Do you have an idea for educational innovation or a new programme that could benefit from CHARM-EU collaboration? Are you looking to strengthen your European networks and embed CHARM-EU’s educational principles (e.g. challenge based, transdisciplinary, technology enhanced) into your teaching?
The CHARM-ED Call offers funding to support the development, enhancement, or redesign of higher education and lifelong learning activities across the CHARM-EU Alliance.
We are seeking proposals from transdisciplinary and inter-institutional teams to innovate collaboratively, co-create content, embed CHARM-EU’s pedagogical approach into educational experiences, and foster the skills Europe needs to help solve complex local and global issues.
Scope of the Call
The CHARM-ED Call seeks to support collaborative, inter-institutional educational activities that advance the CHARM-EU strategic objectives and contribute to the integration of CHARM-EU educational principles across Bachelor’s, Master’s, Doctoral, and micro-credential programmes. All proposals should clearly demonstrate their alignment with CHARM-EU’s educational vision and strategic goals, as well as their potential to generate meaningful impact at institutional and alliance level. The following activities will be prioritized in line with CHARM-EU strategic needs:
| Eligible activities | Examples (but not limited to) |
| Joint educational programme/activities preparation and development | – Short-term education offerings (micro-credentials for professionals / university students, Summer Schools, COIL, MOOCs, virtual exchanges) – New joint Bachelor’s, Master’s, PhD programmes – Erasmus Mundus Design Measure proposals – Internal and external proposals to support educational development – Build sprints or educational hackathons to co-create learning materials – “Preparation” offerings for Bachelors students in CHARM-universities with CHARM-EU educational principles |
| Enhancing international activities within an existing programme | – Establishing new mobility pathways within existing programmes – Developing virtual exchange programmes to enhance student collaboration – Engage in joint delivery through teaching mobilities |
| Small scale educational collaborations | – Interdisciplinary guest lectures by faculty from CHARM-EU institutions or external stakeholders – Workshops that explore cross-disciplinary and external stakeholder collaboration – Short term co-teaching activities for faculty and external stakeholders to co-teach modules or micro-credentials, including staff mobility. |
| Integration of CHARM-EU educational principles in existing courses | – Implementing technology-enhanced learning tools – Embedding challenge-based learning approaches – Developing digital and hybrid learning experiences – Providing training for educators to integrate a number of CHARM-EU educational principles or programmatic assessment approaches. |
| Redevelopment of modules for the Transnational Online Learning Catalogue | – Updating course content to align CHARM-EU educational principles for the Transnational Online Learning Catalogue requirements – Converting existing modules into hybrid or online formats and enable access for students from across the CHARM-EU alliance |
| Stakeholder engagement and engaging with society for Transdisciplinary educational activity development | – Engaging industry, NGOs, and governmental partners in educational programme co-design and co-creation. – Hosting stakeholders to gather input on course content – Supporting the creation of service-learning opportunities – Organizing public outreach events that connect students with external stakeholders – Engage extra-academic stakeholders in challenge-based learning activities |
Digital credentialling for all activities is strongly encouraged and can be supported via CHARM-EU (i.e. provision of evidence of acquisition of skills (e.g. digital badges).
The following activities are out of scope
- Standalone research projects
- Secondary and primary level programmes
- Standalone mobility grants. All mobility related funding must be explicitly linked to programme development or teaching / educational activities.
- One-off events unless they are part of a broader project with clear educational deliverables
- Academic conferences
- Projects without inter-institutional collaboration
Benefits to proposers
By taking part in CHARM-ED, you would:
- Receive funding to develop or enhance your educational activity
- Collaborate with colleagues across CHARM-EU universities
- Collaborate with external stakeholders
- Strengthen your course’s alignment with European policy priorities and skills agendas
- Be supported in embedding CHARM-EU’s educational vision
- Showcase your work across the CHARM-EU network
- Receive (1-4 hours) support from the CHARM-EU educationalist team
Funding
Funding Available
- Funding per project: 1000 – 5000 EUR
- Timeframe: September 2025 – October 2026
- Funding will be provided directly to staff via their home institution
Funding scope
- Funding must be used for educational development activities (e.g., staff mobility, teaching materials, platform costs, co-teaching, event organization).
- Certain institutions may not be able to transfer funds directly to staff—applicants should check their institutional financial rules before applying by contacting their CHARM-EU Manager listed below prior to application.
- No direct salary payments to applicants (unless explicitly allowed under specific funding rules).
- Co-funding or institutional support is recommended but not mandatory.
Funding can be used for:
- Travel expenses
- Accommodation and subsistence cost
- Equipment cost, subject to local partner limitations
- Transfer of best practices to higher education institutions outside the Alliance (e.g. hosting an event, advertising in the media, promotional materials and activities
- Dissemination of knowledge and information (e.g. advertising in the media, promotional materials and activities)
- Renting of premises for major events
- Travel and/or subsistence costs of third parties (experts, professors, speakers etc.) contributing to the European University’s activities, subject to local partner limitations
- Catering, subject to local partner limitations
- Facilitator tutor costs, subject to local partner limitations
Before applying, please check with your institutional CHARM-ED liaison (see below) to ensure funding can be provided for your activity.
