The EIT Higher Education Initiative has once again demonstrated its significance in the higher education innovation landscape, with its latest Call for Proposals 2024 receiving an outstanding response.
A total of 130 applications were submitted, involving 1480 organisations from 55 countries, showcasing the growing number of European higher education institutions (HEIs) determined to become innovation and entrepreneurship powerhouses increasing Europe’s competitiveness. The European Institute of Innovation & Technology (EIT) as part of Horizon Europe, is the only EU innovation instrument dedicated to integrating education and skills with research and business.
The EIT Higher Education Initiative, formerly EIT HEI Initiative, launched by the European Institute of Innovation and Technology (EIT) helps higher education institutions build their innovation capacity and drive economic and societal impact. The initiative is built on collaborative relationships with industry partners, research institutes, governmental organisations and more.
Record Interest from Europe’s Innovation Ecosystem
The current call attracted 677 higher education institutions, 475 businesses and industry partners, and 328 other organisations, including research institutes, public bodies, and NGOs from all EU Member States and beyond, with strong participation from regions covered by the EIT Regional Innovation Scheme (RIS), as well as non-EU countries from Latin America and Africa. Notably, 59 out of 65 Alliances under the European Universities Initiative are represented in the applications, demonstrating the growing commitment to cross-border collaboration in innovation.
The Call for Proposals 2024 focused on two key strands:
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Strand A – Supporting general innovation and entrepreneurship (I&E) capacity building within HEIs (93 applications received).
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Strand B – Strengthening HEI engagement in deep tech innovation and entrepreneurship (37 applications received).
The evaluation of applications is now underway, and the selected projects will be announced in Spring 2025.
A Proven Track Record of Driving Innovation in Higher Education
Since its launch, the EIT Higher Education Initiative has trained over 90,000 students and staff, supported more than 1,700 start-ups and scale-ups, and helped HEIs embed innovation into their institutional strategies. This latest call builds on the initiative’s success so far and further expands its growing network of innovation-driven universities and other organisations.