Funded by the European Union. Views and opinions expressed are however those of the author(s) only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or the EuroHPC Joint Undertaking. Neither the European Union nor the granting authority can be held responsible for them.

1.Introduction

The EuroHPC Virtual Training Academy (EVITA) project aims to establish a sustainable and high-quality training ecosystem in High-Performance Computing (HPC) across Europe. As part of its cascade funding mechanism, EVITA is launching a call for proposals to support the development of modular training materials aligned with the EVITA Competence and Qualification Framework (CQF).

The call aims to engage external contributors in the development of high-quality, reusable training courses that can be integrated into the EVITA Training Platform and contribute to the broader European HPC training ecosystem.

2.Objective of the Call

The objective of this call is to identify, evaluate, and fund high-quality proposals for the development of courses addressing skills needs defined within the CQF. The selected proposals will contribute to the creation of structured learning pathways and support the development of competencies in HPC and related domains.

The call seeks proposals that demonstrate strong pedagogical design, technical soundness, and clear alignment with the CQF, while ensuring that the developed materials are reusable and suitable for integration into the EVITA Training Platform.

3.Scope and Eligible Activities

Proposals must address one of the courses defined in the call, derived from the CQF. Each proposal must describe a complete course composed of modules, where each module represents a self-contained learning unit with a typical duration of one to four hours.

The proposed training materials must include a balanced combination of theoretical content and practical components, such as hands-on exercises or demonstrations, as well as appropriate assessment elements. Proposals may involve the development of entirely new materials, the adaptation of existing materials, or a combination of both.

All proposed materials must be aligned with the CQF, including the defined learning outcomes and associated skills. Where deviations from the CQF structure are proposed, these must be clearly described and justified.

4.Eligibility of Applicants

In accordance with the applicable programme rules, applicants must be legal entities established in eligible countries. Eligible countries include European Union Member States and countries that are members of or associated with the EuroHPC Joint Undertaking.

Eligible applicants include, for example, higher education institutions, research organisations, public sector bodies, private companies (including SMEs), non-profit organisations, and other entities active in HPC or related fields.

Applicants must be registered in the relevant EU systems where required. Natural persons are not eligible to receive funding under this call.

Entities that are part of the EVITA consortium are not eligible to apply for funding.

Applicants must demonstrate sufficient technical, pedagogical, and organisational capacity to deliver high-quality training materials in line with the requirements of the call.

5.Funding Conditions

Financial support is provided through the Financial Support to Third Parties (FSTP) instrument in the form of lump-sum contributions, in accordance with the EVITA Grant Agreement and applicable EU financial rules.

Funding is allocated at the level of modules. Each module represents approximately 1–4 hours of learning content, with a maximum funding of €4,000 per module. Applicants must propose complete courses composed of modules and specify the number of modules, their duration, and the total requested budget. The maximum amount per module is not guaranteed and must be justified.

Applicants must provide a clear justification of the requested budget in relation to the scope and type of work. As guidance, an indicative reference of €1,000 per hour may be used for newly developed materials. Proposals involving adaptation of existing materials are expected to demonstrate lower effort and correspondingly reduced costs.

Double funding is not permitted. Applicants must declare whether the proposed materials, or any of their components, have been previously funded under EU or national programmes. Activities already funded under such programmes, including within National Competence Centres (NCCs), Centres of Excellence (CoEs), or other EuroHPC JU projects, are not eligible. Funding may be requested only for the adaptation or integration of existing materials, provided that the additional effort and added value are clearly demonstrated. Continuation of activities funded under ongoing projects is not eligible.

Payments are linked to the successful delivery and acceptance of modules. Each module is treated as a separate unit. Funding will be paid only for modules that are fully delivered and meet the required quality standards. Undelivered or non-compliant modules will not be funded.

The maximum duration of funded activities is ten months, including a development phase of up to six months and a publication phase of up to four months. Earlier delivery may lead to earlier payment.

Pre-financing of up to 50% may be provided after signature of the agreement. The remaining amount will be paid upon successful completion, review, and acceptance of the materials.

Entities that are part of the EVITA consortium are not eligible to receive funding.

6.Submission Process

Proposals must be submitted through the EVITA online submission system using the designated application form.

Submission system: https://evita-submission-portal.evitahpc.eu/login

The application form is structured to collect all necessary information, including details about the applicant, the proposed course and its structure, alignment with the CQF, pedagogical and technical approach, work plan, and budget.

Proposals must be submitted in English and must meet the specified deadline to be considered for evaluation. Incomplete or late submissions may be rejected without further assessment.

7.Evaluation and Selection

All submitted proposals will undergo an administrative and eligibility check to ensure compliance with the requirements of the call. Eligible proposals will then be evaluated by two independent reviewers based on predefined evaluation criteria.

The evaluation will assess the implementation capacity of the applicant, the pedagogical quality of the proposed materials, the alignment with the CQF, and the economic effectiveness of the proposal. Each proposal will be scored and ranked accordingly.

Based on the ranking and the available budget, proposals will be selected for funding, with one proposal selected per course defined in the call. The EVITA project reserves the right to request clarifications, adjust the scope or budget of selected proposals, or fund only a subset of submitted proposals.

8.Quality Assurance

All funded materials will be subject to a structured quality assurance process to ensure their consistency, completeness, and alignment with EVITA standards. This includes an internal validation step to verify compliance with the EVITA module template and required components.

Following internal validation, the materials will undergo an external peer review process implemented through the Journal of Open Source Education (JOSE). Only materials that successfully complete this process will be accepted and integrated into the EVITA Training Platform.

9.Future Calls

This call represents the first of three planned calls for modular training materials within the EVITA project. Two additional calls will be launched during the project lifetime, building on the experience and outcomes of this initial call.

10.Timeline of the First Call

The first call for modular training materials will follow the timeline below:

11.Contact

Further information and support are available through the EVITA website and e-mail [email protected].

12.Attachments

EVITA CQF courses

EVITA CQF definitions

Guidance for Applicants: Guidelines for the Concept of Modules

Guidance for Applicants: Evaluation and Selection of Proposals for Modular Training Materials

Contact: Further information and support are available through the EVITA website and e-mail [email protected].