During the Digital Summit in Gdansk (Poland), the European Commission Executive Vice-President (EVP) for Tech Sovereignty, Security and Democracy, Henna Virkkunen and Minister of Digital Affairs of Poland, Krzysztof Gawkowski, kicked off the Industry-Academia Network.
The network is an initiative under the umbrella of the Cybersecurity Skills Academy. During the ceremony, the first partnerships between academia and industry partners in the field of cybersecurity, were announced. This is part of the Commission’s effort to support, enhance synergies between sectors and boost cybersecurity skills and talents across EU.
What is the Industry-Academia Network?
The announcement is part of strengthened efforts to boost EU competitiveness, growth and resilience in the face of an evolving threat landscape and a rapidly evolving technological environment.
As the gap in cybersecurity specialists continues growing, the Commission is actively implementing its dedicated EU policy, the Cybersecurity Skills Academy, pooling efforts to tackle the talent and skills gap. According to the Cybersecurity Skills Academy pledger ISC2, while the overall workforce need in the EU remained steady between 2022 and 2024, ranging between 1.14M and 1.25M, the gap in the cybersecurity workforce grew from an estimated 274,000 in 2023 to 299,000 in 2024 – a 9% increase. Most SMEs in Europe still struggle to find skilled talent in specialised areas like cybersecurity, leading to vacancies going unfilled (ENISA, NIS INVESTMENTS 2024) and the absorption of cybersecurity-specific roles into existing non-cybersecurity related roles (Commission, Eurobarometer on Cyberskills).
Objectives of the Industry-Academia Network
Against this backdrop, the Industry-Academia Network of the Cybersecurity Skills Academy aims to build concrete collaborations and set up partnerships amongst its members – all key actors from industry and academia, interdisciplinary to respond to all skillsets cybersecurity roles call for; and ultimately growing the continent’s cyber workforce.
This includes possible actions such as giving access to students to state-of-the-art trainings and certifications, the design and update of cybersecurity curricula and training offers, the provision of on-the-job cybersecurity courses, opening up apprenticeships, internships and traineeship opportunities, elaborating mentorship programmes, developing cybersecurity learning micro-credentials, and targeted career fairs.
The announcement reflects key priorities of the Commission for building a cyber-ready workforce, with the capacity to drive innovation throughout Europe and to protect its citizens, businesses and public administrations.
Cybersecurity is a top priority for the European Union, and bridging the skills gap is crucial to ensuring our digital economy remains secure and competitive. The launch of the Industry-Academia Network under the European Cyber Skills Academy is a significant step forward in achieving this goal. I encourage all stakeholders to join forces and together build a robust ecosystem that addresses the needs of the cybersecurity job market and supports the growth of a highly skilled EU workforce.
Henna Virkkunen, Executive Vice-President for Tech Sovereignty, Security and Democracy
Partners
The Industry-Academia Network is launching with 8 partnerships, being signed on-site at the Digital Summit in Gdansk, on 18 June 2025 – with the aim of promoting collaboration, knowledge-exchange and joint initiatives aligned with the mission of the network, thereby supporting innovation, skills development and enhanced visibility.
- CompTIA and OpenClassrooms
- Fortinet and CodeAcademy
- Fortinet and Scheer School of Digital Sciences at Saarland University
- Fortinet and the University of Girona
- ISC2 and CodeAcademy
- ISC2 and Compendium Centrum Edukacyjne
- ISC2 and OpenClassrooms
- ISC2 and the University of Girona
Further details
Discover the new Industry-Academia Network of the Cybersecurity Skills Academy via the Digital Skills & Jobs Platform.
Are you a business, a higher education institution, a European Universities alliance, or a training provider? Get inspired, involved – and play an active role in bridging the cyber skills and talent gap in Europe!
Source: European Digital Skills & Jobs Platform
