Proposals should be submitted through the official EIT HEI application portal - accessed here.
The details submitted in the application portal will constitute the complete project plan – or the IVAP.
The application has two parts:
· Part A – Technical Information (completed online in the portal)
· Part B – Narrative Content (using a Word template, uploaded online)
Further instructions for the submission of proposals are found in EIT Higher Education Initiative Call for Proposals 2025 text, Annex 12.
Proposals will have to follow the standard submission and evaluation procedure (one-stage submission + one-step evaluation). Proposals will first be checked for admissibility and eligibility, see Sections 5 and 6 of the EIT Higher Education Initiative Call for Proposals 2025). Proposals found admissible and eligible will be evaluated (separately per Topic) against the operational capacity (while the financial capacity will be checked only for the successful applicants at the grant preparation phase).
As next step, applications will be assessed against the award criteria. A quality assessment to evaluate the extent to which the applications fulfil the evaluation criteria will be carried out with the support of at least three independent experts per application. The independent experts will be supported by guidelines developed by the EIT HEI Selection Committee and provide a ranking list following the scoring agreed by the experts. This will result in two ranking lists, one per Topic.
The EIT HEI Selection Committee – representing all participating EIT KICs in the EIT HEI – will oversee the integrity of the entire evaluation, selection and allocation process. If the ranking list resulting from the external, independent evaluation results in further selection decisions being required, the EIT HEI Selection Committee will make the final selection based on a set of priority factors indicated in section 10.2, EIT Higher Education Initiative Call for Proposals 2025. The EIT HEI Selection Committee will oversee the KIC allocation procedure.
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The EIT Higher Education Initiative (hereinafter referred to as the "EIT HEI” or “the initiative”), established under the EIT Strategic Innovation Agenda 2021-2027[1], aims to strengthen European higher education’s role in innovation ecosystems. By building institutional innovation and entrepreneurship capacity, the EIT Higher Education Initiative fosters systemic change in higher education institutions (HEIs) and enhances their integration into regional and European innovation networks.
EIT HEI projects follow the Knowledge Triangle Model, described in the EIT Strategic Innovation Agenda, bringing together education, research, and business to co-create impactful solutions to global challenges. Central to the initiative is the creation of a dynamic and inclusive innovation community that connects HEIs, businesses, investors, and other stakeholders, amplifying individual and collective project impact.
Proposals submitted under the EIT Higher Education Initiative Call for Proposals 2025 are expected to contribute to the following objectives:
1.Increased Higher Education Competitiveness: Transformation of HEIs into engines of innovation, attracting top talent and fostering strategic partnerships.
2.Enhanced Skills and Employability: Equipping students with advanced skills for future job markets and innovation-driven careers.
3.Inclusive Innovation Community: Promotion of collaboration and knowledge co-creation across a diverse European ecosystem.
4.Innovations-to-Market Pipelines Enabled: the transition of academic innovations into market-ready solutions, including start-up creation and investment attraction.
The EIT Call contributes to two core objectives through the two Topics respectively:
Objective 1: To strengthen the innovation and entrepreneurship capacity of Europe’s STEM talent pipeline, contributing significantly to the EU’s Union of Skills, in particular the STEM Education Strategic Plan.
Objective 2: To build stronger, long-term synergies between the EIT’s Knowledge and Innovation Communities (KICs) and the European Universities alliances, enhancing Europe’s competitiveness, resilience, and strategic autonomy.
The Call therefore follows this Two-Topic Approach:
Topic 1: EIT-HEI-2025-STEM-CAPACITY-BUILDING
Topic 2: EIT-HEI-2025-BUILDING-SYNERGIES
Applications need to describe, if applicable, how the project will be complementary to activities funded under other Calls for proposals, for example European Excellence Initiative (EEI) (HORIZON-WIDERA-2025-01) or those financed under Erasmus+ targeted at European Universities alliances. Any duplication which presents a risk against double funding will automatically exclude the proposal from the selection process.
[1] Decision (EU) No 2021/820 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 20 May 2021 on the Strategic Agenda of the European Institute of Innovation and Technology (EIT) 2021-2027: Boosting the Innovation Talent and Capacity of Europe and repealing Decision No 1312/2013/EU, OJ L 189/3 of 28 May 2021, https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/PDF/?uri=CELEX:32021D0820&from=EN
