Building nuclear competencies for Poland’s energy transition: educational and workforce development framework under the 4NEW project

Poland’s energy transition and the planned deployment of nuclear power require not only technological and infrastructural investments, but also the systematic development of highly qualified human resources. The successful implementation of a national nuclear power programme depends on the availability of engineers, operators, safety specialists, maintenance personnel, regulatory experts, project managers and academic staff prepared to support the full lifecycle of nuclear facilities. This paper presents the concept and preliminary assumptions of a competency-mapping framework developed within the 4NEW project. The main objective is to identify key professional roles and competency areas required by the Polish nuclear sector up to 2040, with particular attention to the needs of higher education and technical training. The proposed approach covers successive stages of the nuclear project lifecycle, including preparation, design, licensing, construction, commissioning, operation, maintenance, waste management and decommissioning. The framework combines an analysis of expected workforce demand, role-specific technical and regulatory competencies, and the existing educational potential of Polish universities. It also addresses the need for the “nuclearization” of selected study programmes, understood as the integration of nuclear-specific knowledge, safety culture, regulatory awareness and practical skills into broader engineering education. Special attention is given to the role of universities, research laboratories, industry partnerships and international cooperation networks in building long-term national capabilities. The results are intended to support curriculum modernization, strategic planning of educational pathways and better alignment between academic institutions and the emerging nuclear sector. The proposed framework may also serve as a reference for other countries developing nuclear power as part of their decarbonization strategies.