Professor Ania Jayich Discusses A Statewide Approach to Quantum Talent at the CIQC Workforce Panel
Panelists gather for “Building California’s Quantum Workforce: CIQC,” featuring leaders from UC Berkeley, UCLA, UC Santa Barbara, and California State University San Marcos. Photo by Brandon Sánchez Mejia.
Excerpt from CIQC Berkeley News & Events Page, Written by Dione Rossiter, January 28, 2026
At the California Quantum Convening in November, the panel “Building California’s Quantum Workforce: CIQC” brought together leaders from across the University of California system, the California State University system, and national quantum centers to examine how California can build a quantum workforce at scale. The discussion highlighted the central role of the CIQC in advancing fundamental research while connecting education, infrastructure, and industry across the state.
Stamper-Kurn next asked Ania Bleszynski Jayich to reflect on CIQC as a statewide network.
She emphasized the foundational role of graduate student research funding, noting that it fuels creativity while producing ripple effects throughout the education pipeline. Graduate students, she said, are often the ones training undergraduates, leading outreach, developing curriculum, and engaging with K–12 schools and technician programs. “That funding going to graduate students is extremely valuable,” she said, “far beyond just producing PhDs.” Jayich also underscored the need for a broad, coordinated approach in a field that remains difficult to tame.
