The aim of Innovative Training Networks (ITN) is to train a new generation of creative, entrepreneurial and innovative early-stage researchers. ITN will raise excellence and structure research and doctoral training in Europe, extending the traditional academic research training setting. Researchers will thus have enhanced career perspectives in both the academic and non-academic sectors.

ITN supports competitively selected joint research training and/or doctoral programmes, implemented by partnerships of universities, research institutions, businesses, SMEs, and other socio-economic actors from different countries across Europe and beyond. The programme should exploit complementary competences of the participating organisations, and enable sharing of knowledge, networking activities, the organisation of workshops and conferences.

Training responds to well identified needs in defined research areas, with appropriate references to inter- and multidisciplinary fields and follows the EU Principles for Innovative Doctoral Training. It should be primarily focused on scientific and technological knowledge through research on individual, personalised projects. In order to increase the employability of the researchers, the research training should be complemented by the meaningful exposure of each researcher to the non-academic sector.

Alike the other Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions, ITN follows a bottom-up approach, i.e. research fields are chosen freely by the applicants.

ITN partnerships may take one of the three forms:

• European Training Networks (ETN): Networks of at least three organisations from three different EU Member States (MS) or H2020 Associated Countries (AC).
• European Industrial Doctorates (EID): Consortia of at least two organisations from two different MS or AC, one being from the academic sector, one from the non-academic sector. Recruited researchers must spend at least 50% of their time at the non-academic organisation.
• European Joint Doctorates (EJD): Networks of at least three organisations from three different MS or AC entitled to award doctoral degrees.

ELIGIBILITY CONDITIONS & DEFINITIONS

• Researchers supported through an ITN must be early-stage researchers, i.e. at the time of recruitment in the first 4 years of their research career and not yet awarded with a PhD.
• Eligible researchers can be of any nationality, but they must not have worked or resided in the country of destination for more than 12 months in the past 3 years.
• Academic sector: Public or private higher education establishments awarding academic degrees, public or private non-profit research organisations whose primary mission is to pursue research, and international European interest organisations.
• Non-Academic sector: Any socio-economic actor not included in the academic sector. This includes all fields of future workplaces of researchers, from industry to business, government, civil society organisations, cultural institutions, hospitals, etc.