EUTOPIA Digitalisation Incubator Platform

Are you ready to help shaping the EUTOPIA Alliance? Do you want to drive the digital transformation of your university and its European partners? This is your moment to reimagine how we teach, learn, and collaborate by introducing innovative digital tools and solutions that make a real difference! Whether you’re passionate about e-learning, student mobility, open science, or creating vibrant community platforms, the EUTOPIA Digitalisation Incubator invites you to turn your ideas into reality!

1. Why this call?

The EUTOPIA Alliance, with the support of the Erasmus+ Programme 2021-2027, is launching the EUTOPIA Digitalisation Incubator platform as part of the EUTOPIA MORE project under the European Universities Initiative. We’re on a mission to accelerate our collective digital transformation by supporting the design and prototyping of digital tools and services that benefit all partner universities. The Digitalisation Incubators are your collaborative sandboxes—spaces where students, academics, technical and administrative staff unite to find creative digital solutions that power efficient, sustainable, and inclusive change. With this call, we’re looking for inspiring projects that:

• prototype or pilot digital tools, platforms, or infrastructure services for use across several EUTOPIA partner universities.
• tackle challenges in digital education, research, administration, or student/staff services.
• strengthen EUTOPIA’s shared digital infrastructure, interoperability, and user experience.
• foster a spirit of connectedness, enabling our institutions to transform together.

2. What are we looking for?

We are open to all ideas and innovative digital solutions in the areas of education, research and administration. Some of the key areas that EUTOPIA has been focusing on include:

• E-Teaching and E-Learning Have a vision for next-generation digital education? We want to hear about projects that boost digital teaching and learning—think e-learning platforms, dynamic teaching tools, or creative ways to bring students together online and in person. Have an idea for learning analytics or the use of AI? Pitch it! Your university already has innovative e-teaching and e-learning solutions in place that can be shared with partners? Let us hear about them!  
• Student Mobility Dream of making student exchanges easier and more digital? We’re looking for projects that simplify and enrich the digital side of mobility programs in alignment with broader European initiatives such as Erasmus without Paper, European Student Card Initiative, EMREX, and others. Ideas may contribute to streamlining applications, digitizing admin processes, or improving the student experience throughout their journey.  
• Community Tools, and Services Want to help our alliance feel more connected? Propose tools and services that empower community engagement, resource sharing, or collaboration among students, staff, and faculty across EUTOPIA. We are looking for easy-to-use, easy-to-implement digital solutions to complement the upcoming Agora platform.  
• Open Science Are you passionate about open research and collaboration? We are looking for ways to advance Open Science across the alliance. Suggest digital tools that promote open science, research data management, open access publishing, citizen science initiatives, Open Educational Resources, or the implementation of FAIR (Findable, Accessible, Interoperable, Reusable) data principles. Initiatives could include training modules, best practice toolkits, or digital infrastructures that facilitate knowledge sharing both within and beyond academia.  
• Other Have a digital idea that doesn’t fit into these categories? We’re open to all innovative solutions that address challenges or create opportunities for the EUTOPIA community.

3. What’s in it for you?

If selected, your team will:

• Collaborate with a supportive review board and like-minded peers across Europe.
• Receive financial backing for meetings, mobility, and software subscriptions and (where applicable) additional staff time
• Get expert feedback and visibility for your work via EUTOPIA platforms and newsletters.
• See your ideas move from concept to working prototype—and maybe even full-scale roll-out across the alliance!

4. What is expected of you?

Selected project teams are expected to: 

• Work closely with the EUTOPIA Digitalisation Incubator review board as well as WP5.2 and be open to adjustments to ensure alignment with the alliance’s digital infrastructure goals.
• Participate in at least one meeting at the beginning of the project period, complete required documentation, and provide timely reporting on project progress and outcomes. Communicate any delays or unforeseen challenges that endanger the project!
• Test your solution in a real-world setting and present the results to the WP5.2 group/review board. We are looking for more than just a concept idea! Please note: If your projects includes the development of a tool, platform or service, teams are expected to build and test their solutions themselves. There can be no outside development/external service provider due to eligibility criteria! If your team lacks the technical skills, consider to team up with someone from your IT department, or other relevant department willing to provide the skills needed, before applying!
• Submit a final report including a summary of the development, testing and description of potential roll-out/upscaling across the alliance (max. 5 pages)  

5. Who can apply?

All students or staff (educational, technical, or administrative) at any of the nine full EUTOPIA partner universities can apply and are supported through EUTOPIA MORE Erasmus+ Funds. The University of Warwick (UW) as an associate partner provides institutionally-based funds to support participation of students and staff from UW. 

