Sectoral digital skills academies: Virtual Worlds Skills Academy

The DIGITAL-2025-SKILLS-08-VIRTUAL-WORLDS-ACADEMY-STEP call is part of the EU's Digital Europe Programme and is aimed at establishing a Virtual Worlds Skills Academy. This academy is designed to address the growing need for skilled professionals in advanced digital technologies, particularly in virtual worlds, quantum technologies, and artificial intelligence. The funding type for this opportunity is a DIGITAL Lump Sum Grant, with a total budget of 10 million EUR allocated specifically for this topic.

Eligible applicants include universities, industry partners such as SMEs and large enterprises, research organizations, vocational education and training institutions, and public entities. The call requires a consortium of at least six entities from a minimum of three different eligible countries, emphasizing the need for diverse representation.

The geographical scope for beneficiaries includes EU Member States, EFTA/EEA countries, and associated countries within the Digital Europe Programme. While specific countries are not mentioned, applicants outside the EU can participate but may not be eligible for funding unless they meet certain criteria.

The project is in the development stage, focusing on creating and implementing comprehensive academic curricula and training modules specifically for virtual worlds. The initiative not only aims to educate but also to promote partnerships and collaboration across various sectors, including education, healthcare, automotive, and creative industries.

Applications for this grant can be submitted through an open call with a single-stage submission process. A co-funding requirement of 50% is specified, meaning that beneficiaries must secure additional financial backing to match the grant. As for success rates, only one project is expected to be funded, indicating a potentially low success rate.

The outcomes anticipated from the projects include developing diverse curricula for academic programs, piloting short-term training courses, and establishing large-scale partnerships between academia and industry. The initiative also emphasizes the importance of inclusivity in education and training activities, particularly focusing on the participation of women and underrepresented groups.

Overall, this grant opportunity signifies a substantial investment in enhancing digital skills within Europe, specifically targeting the rapidly evolving field of virtual technologies. The call opens for submissions on April 15, 2025, with a deadline set for September 2, 2025. The initiative aligns with the EU's broader goal to train millions of ICT specialists by 2030 and to bolster technological sovereignty within the region.

The DIGITAL-2025-SKILLS-08-VIRTUAL-WORLDS-ACADEMY-STEP call, part of the Digital Europe Programme (DIGITAL), aims to establish a Virtual Worlds Skills Academy. This academy will focus on reinforcing the talent pool needed for the development of virtual worlds, covering areas like extended reality, 3D graphics, content creation, computer vision, AI, interactive media, modelling and industrial applications (digital twins), digital identity, data privacy, and big data. The call is a DIGITAL Lump Sum Grant, with a single-stage submission process.

The opening date for submissions is April 15, 2025, and the deadline is September 2, 2025, at 17:00 Brussels time. The total budget allocated to this topic is 10,000,000 EUR, and it is expected that one project will be funded.

The expected outcomes of the projects include:

Comprehensive academic curricula designed for various levels and target groups, implemented at the European level. These curricula may consist of complete academic programs or smaller modules integrated into larger programs.
Modular short-term training curricula for sector specialists, piloted through relevant training courses at regional or local levels, including targeted training for SMEs and the public sector.
Partnerships and collaboration frameworks between academia, industry (including SMEs), and research institutions to facilitate the large-scale European-wide rollout of academic programs and short-term training.
Facilitated joint educational initiatives and events with industry and research institutions, such as on-the-job experiences, laboratories, mentorship schemes, internship programs, summer schools, bootcamps, visits to facilities, and career days.
Support, integration, and visibility schemes, with a focus on the participation of female students and professionals, talented young people from disadvantaged backgrounds, and people with disabilities.
Training initiatives for teaching staff, such as "Teach-the-teacher" modules for university, VET, and secondary-education teachers.
Communication and awareness-raising activities, including social media campaigns and career orientation for secondary education students and the general public.
A dedicated landing page on the Digital Skills and Jobs Platform to disseminate academy activities, events, and initiatives.
Reports on the impact of the academies’ activities, based on a KPI assessment scheme, and recommendations for policy and investments.
Additional deliverables specific to individual academies’ activities.

The scope of the call emphasizes an interdisciplinary approach, bringing together various technologies and disciplines. The academy will cover education and training encompassing technological blocks of virtual worlds, such as extended reality, blockchain, AI, data, edge computing, high-performance computing, 3D graphics, interactive media, content creation, computer vision, modelling and industrial applications (digital twins), digital identity, data privacy and big data, as well as creative designs and related disciplines like law, ethics, and design. Training will also be offered for sector specialists in industries like automotive, healthcare, education, and cultural and creative sectors, to enable them to deploy virtual worlds effectively. Furthermore, the academy will develop training for basic understanding of virtual worlds technologies to empower citizens and raise awareness of the opportunities and risks of virtual worlds in daily life.

Conditions for application include:

Admissibility Conditions: Proposal page limit and layout, as described in section 5 of the call document and Part B of the Application Form in the Submission System.
Eligible Countries: Described in section 6 of the call document.
Other Eligible Conditions: Described in section 6 of the call document.
Financial and operational capacity and exclusion: Described in section 7 of the call document.
Evaluation and award: Submission and evaluation processes, described in section 8 of the call document and the Online Manual.
Evaluation and award: Award criteria, scoring and thresholds, described in section 9 of the call document.
Evaluation and award: Indicative timeline for evaluation and grant agreement, described in section 4 of the call document.
Legal and financial set-up of the grants: Described in section 10 of the call document.

