1. for a successful application
Part III.
Do's and don'ts
for a successful application
A good proposal/project must be based on a thorough needs analysis fed by its local partners and supported by documented facts and evidence.
When starting to plan a project, the consortium must ensure that similar activities have not already been funded. This information can be found in the lists of projects published by the EACEA, as well as by consulting the NEO and/or the EU Delegation in the partner countries concerned.
When selecting partners, it is important to a) look for a diversity/complementary of expertise and b) be able to justify for each of them the concrete added value that the partner will bring to (and/or gain from) the project.
Particular attention must be paid to the involvement of the Partner Country partners, in order to ensure project ownership at their level (from needs analysis up to dissemination and sustainability of results). When relevant (e.g. cooperation university–enterprises), non-academic partners must be included.
The project design must be realistic and be based on a logical sequence of activities in the work plan, as well as on precise and measurable indicators in the Logical Framework Matrix. Potential risks have to be defined and mitigation measures need to be foreseen.
Sustainability must be foreseen from the start of the project through the active involvement and commitment of local stakeholders (e.g. higher education authorities, non-academic partners, etc.) The financial sustainability must be based on a solid (/realistic) business plan aiming at maintaining (/further developing) the project results.

2. Link project objectives & regional priorities
I. RELEVANCE ('The Why')
Needs analysis
What is the starting situation? What competences do the targets group lack/need?
Use concrete evidence & up-to-date sources & references to justify needs for each country and target group
If similar project(s) are already financed, explain your project's added value
Link project objectives & regional priorities
At Programme level
At National/regional level
At Institutional level
Award criteria relevance: It explains WHY the project is needed and justifies it
Examples of expert comments: Needs Analysis:
Baseline situation not described: Proposal does not give any insight into which competences and qualifications are already available or still missing among (the teachers and researchers) .
The difficulties of establishing a statistically-based needs analysis must be acknowledged, but some consideration of anticipated skills requirements, gender issues, demographic trends, etc. would have been desirable.
Proposal do not approprately derive from the conclusion of the general and referenced desk research (ex. survey on the the current programmes in area in the PCs)
Link to institutional/universities strategies:
“The project makes a firm statement that the targeted sector is in need of development in the Partner Countries but this statement could be better underpinned by making reference to university strategies or other more formal documentation.”

3. II. PROJECT DESIGN & IMPLEMENTATION ('The How')
Feasibility
Be reasonable! Overly ambitious objectives not feasible
Don't lose sight of time! Remember, you have only 2-3 years to implement a successful project
Pay attention to the logical sequence of activities (ex. timing for trainings and external quality evaluation)
Logical framework matrix (LFM)
Use quality indicators & method of measurement (Quantification of deliverables, size of audiences & deadlines)
Don't ignore the risks! Include detailed description of risks and how you plan to deal with these
Quality Assurance
Internal: Internal peer review of quality of deliverables
External: Lack of external evaluation of content quality
It explains HOW: the project methodology and the rationale for its choice
Examples of experts comments:
LFM
The Logical Framework Matrix is very schematic and does not include all necessary information. It leaves sections blank or referring to other boxes in the matrix and it does not contain enough detail regarding activities or the inputs required. Not all work packages are included and, in general, it does not provide an overview of the project, its phases and the resources allocated, as required.
The proposal describes a thorough list of assumptions in the logical framework matrix, but some apparent risks are not always properly described in detail (e.g. copyright issues, intercultural communication challenges, etc.). Another real risk - the academic calendar differences between European and Latin American higher education institutions - was not sufficiently taken into account. The complicated issue of accreditation in the partner countries involved is not sufficiently broached and could constitute the major threat to this project. As a result, realistic, appropriate and reasonable mitigating actions are not comprehensively proposed.
Definition of Indicators of progress
Indicator of progress = Quantitative or qualitative factor or variable that provides a simple and reliable means to measure achievement, to reflect the changes connected to an intervention, or to help assess the performance of a project
Indicators must be specific and measurable
Ambitious but realistic targets and deadlines should be defined
Participation of key stakeholders in their definition is important because they are then more likely to understand and use them for management decision making
How indicators will be measured = Sources and means of verification to check whether the indicators have been met
Where can I find the relevant information? Information sources that are effectively available and reliable (Publications, Documents, Decisions, National / Institutional Statistics, Reports etc.) Methods facilitated during the project to collect the information needed to assess the indicators (Monitoring, Market study, questionnaires, interviews, etc.)
Indicators allow to monitor the progress in the implementation of a project and to take necessary measures in case of difficulties
Definitions on Assumptions & Risks
Risks = External factors outside the control of the project, but which are critical for the achievement of its objective
Assumptions and risks analysis = elaboration of hypotheses about factors or risks which could affect the progress or success of the project
The assumptions and risks analysis allows to identify, or to give the means to identify, the risks that could be faced and to take the necessary measure as early as possible
Guiding questions:
What are the assumptions required for the achievement of the project?
What are the risks which should be taken into account?
What are the possible measures to limit or prevent these risks?
Have these measures been translated in project activities whenever possible?
Comment of Quality Assurance
“very much focused on the administration of the project (monitoring of progress) and insufficiently on the quality of processes and deliverables.
A baseline assessment/pre-testing at the beginning of the training and assessment at the end would allow evaluation of the progress through a post training assessment.
The view of students should be taken on board in the elaboration of teaching material, assessment and quality assurance procedures. In particular in assessing student workload, providing student feedback to the quality of teaching students’ input is essential – even in the development phase of the project – and the consortium is strongly advised to amend the project in this regard.

