42 Warsaw: Creating a Community of Learners in the Polish Capital!
Having opened its doors to students for the first time towards the end of 2023, 42 Warsaw is one of the network’s most recent campuses. In spite of initial skepticism from business executives and academics alike regarding the educational model, the campus managed to attract a sizable student population and to successfully run its first two Piscines. With those successes in the bag, the ambition is now to embed the campus in the local tech, educational and business ecosystems, and to create a diverse yet strong community of learners in the Polish capital.
Warsaw, the capital of Poland since 1806, is valued for its quality of life, offering cultural wealth and historical landmarks, a rich diversity of culinary experiences, modern infrastructure and public transportation, and a green city-center. Naturally, as the country’s capital, the city is also an attractive academic hub, with renowned institutions such as the University of Warsaw drawing in vast numbers of students not only from across Poland, but from the whole of Europe, each year.
Amid this rich cultural and educational landscape, the project to bring 42 to Poland was initiated by Play Group (Polish: Grupa Play), one of the country’s major telecommunications companies, with the idea of offering a different pathway to success for the country’s youth. The campus construction eventually started in the Spring of 2023, with the idea of creating a space where a strong community of learners could emerge and thrive.
“We were lucky enough to be able to work with interior designers who really understood the idea we had,” Oktawia Gorzenska, former head of the 42 Warsaw campus.
The campus itself now spans 2031m2, and numbers just over 150 workstations, and after an entire year, 10 000 applicants, two Piscines and a successful kick off, the campus now boasts 153 students from 22 different countries, with ages ranging from 18 to 58. It was not all smooth sailing though, as Oktawia Gorzenska recalls:
“we did encounter a fair amount of skepticism when we first launched. For a number of people here, both business executives and academics alike, if there are no lectures, there is no value. — It was quite a challenge for us to explain what 42 was about, but we managed!” — Oktawia Gorzenska.
Looking to the future, 42 Warsaw’s teams want to carry on embedding the campus in the local tech, business and academic ecosystems. “We created this campus with the idea of creating a close-knit community of learners here, we now want to integrate further with different companies and academic institutions in many different ways, in order to widen it and to make it truly worthwhile!” — Oktawia Gorzenska. More emphasis will also be placed on attracting more women.