Projects are financed by the applicants’ home university. Mixed teams from several partners are encouraged, however, funding will need to be sorted out on a case-by-case basis, therefore we recommend getting in touch in advance.  

6. How to Apply Ready to get started?

Submit your project proposal via our application form by 1 December 2025. If you have any questions or want to brainstorm before applying, reach out to: Franziska Friebel-Viebach (TUD) Public Relations Coordinator (franziska.friebel-viebach@tu-dresden.de)  

7. How are we selecting the projects?

All proposals will be evaluated by a review board consisting of members of the EUTOPIA WP5.2 team and at least one additional representative from the broader EUTOPIA governance structure. The review board will carefully assess proposals based on the published evaluation criteria (see below) as well as strategic considerations, such as ensuring an equal distribution of projects across partner universities, adhesion to applicable regulations, and availability of financial resources.

The selection of proposals will be done based on the following criteria:

1. Relevance and Alignment with EUTOPIA Goals (25%) - Does your project clearly tackle a real need relevant for EUTOPIA’s digital transformation? - Does it contribute to shared infrastructures, interoperability, or user experience across multiple EUTOPIA partner universities?
2. Scalability and Sustainability (25%) - Does your idea show potential for adoption, adaptation, or scaling across EUTOPIA partners and the alliance ? - Are there clear considerations for longer-term maintenance, integration, or further development beyond the initial pilot/prototype phase?
3. Feasibility and Implementation Plan (20%) - Is your work plan realistic and achievable within 3–6 months? (Teams are expected to provide a brief technical development roadmap as well as a financial plan when applying) - - Is the project team equipped to deliver the promised results (technical background & skills)? Are the roles, responsibilities, resources, and action steps well defined?
4. Innovation and Impact (15%) - Are you proposing a novel or creative solution (tool, platform, or service) that goes beyond existing practice within EUTOPIA? - Are anticipated outcomes and benefits clearly defined and measurable within the 3–6 month timeframe?
5. Openness, Inclusivity, and Community Engagement (15%) - Does your project demonstrate a bottom-up, participatory approach involving relevant stakeholders (students, staff, external partners)? - Does it bring people together and reflect EUTOPIA’s core values of openness and inclusivity?

8. How will it work?

The EUTOPIA Digitalisation Incubator process will comprise four key phases:

1. Application and Selection Phase: All submitted proposals will be reviewed, and selected projects will be announced by 19 December 2025.
2. Refinement Phase: Selected project teams will participate in a virtual meeting with the review board to further refine and tailor their project plans, clarify deliverables, and agree on a project-specific timeline. This may include scheduling workshops, defining milestones, and aligning the project with the overall vision for EUTOPIA’s digital infrastructure
3. Development and Testing/Pilot Phase: During this phase, project teams will develop and test a pilot or prototype solution in close collaboration with WP5.2. This phase will culminate in the presentation of a working prototype and a final project report by 30 June 2026.
4. Post-Project/Roll-Out Phase: If a developed pilot fulfills the requirements for full implementation and there is an agreement among partners, the project may be considered for roll-out during a potential two-year extension of the EUTOPIA MORE project (2026/27–2028). Please note that participation in the Digitalisation Incubator does not guarantee further funding or implementation, as such decisions depend on future project extensions and additional funding availability.

9. Timeline 

• 1 November 2025: Launch of call for proposals
• 1 December 2025: Deadline for proposal submissions
• 19 December 2025: Announcement of selected projects
• January/February 2026: Start of refinement and development phase (timing may vary by project)
• 30 June 2026: Submission of final project results and report

10. Still have questions?

We’re here to support you! Contact us for the latest details or any other queries: franziska.friebelviebach@tu-dresden.de  
 

For interested students and staff, we will hold an online Q&A session on  7 November 2025, 11a.m. (CET)
Zoom-Link: https://tu-dresden.zoomx.de/j/66424978953?pwd=O2gu9YpDb3RMRMmQQar0e7fbb9UjQB.1