Context of the Call for Proposals

The digital revolution has drastically changed the landscape of industries, paving the way the for Industry of the Future. With the emergence of advanced technologies and increased automation, it has become imperative for higher education institutions to incorporate up-to-date learning formats to meet the skill-set demands of current industrial needs. Alongside traditional classroom teaching, innovative learning methodologies such as workshops, hackathons and PhD schools are gaining importance. Hackathons are commonly used to cultivate problem-solving and brainstorming abilities in students. Workshops and PhD schools provide students with hands-on experience and exposure to real-world challenges. Networking with experts from the industry and the academic field is also a major asset. These formats enable students to stay abreast of cutting-edge technologies and develop competencies needed for careers in the Industry of the Future. Consequently, the integration of such modern learning formats can be a game-changer for higher education institutions looking to prepare students for the latest developments in the industry.

Objectives of the Call for Proposals

The call is addressed to researchers from TUM and IMT or to researchers that want to team up with researchers of these institutions. (In the second case the GFA can help you find collaborators from these institutions. Please contact us beforehand.) It is obligatory to have minimum one founding member of the GFA (IMT or TUM) involved in your proposal. As it is one of our core missions to foster the French-German relations, it is very important to us that the project takes place on a French-German scale.

The GFA supports:

• High quality events, such as:
  • Hackathons
  • PhD Schools
  • Scientific Workshops and scientific symposia
  • Other innovative event-like formats
• Initiation of Erasmus Mundus Joint Master Degrees or Doctoral Colleges,
• Executive educational programs for professionals
• Projects regarding education and life-long learning aspects for students, young graduates and companies, especially new and creative formats.

Please note: The production of new online courses (MOOCs) will not be supported in this CfP.

Expected Outcomes

Expected outcomes of the CfP “Education & Knowledge” include increased French-German and European collaboration in higher education through initiatives such as Erasmus Mundus and the French-German organization of scientific events. With this call the GFA wants to promote innovation in teaching and learning formats, including new approaches for digital campuses, digital exams, and hybrid formats.

We also expect the development and exchange of good practices in higher education. This could include sharing successful strategies for student engagement, enhancing diversity and inclusion, and improving academic outcomes in our French-German network and beyond.

Through the call informal learning formats beyond universities’ walls, such as workshops, hackathons, and PhD schools are supported. This would help foster collaboration and skill-sharing between students, young entrepreneurs, and industrial experts.

To ensure participants are equipped with interdisciplinary capabilities, career competencies, and technological skills, the call could promote the delivery of such capabilities and encourage knowledge exchange between graduate or PhD students and industry experts.

Overall, we expect our call for proposals to help strengthen the quality and relevance of higher education across French-German and European universities, while also preparing participants for success in their future careers. More generally, the GFA is also strongly interested in German-French collaborations.

Time frame

• Launch of the call: Wednesday, May 3^rd, 2023
• Deadline for submission: Wednesday, May 31^st, 2023, EOB
• Evaluation Committee: Week 26, 2023 (exact date tbc)
• Notification of the selected projects: Monday, July 10^th, 2023
• Kick-off of the project: September 2023 (the latest)

Please find the full CfP and the application template here!

We look forward to receiving your proposals and working together.

If you have any questions or need further clarification, please feel free to contact Olivia Pahl (olivia.pahl@imt.fr) or Diane Baumer (diane.baumer@tum.de).