Education and skills for the EU space sector

Closed

Programme Category

EU Competitive Programmes

Programme Name

Horizon Europe (2021-2027)

Programme Description

Horizon Europe is the European Union (EU) funding programme for the period 2021 – 2027, which targets the sectors of research and innovation. The programme’s budget is around € 95.5 billion, of which € 5.4 billion is from NextGenerationEU to stimulate recovery and strengthen the EU’s resilience in the future, and € 4.5 billion is additional aid.

Programme Details

Identifier Code

HORIZON-CL4-2022-SPACE-01-72

Call

Education and skills for the EU space sector

Summary

Competitiveness and innovation of the EU space sector depends on the availability of high educational standards and skilled professionals across a range of qualifications and the possibility for these professionals to upgrade and update their skills. This is also in the interest of the research and innovation community where the quality of the results and the impact of EU-funded research is a precursor of the future space sector. The EU also plays a role in the aligning of educational degrees to provide more opportunities and promote mobility of professionals and researchers across countries and sectors.

Detailed Call Description

The scope of this action encompasses:

  • The analysis of the main curricula and courses available and existing educational standards across the EU-27 at bachelor, master and post-graduate levels as well as continuing education (training and staff qualification / certification). The study should provide an overview of the ‘supply’ of space-oriented education and of the ‘demand’, a quantitative analysis of the ‘stocks & flows’ of students at the different levels eventually employed in the space sector at large (academia, government agencies, upstream industry, downstream industry) including socio-economic aspects (e.g. gender, educational background, family income, parents’ education, residence geography, etc.), and a comparative analysis of the cost/time to achieve a degree.
  • The analysis of the skills required and reskilling needs of the R&I and the industrial community (across the entire supply chain, ranging from upstream space to downstream space) will be performed and structured, presumably along existing educational modules (e.g. electrical, mechanical, telecommunication, system engineering, physics, psychology, medicine). The analysis should engage both industry and educational institutions. It should not be limited to technical, scientific, engineering disciplines but also includes the essential soft skills needed, such as the ability to work in a diverse multidisciplinary team, to communicate efficiently, to create new activities and businesses, etc.
  • The analysis of the match between needs and offer across the whole of EU-27 will be analysed and recommendations made to ensure a better match between the needs and the offer in the coming years. For this, a benchmarking of the career opportunities for space-oriented graduates coming from different universities across the EU-27 and Associated Countries (e.g. time to first employment, average salary after 3-5-7 years, etc.) will be performed.
  • In particular, the co-operation between academia and industry in the field of PhD studies will be assessed and measures to promote the research experience of the academic personnel proposed.
  • The use of continuous learning “in-company” and “out-of-company” supported by the new digital technologies with guaranteed quality e.g. Massive Online Open Course (MOOC) will be assessed and promoted.
  • Promotion of the space sector jobs and careers (in particular where there is a strong demand for qualified workforce) and information about the different curricula and disciplines of interest for such careers in Bachelor and Master studies.

Call Total Budget

€3,00 million

Financing percentage by EU or other bodies / Level of Subsidy or Loan

100%

EU contribution per project: between €2,00 and €3,00 million

Thematic Categories

  • Education and training
  • Research, Technological Development and Innovation
  • Space

Eligibility for Participation

  • Educational Institutions
  • Researchers/Research Centers/Institutions

Call Opening Date

02/11/2021

Call Closing Date

16/02/2022

National Contact Point(s)

Research and Innovation Foundation
29a Andrea Michalakopoulou Street, 1075 Nicosia
T.Th. 23422, 1683 Nicosia
+357 22205000
Email: support@research.org.cy

Dr Angelos Ntantos
Scientific Officer
Telephone: 35722205033
Email: antantos@research.org.cy

Dr Ioannis Theodorou

Scientific Officer
Telephone: 35722205038
Email: itheodorou@research.org.cy

(Publish Date: 07/12/2021-for internal use only)

EU Contact Point

Εuropean Commission, Directorate-General for Research and Innovation

https://ec.europa.eu/info/departments/research-and-innovation_en#contact