Abstract:

The contemporary labour market in Poland is experiencing a constant shortage of IT specialists. Employers in the IT industry are looking for candidates who want to work even though they do not have graduation diplomas yet. According to the Polish Central Statistical Office, the deficit in IT employees is in Poland currently ranges from 30,000 to 50,000 and it grows by 3-5% every year. In response to the needs of enterprises, universities offer new curricula and systematically increase the limits of admission to study in the field of Computer Science. Increasingly, it is also observed that IT students undertake professional work during their studies.

The aim of this paper is the analysis of the possibilities for linking professional work and academic education by the students of Computer Science field in Poland. On basis of conducted survey there have been identified advantages and benefits as well as limitations and risks related with taking the work during studies. Obtained results show that three engaged entities, i.e. student, university and employer benefit this non-formal co-operation. Moreover, there has been stated that the main barrier in combining professional work and academic education is appropriate time sharing which allows students to perform efficiently their duties in both areas.

Keywords:

Professional career, IT specialists, academic education.