EIT Higher Education Initiative Call for Proposals 2026

The EIT Higher Education Initiative Call is now open!

The call is offering up to €1.25 million per project over 18 months, with a total budget of €40 million, to strengthen innovation and entrepreneurship capacity in higher education, focusing on manufacturing and deep tech. It will support projects that help universities develop innovation and entrepreneurship skills, improve technology transfer services and build stronger links with businesses.

Projects will focus on three key areas:

• STEM talent for innovation and entrepreneurship: Developing innovation, entrepreneurship and intellectual property skills among students and staff in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) and related fields.
• Institutional capacity for knowledge valorisation and innovation: Strengthening universities' ability to turn research and knowledge into innovations, including through improved technology transfer, intellectual property management and support for startups.
• Integration into innovation ecosystems: Building stronger links between higher education institutions, businesses, research organisations, investors and innovation networks, particularly in manufacturing and deep tech.

Eligibility and consortium requirements

Who can apply?

To be eligible, consortia must meet the following requirements:

• Consortium composition: Each consortium must include at least five funded partners: at least three HEIs (from three different Horizon Europe-eligible countries, including at least one EU Member State) and at least two business/industry partners and/or business/industry representative organisations (e.g. SMEs, startups, larger enterprises and industry associations). Industry partners operating in manufacturing or deep-tech technologies are strongly encouraged to join a consortium.
• Eligibility: Organisations funded under the EIT HEI Call 2025 are not eligible to apply under the 2026 call. Each organisation may participate as a funded beneficiary in only one 2026 call application.

How to apply

Consortia of higher education institutions, businesses, research organisations, public bodies and other non-academic partners can prepare their applications by consulting the full call text and finding potential partners through the matchmaking platform.

Selected projects will be announced later in 2027.

Learn more and apply