Horizon Europe Proposal Course

How to Write a Competitive Proposal for Horizon Europe

Onsite or Online (Zoom)

Overview of the Course

This online course is designed to train researchers, research managers and research support services in writing professional and competitive proposals for Horizon Europe. The course analyses the relevance of Horizon Europe to EU policies, the common problems in proposal writing and the success criteria for proposals. The course provides advice on how to collect information, select strategic partners and streamline proposal writing.

Target Audience: Researchers, Research Managers and Research Support Services in Universities and Research Centres

The course is NOT open to Private Consultants or National Contact Points.

Course Presenters: Dr. Seán McCarthy and Sylvia McCarthy

Duration: Three 45-minute sessions

Session 1(10:00-10:45), Session 2(11:00-11:45), Session 3(12:00 to 12:45)

Bookings and Enquiries: Send an email to mary.mccarthy@hyperion.ie

Contents of Workshop

Module 1: From EU Policies to Horizon Europe Work Programmes

Profile of Researchers with High Success Rates

From EU Policies to Pillar I, II and III

Bottom-up Programmes versus Top-Down Programmes

The EU Policy language of Pillar II

'Portfolio of Projects' to address Global Challenges

Module 2: Selecting Partners for Horizon Europe Proposals

Different Roles in a Consortium

Profile of a 'Winning' Consortium

The Skills Matrix

Strategic Networking at a European Level

Module 3: How Proposals are Evaluated in Horizon Europe

Profile of Remote Evaluators

How Pillar I Proposals are Evaluated

How Pillar II Proposals are Evaluated

How Pillar III Proposals are Evaluated

Module 4: How to Screen Proposals (Proposal Clinics)

Strategy for Preparing Pillar II Proposals

The Proposal Clinic and the One Page Proposal

Selecting Strategic Partners

Template for the Pillar II Proposal Abstract

Template for the Pillar II Consensus Report

Steps from the Call to the Deadline

Module 5: Proposal Intelligence for Topics in Pillar II

How to Analyse a Pillar II Work Programme

Specific EU Policies defining Topics

Expert Groups consulted on Pillar II Topics

Examples of Proposal Intelligence Reports for Pillar II Topics

Module 6: How to Write the Impact of a Pillar II Proposal

Impact on Global Challenges (EU Societal Challenges)

Impact on EU Industrial Policies (Technology Projects)

Exploitation, Dissemination and Communication of Results

Module 7: The Role of Research Support Services

Support needed by Researchers preparing Horizon Europe proposals

Support needed by Newcomers, Experienced and EU Active Researchers

Support needed at different phases of proposal preparation process

Programme Designers and Presenters

Dr. Seán McCarthy

In 2021 the European Commission published a list of the top 100 universities and research organisations participating in Horizon 2020. Dr. McCarthy has delivered training courses in 78 of these top 100 universities and research organisations in Horizon 2020.Seán has been active in the Framework programmes since 1980. He has been involved in over 150 research proposals to the Framework programmes and has participated in over 60 Framework projects. In 16 of these projects Seán was the coordinator. Today, he does not participate in the Framework programmes but concentrates on designing and delivering training courses. Since 1995 over 80,000 participants have attended his courses in 29 countries. He has presented training courses on the Framework programmes in over 290 research centres throughout Europe (www.hyperion.ie/clients.htm).

Sylvia McCarthy

Sylvia is an EU Policy Analyst. Based in Brussels since 2008, Sylvia has worked in the European Parliament and various EU consultancies and representations.
Sylvia has a Bachelor’s degree in European Studies (University College Cork,Ireland) and a Master’s degree in International Politics and Europe (University of Warwick, UK).

Limitation of Liability

This webpage has been designed to help researchers prepare proposals for Horizon Europe. Every effort has been made to ensure complete and accurate information concerning the material presented in this webpage. However, Hyperion Ltd cannot be held legally responsible for any mistakes in printing or faulty instructions contained within the templates. The authors appreciate receiving notice of any errors or misprints.There are no warranties, expressed or implied, including warranties of merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose, made with respect to the materials or any information provided to the user herein. Neither the author nor publisher shall be liable for any direct, indirect, special, incidental or consequential damages arising out of the use or inability to use the contents of this webpage.