The call document and annexes include:

Call Document
Application form templates:
Standard application form (DEP) available in the Submission System
Detailed budget table (DEP LSII)
Model Grant Agreements (MGA):
Lump Sum MGA
Additional documents:
DEP Work Programmes
DEP Regulation 2021/964
EU Financial Regulation 2024/2509
Rules for Legal Entity Validation, LEAR Appointment and Financial Capacity Assessment
EU Grants AGA Annotated Model Grant Agreement
Funding & Tenders Portal Online Manual
Funding & Tenders Portal Terms and Conditions
Funding & Tenders Portal Privacy Statement

There are 85 partner search announcements available. LEARs, Account Administrators, and self-registrants can publish partner requests for open and forthcoming topics.

For help, applicants can contact via a provided FORM, consult the Funding & Tenders Portal FAQ, or contact the IT Helpdesk for technical issues. The Online Manual provides a step-by-step guide through the Portal processes.

In summary, this EU grant opportunity aims to establish a Virtual Worlds Skills Academy to address the growing need for skilled professionals in the virtual worlds sector. The academy will develop and implement comprehensive training programs, foster collaboration between academia and industry, and raise awareness among citizens about the opportunities and risks associated with virtual world technologies. The grant provides 10 million EUR to a single project that can create a lasting impact on the European digital skills landscape.

Eligible Applicant Types: The call is open to a variety of entities, including academia, industry (including SMEs), and research institutions. Higher Education Institutions (HEIs), providers of educational platforms, and Vocational Education Training (VET) institutes are explicitly mentioned as potential participants. The call encourages the participation of industry partners, recommending at least two industry partners with headquarters in Europe within the consortia. Development organizations are also potentially eligible, contingent upon meeting the criteria outlined in Section 6 of the Call for Proposals.

Funding Type: The funding type is a DIGITAL Lump Sum Grant (DIGITAL-LS).

Consortium Requirement: The call requires a consortium of multiple applicants. The minimum requirements for consortium composition are detailed in Section 6 of the Call for Proposals. While there is no specified maximum number of partners, the minimum requirement is 6 beneficiaries from at least 4 countries.

Beneficiary Scope (Geographic Eligibility): The call specifies that eligibility rules are detailed in Section 6 of the Call for Proposals. Generally, applicants from non-EU countries can join consortia, but entities from non-EU countries that are not associated with the Digital Europe Programme may not be eligible to receive funding.

Target Sector: The primary target sector is advanced digital skills, specifically focusing on virtual worlds. The call aims to develop a Virtual Worlds Skills Academy. The initiative also touches upon related sectors such as education, healthcare, automotive, cultural and creative sectors and industries, and public sector, as the academy will provide training for sector specialists to deploy virtual worlds in their respective fields. The technologies covered include extended reality, blockchain, AI, data, edge computing, high-performance computing, 3D graphics, interactive media, content creation, computer vision, modelling and industrial applications (digital twins), digital identity, data privacy and big data.

Mentioned Countries: While no specific countries are explicitly mentioned in the provided text, the call emphasizes European-wide roll-out and encourages participation from at least 4 countries within the consortium. There is no specific requirement about participation of Türkiye.

Project Stage: The project stage is focused on development and implementation. The call aims to create comprehensive academic curricula and modular short-term training curricula, pilot these trainings, and establish partnerships for large-scale European-wide roll-out.

Funding Amount: The budget for the DIGITAL-2025-SKILLS-08-VIRTUAL-WORLDS-ACADEMY-STEP topic is EUR 10,000,000.

Application Type: The application type is an open call with a single-stage submission process.

Nature of Support: Beneficiaries will receive monetary support in the form of a lump sum grant.

Application Stages: The application process consists of a single stage.

Success Rates: The indicative number of grants for the DIGITAL-2025-SKILLS-08-VIRTUAL-WORLDS-ACADEMY-STEP topic is one, suggesting a low success rate.

Co-funding Requirement: Beneficiaries must fulfill a 50% co-funding requirement. This co-funding can include own resources, income generated by the action, or financial or in-kind contributions from third parties. There will be no financial audit nor financial reporting on the self-funded amount. Reporting of Lump Sum based grants is solely technical and based on assessment of completion of actions.

Summary:

This opportunity is a call under the Digital Europe Programme (DIGITAL) focusing on Advanced Digital Skills, specifically targeting the creation of a Virtual Worlds Skills Academy. The call, titled DIGITAL-2025-SKILLS-08-VIRTUAL-WORLDS-ACADEMY-STEP, aims to reinforce the talent pool needed for the development of virtual worlds technologies. The EU initiative seeks to pioneer the development of various building blocks of virtual worlds, including extended reality, 3D graphics, AI, and digital twins. The Virtual Worlds Skills Academy will develop and implement comprehensive academic curricula and modular short-term training for sector specialists and citizens. The goal is to equip individuals with the knowledge and skills to deploy virtual worlds across various sectors, raise awareness of the opportunities and risks, and foster collaboration between academia, industry, and research institutions. The funding is provided as a lump sum grant of EUR 10,000,000, and the call requires a consortium of at least 6 beneficiaries from at least 4 countries. The application deadline is September 2, 2025. The call emphasizes the importance of including industry partners and addressing the participation of women, talented young people from disadvantaged backgrounds, and people with disabilities in education and training activities. The project is expected to deliver comprehensive curricula, training modules, partnerships, and communication activities, all integrated into the Digital Skills and Jobs Platform.