been growing steadily for over a decade, supporting other branches of the economy.

"The space sector is becoming increasingly important because the technologies it develops cut across every sector of the economy – from defense, medicine, agriculture, new materials, and manufacturing to communications, cloud computing and the transfer of massive volumes of data. This applies both to the use of space technologies in these fields and to the creation of new products, services and even entirely new markets. These technologies have long since moved beyond space exploration alone," the NCBR report states.

The space sector is typically divided into three segments:

• upstream – focused on reaching space (including the production of satellites and spacecraft, components and subsystems, rockets and launch systems);

• midstream – covering activity in space (including launch services, satellite operations and on-orbit servicing);

• downstream – using space data and technologies on Earth (including satellite, navigation and positioning services as well as Earth observation).

According to NCBR’s report, most space sector companies in Poland operate in the upstream segment, focusing on designing and supplying satellite components and subsystems – including optical and communication systems, data processing units, robotics and AI. The second-largest group consists of downstream companies, oriented towards supplying ground equipment for end users and navigation, positioning, Earth observation and data analytics services. The fewest Polish companies currently operate in the midstream segment.

Read also: Work permits in Poland (2026 guide): Everything foreign employees need to know

Who is the space industry looking for?

Since the space industry’s growth depends heavily on the knowledge and skills of its workforce, most employees in the sector are highly qualified engineers and technical specialists. According to the Industrial Development Agency's (ARP S.A.) 2025 report Polski Sektor Kosmiczny ("Poland's Space Sector"), companies are dominated by teams focusing on:

• electronics and embedded systems,

• precision mechanics and composite materials,

• optics and optoelectronics,

• software and data processing,

• robotics, automation and mechatronics,

• telecommunications technologies and power systems.

As the sector grows and technology advances, the shortage of qualified workers – especially engineers – is becoming an ever-bigger challenge. The company Smart Solutions HR also highlights the importance of staff responsible for manufacturing complex, highly precise components, such as satellite parts or optical devices. As a result, employers in the space sector are also looking for CNC operators, millers and lathe operators.

Technical skills, however, aren't everything. As highlighted by the authors of the ARP S.A. report, the nature of the space industry often requires integrating expertise from different fields.

"At the same time, the space sector needs a growing number of specialists from outside the technical field. Alongside engineers, it needs project managers, economists, lawyers specialising in space law, risk management experts and marketing and business development professionals. Interdisciplinarity is becoming fundamental to the way the industry operates – successful space projects emerge at the intersection of science, technology, law, finance and communication."

In this context, ARP S.A. also points to the growing importance of collaboration within interdisciplinary project teams made up of engineers, scientists, lawyers, and finance specialists, among others.

Such varied demands from the space industry present new challenges for the education system. How are Polish universities responding?

Training tomorrow’s space experts

According to data from NCBR's "Space Perspectives" report, around 27,000 students in Poland are currently studying fields relevant to the space industry – not only space technologies but also automation, electronics and electrical engineering. The leading universities preparing future employees for the sector are the AGH University of Krakow, the Silesian University of Technology, Wrocław University of Science and Technology, Łódź University of Technology and the Military University of Technology in Warsaw.

Technical universities, however, aren't the only institutions helping build the skills the space sector needs. In June this year, the rectors of the SGH Warsaw School of Economics, Łódź University of Technology, Jagiellonian University, AGH University of Krakow and the Józef Piłsudski University of Physical Education in Warsaw signed a letter of intent to establish an Inter-University Space Ecosystem Center. Its goal is to integrate Poland's space ecosystem – chiefly universities, research institutes, public administration, NGOs and companies in the space sector – in response to the industry's rapid growth and the increasing need for interdisciplinary education for future professionals.

"Cross-institutional cooperation lets us take a systemic view of education. No single university has the full expertise needed to cover every area related to the space sector. Some specialise in satellite technologies, others in robotics, data analysis, economics, management or law. By combining these strengths, we can build educational programmes that no single university could offer on its own," explains Maciej Myśliwiec, director of SGH's newly established Space Ecosystem Center.

Maciej Myśliwiec also stresses that developing future-ready skills for the space sector requires not only integrating the academic community but also close cooperation between research institutions and businesses.

"It's equally important to strengthen cooperation with NGOs and industry. They know best what skills will be needed in five or ten years, which is why their involvement in designing curricula, organizing internships and running joint research projects is essential. That way, universities can adapt their educational offerings more quickly to changing market needs and students gain the chance to build experience even before graduating," says the director of SGH's Space Ecosystem Center.

The announcement of the joint initiative by Polish universities coincided with the first anniversary of the IGNIS mission. The letter of intent was signed at a conference held one year after the launch of Poland's first technological and scientific mission to the International Space Station.