The 2025 Call for Training Proposals officially launched

The EIT Deep Tech Talent Initiative has launched its Call for Training Proposals 2025, and is inviting organisations to collaborate on training deep tech talents by enhancing or expanding existing deep tech training programmes. Proposals should be aimed at developing training for audiences including students of higher education with a need for more specialised training, and adult learners who need additional skills in deep tech.

Through this call, the Initiative has allocated maximum funding of up to €1 million, with each consortium able to request up to €60k.

The Call for Training Proposals 2025 has three main objectives:

• Increase the number of people trained in deep tech in Europe. These should come from the following learner categories covered by the Initiative:
  • Students of Higher Education with a need for more specialised training in deep tech;
  • Adult learners in companies and on the job market who need additional skills in deep tech.
• Expand, improve and diversify the EIT Deep Tech Talent Initiative training catalogue;
• Foster collaboration between the EIT Deep Tech Talent Initiative Pledgers

And project results are expected to contribute to the following expected impact:

• Mitigate the deep tech skills gap in Europe by equipping a diverse and inclusive workforce with critical competencies, enabling innovation across key technological areas.
• Position Europe as a leader in deep tech talent development, fostering creativity, inclusivity, and collaboration in training methodologies and curriculum design.
• Enhance Europe’s global competitiveness in deep tech industries while supporting the digital and green transitions through an empowered, well-trained, and gender-balanced workforce.

Since its launch in 2022, this EIT flagship programme has been working towards its target of one million talents trained in deep tech in Europe by the end of 2025, and has, to date, assembled a catalogue of over 180 deep tech courses from its community of 400 Pledgers (as of February 2025), comprising industry partners and training providers, all committed to addressing Europe’s deep tech skills gap.

Who can apply?

The EIT Deep Tech Talent Initiative Call for Training Proposals 2025 is open to all types of legal entities who wish to commit to pioneering the future of deep technology education and skill development across Europe.

Proposals must involve a consortium of at least two entities, coming from at least 2 different eligible countries, and respecting the following conditions:

• At least one partner must come from a Member State (MS).
• The other partner can be from either MS or Associated Countries (AC).

Additionally, all applicants must have signed the EIT Deep Tech Talent Initiative Pledge and  become Pledgers (have their pledge submitted) as early as possible and no later than 10 working days before the call deadline.

The proposals must support trainings in any of the 15 deep tech areas specified on the EIT Deep Tech Talent Initiative website:

1. Advanced Computing / Quantum Computing
2. Advanced Manufacturing
3. Advanced Materials
4. Aerospace, Automotive and Remote Sensing
5. Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning, including Big Data
6. Biotechnology and Life Sciences
7. Communications and Networks, including 5G
8. Cybersecurity and Data Protection
9. Electronics and Photonics
10. Internet of Things, W3C, Semantic Web
11. Robotics
12. Semiconductors (microchips)
13. Sustainable Energy and Clean Technologies
14. Virtual Reality, Augmented Reality, Metaverse
15. Web 3.0, including Blockchain, Distributed Ledgers, NFTs

What makes a successful proposal?

Successful proposals are expected to deliver the following outcomes:

• Bridging the Deep Tech Skills Gap: The proposals should describe efforts to reach a goal of at least 300 trained learners by end 2025, of which at least 30% women.
• Fostering Creativity and Innovation in Deep Tech Curriculum Design: Support the development of innovative training methodologies that encourage creativity, problem-solving, and critical thinking among participants. Any type of training can be envisaged: online, onsite, hybrid, workshops, seminars, master and doctoral programmes, summer or winter schools, if they meet the outlined criteria.
• Enhancing Programme Appeal and Reach: Focus on empowering underrepresented groups through training programmes, such as increasing women participation. Attracting other under-represented minorities, or ensuring inclusivity across all EU members states, especially EIT RIS eligible countries, with moderate or emerging innovation scores according to the European Innovation Scoreboard.
• Adhering to the Quality Check standards and specified mandatory criteria.
• Collaborative Efforts: Applications must involve a consortium of at least two entities, demonstrating a collaborative approach to deep tech training. All partners must be or become pledgers of the EIT Deep Tech Talent Initiative

How to apply

Interested organisations are encouraged to read the full Call text and documents available now here.

Applicants must submit the required documents through the online submission platform by the deadline, 8 April 2025, 17:00 CEST.