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The EIT HEI Initiative Call for Proposals 2024 has a strong focus on enhancing the quality and competitiveness of European higher education. It will improve research and knowledge transfer from higher education and support business creation through strengthening collaboration between HEIs and business partners across Europe.

This call aims to fund up to 42 projects, with each selected project having a total duration of 25 months and an overall budget of EUR 1.34 million. The funding will be distributed across two phases:

• Phase 1 (1 April to 31 December 2025): Up to EUR 540,000
• Phase 2 (1 January 2026 to 30 April 2027): Up to EUR 800,000*

The call will incorporate a two-strand approach, where applicants will need to select one of the following strands to apply to:

• Strand A: Innovation and entrepreneurship capacity building at higher education institutions (HEIs).
• Strand B: Innovation and entrepreneurship capacity building at HEIs for the enhancement of Deep Tech.

Eligible applying consortia to the EIT HEI Initiative Call for Proposals 2024 must consist of a minimum of five full (funded) partner organisations, and comply with the following criteria:

• minimum three full partner HEIs, from three different countries;
• one of the full partner HEIs must be the Project Coordinator;
• minimum two HEIs must be a ‘new’ partner (i.e., didn’t participate in an EIT HEI Initiative Cohort 1, 2 or 3 project);
• minimum one business partner.

Organisations are encouraged to start preparing their application by reading the full call text and to connect with partners on the dedicated networking platform.

To guide applicants through the process, a series of info sessions will be held, providing valuable insights into the application process and clarifying expectations regarding project impact domains, key performance indicators, and collaboration opportunities. You can learn more about the info sessions on the call for proposals page.

The selected projects will be announced in April 2025.

Application deadline: 12 December 2024, 17:00 CET