Eligibility criteria
Institutional eligibility
- Applications must involve a collaboration between at least two CHARM-EU partner universities.
- Non-CHARM-EU institutions or external stakeholders (e.g., industry partners, NGOs) may be involved as associated partners, but they cannot receive direct funding.
Applicant eligibility
- Open to academic and administrative/professional staff affiliated with CHARM-EU institutions.
- At least one academic staff member must be part of each proposal.
- Interdisciplinary teams strongly encouraged.
- Engagement with external stakeholders is strongly encouraged.
Thematic Areas
This call has two main areas of focus, and all proposals need to address both:
| Focal area 1: Funded activities must primarily align with the CHARM-EU educational principles and mission and vision. Mission: Delivering innovative, challenge-based, student-centred, and self-directed teaching across disciplines, promoting mobility and inclusivity, and engaging in a transformative approach to program and curricula design. Vision: To create an innovative and flexible university model which embraces the change needed to meet society’s challenges. By breaking down borders, linking local and global solutions, and rethinking the role of European universities CHARM-EU is creating a challenge driven research-based university and offers student-centered educational programmes, research and innovation projects and service to society focused on identifying and solving specific challenges in close collaboration with the broader community. Educational principles: – Sustainability – Challenge based learning – Transversal skills – Transdisciplinary – Research-based learning – Technology-enhanced – Student-centred – Situated learning – Transnational and intercultural learning – Inclusivity | Focal area 2: Proposals should align with European educational policy priorities and skills frameworks, including but not limited to: – Green Skills – Digital Skills – Artificial Intelligence and Cybersecurity – Circular Economy and Net Zero Technologies – Entrepreneurship, Innovation and FinTech – Critical Thinking and Managerial Skills – Health in Aging Inclusivity and mobility—particularly for women and vulnerable groups—are highly encouraged. If the proposal is aligned with other European educational policy priority areas not listed here, please include a link to such policies and a description on how the proposal speaks to these policy priorities. |
Evaluation and selection process
All eligible proposals will be reviewed by an interdisciplinary committee of CHARM-EU staff with expertise in CHARM-EU educational principles using a transparent evaluation rubric. Selection will be based on:
- Alignment with CHARM-EU educational principles
- Contribution to European education goals
- Feasibility
- Inter-institutional and interdisciplinary collaboration
- Potential for innovation and impact
- Engagement with stakeholders
- Cost versus impact
Reporting and deliverables
Successful applicants will be expected to:
- Submit a short progress report for projects finishing between May and October 2026.
- Submit a final report at project close
- Share results and outputs for dissemination via the CHARM-EU website and networks. Where appropriate, funded projects are encouraged to share outputs as open educational resources.
- Participate in at least one CHARM-EU knowledge-sharing event (e.g. annual conference, educational world café etc.)
Timeline
- Call launch and publication: [June 12th 2025]
- Deadline for submission of proposals: [September 26th 2025]
- Notification of results: [October 10th 2025]
- Start of funded project activities: [October 2025]
- Submission of mid-term report: [May 22nd 2026] if not complete by this date
- Submission of final report: [October 16th 2026] or on completion of project
- Promotion and dissemination of project outcomes: [TBC November 2026]
How to apply
To apply, complete the CHARM-ED Application Form and attach your Budget Template to the form. A preview version to help you develop your proposal is available here.
Contact persons
For support and to check institutional financial rules before applying, contact your institutional CHARM-ED liaison:
- University of Barcelona: CHARM-EU Office (charm-euoffice@ub.edu)
- Trinity College Dublin: Conor Spillane (CSPILLAN@tcd.ie)
- Utrecht University: Rianne Giethoorn (r.l.giethoorn@uu.nl)
- University of Montpellier: Julien Lorentz (julien.lorentz@umontpellier.fr)
- Eötvös Loránd University: Krisztina Lénárt (charm-eu.office@rk.elte.hu)
- Åbo Akademi University: Harriet Klåvus/Pia Le Grand (harriet.klavus@abo.fi / pia.legrand@abo.fi)
- Julius-Maximilians-University Würzburg: Martin Kufferath-Sieberin (martin.kufferath-sieberin@uni-wuerzburg.de)
- Ruhr West University of Applied Sciences: Ines Mueller-Vogt (ines.mueller-vogt@hs-ruhrwest.de)
- University of Bergen: Rosa Nogueira (rosa.nogueira@uib.no)
Frequently Asked Questions
I have an idea for a proposal. How do I find someone in CHARM-EU to collaborate with?
If you have an idea for a project, and are seeking collaborators, contact your CHARM-EU Manager (see above) and they will be able to explore connections with our partners.
What supports are there for me to learn about the CHARM-EU educational approach?
Review our educational principles and service porfolio. Successful applicants can be offered additional support.