4. III. QUALITY OF TEAM AND COOPERATION
Balanced and justified distribution of tasks
Talk about each partner's contribution and why you have divided up the tasks in this way
Complementarity of skills and competences
Describe each partner's experience and the role they will play in the project activities
Budget
Try to be cost effective, no excessive management costs
Plan for technical staff too!
Non-academic partners
Involve other sectors and partners (labour market, NGOs etc.)
Associated Partners
If you involve Associated Partners, describe their added value! Make sure they're not just APs on paper
It explains HOW: the project methodology and the rationale for its choice
Examples of experts comments:
LFM
The Logical Framework Matrix is very schematic and does not include all necessary information. It leaves sections blank or referring to other boxes in the matrix and it does not contain enough detail regarding activities or the inputs required. Not all work packages are included and, in general, it does not provide an overview of the project, its phases and the resources allocated, as required.
The proposal describes a thorough list of assumptions in the logical framework matrix, but some apparent risks are not always properly described in detail (e.g. copyright issues, intercultural communication challenges, etc.). Another real risk - the academic calendar differences between European and Latin American higher education institutions - was not sufficiently taken into account. The complicated issue of accreditation in the partner countries involved is not sufficiently broached and could constitute the major threat to this project. As a result, realistic, appropriate and reasonable mitigating actions are not comprehensively proposed.
Definition of Indicators of progress
Indicator of progress = Quantitative or qualitative factor or variable that provides a simple and reliable means to measure achievement, to reflect the changes connected to an intervention, or to help assess the performance of a project
Indicators must be specific and measurable
Ambitious but realistic targets and deadlines should be defined
Participation of key stakeholders in their definition is important because they are then more likely to understand and use them for management decision making
How indicators will be measured = Sources and means of verification to check whether the indicators have been met
Where can I find the relevant information? Information sources that are effectively available and reliable (Publications, Documents, Decisions, National / Institutional Statistics, Reports etc.) Methods facilitated during the project to collect the information needed to assess the indicators (Monitoring, Market study, questionnaires, interviews, etc.)
Indicators allow to monitor the progress in the implementation of a project and to take necessary measures in case of difficulties
Definitions on Assumptions & Risks
Risks = External factors outside the control of the project, but which are critical for the achievement of its objective
Assumptions and risks analysis = elaboration of hypotheses about factors or risks which could affect the progress or success of the project
The assumptions and risks analysis allows to identify, or to give the means to identify, the risks that could be faced and to take the necessary measure as early as possible
Guiding questions:
What are the assumptions required for the achievement of the project?
What are the risks which should be taken into account?
What are the possible measures to limit or prevent these risks?
Have these measures been translated in project activities whenever possible?
Comment of Quality Assurance
“very much focused on the administration of the project (monitoring of progress) and insufficiently on the quality of processes and deliverables.
A baseline assessment/pre-testing at the beginning of the training and assessment at the end would allow evaluation of the progress through a post training assessment.
The view of students should be taken on board in the elaboration of teaching material, assessment and quality assurance procedures. In particular in assessing student workload, providing student feedback to the quality of teaching students’ input is essential – even in the development phase of the project – and the consortium is strongly advised to amend the project in this regard.

5. IV. IMPACT AND SUSTAINABILITY
Sustainability strategy
Plan measures/activities to enhance sustainability of your project results
Further development & use of results & outcomes should be devised and agreed upon before end of project
Involvement of stakeholders - institutional & political support
Involve relevant authorities and target groups early to contribute to project sustainability
Broaden scope of sustainability-related activities
Consider opportunities outside purely academic sphere (e.g. funding sources, internships etc.)
Seek official recognition/ validation/accreditation of project results in a timely manner
Dissemination and valorisation
Incremental element of multiplication effect of project results
Plan training of staff and stakeholders indicating sufficient numbers, content of training and number of trainees
NB. Sustainability may not concern all the aspects of the project. In each project some activities or outputs may be maintained, while others may not be so necessary to maintain.
Planning should be progressively adapted to various phases of the project implementation
Beginning: 1)Written strategy
Middle: 2) Possible adaptations
End of project 3) Sustainabiity and exploitation plan of the developed deliverables