This article walks you through six aspects of a Horizon Europe Call that should shape your project concept from the start. Each one helps you analyse what the Call expects and what this means for your objectives, consortium and impact pathway.
You have found a Horizon Europe Call that looks promising. The topic addresses an area in which your organisation has considerable expertise. The keywords are familiar, the funding opportunity seems relevant, and perhaps you already have a project idea or potential consortium partners in mind.
It looks like a good match. However, a good thematic match does not automatically mean that your project idea is well aligned with the Call’s expectations.
A closer examination might reveal that the Call places particular emphasis on the uptake of research results, expects demonstration activities in real-world settings, or requires a level of interdisciplinary cooperation that your original project concept does not yet address. These details can have significant implications for your project design, the partners you need and, ultimately, the quality of your proposal.
This is why I encourage Horizon Europe applicants to spend sufficient time analysing a Call before they start developing their proposal.
Here are six aspects worth paying particular attention to:
When you identify an interesting funding opportunity, it is tempting to focus immediately on the topic description.
However, Horizon Europe topics are part of a broader strategic framework. Understanding this context helps you recognise what the European Commission ultimately aims to achieve through the funding.
For Horizon Europe’s thematic Clusters, the Work Programmes describes the challenges to be addressed and the Expected Impacts of the funded research and innovation activities.
Individual topics describe the Expected Outcomes and the Scope of the activities to be funded. These levels are connected:
In short, your project produces results, these results should lead to the topic’s Expected Outcomes, and these outcomes in turn contribute to the Expected Impacts.
Understanding this broader context helps explain why the Call places emphasis on certain results, target groups or implementation approaches.
Before developing your proposal, consider: What wider European challenge is this funding intended to address, and how could our project make a meaningful contribution?
The Expected Outcomes and Expected Impacts describe different levels of change that the European Commission aims to achieve through the funding. Understanding how your project can contribute to both is essential for a convincing proposal.
Your project results form the starting point of this chain. Through their uptake and use by relevant target groups, they should lead to outcomes, which in turn contribute to wider, longer-term impacts.
Consider a hypothetical Call addressing innovative solutions for more sustainable industrial processes. Your organisation might have an excellent idea for a new technology that reduces energy consumption in manufacturing:
If the Expected Outcomes emphasise uptake by European manufacturers, technological development alone will not provide a sufficiently convincing response. You would also need to consider who could use the technology, what would enable its adoption and how your project could support this process. And to address the Expected Impacts, you should show how this adoption, at scale, could help bring about the wider changes the Call is aiming for.
When analysing the Expected Outcomes and Expected Impacts, pay particular attention to:
These elements should shape your project objectives, methodology, consortium composition and impact pathway from the very beginning.
The Scope provides further guidance on the research and innovation activities that should be addressed. It may refer to particular challenges, technologies, approaches, sectors, stakeholder groups or other aspects that applicants need to consider.
Some topics are relatively specific about what should be covered. Others leave considerably more flexibility for applicants to develop their own approaches.
In fact, one of the changes introduced in the Horizon Europe Work Programme 2026–2027 is the use of shorter, less prescriptive topic descriptions, giving applicants greater flexibility in how they respond to the Expected Outcomes. This makes careful interpretation particularly important.
When you read the Scope, distinguish between the elements your project needs to address and those where you have room to propose your own approach.
Pay attention to the language used. For example, expressions such as should address, is expected to or may include can indicate different expectations. However, their meaning always needs to be considered in the context of the complete topic description.
Also look for references to other EU initiatives, existing research results, relevant policies or opportunities for cooperation. These can provide important indications of how the proposed project is expected to contribute to the wider research and innovation landscape.
The aim is to identify the boundaries within which you can develop a project that is both innovative and well aligned with the Call.
A strategic Call interpretation goes beyond understanding the topic description. It means connecting the Call’s expectations directly to your specific project.
Let’s take an example. Imagine a Horizon Europe topic on improving the climate resilience of European cities. Your organisation specialises in developing innovative tools for assessing climate risks. You have a promising idea for a new decision-support tool and initially envisage a consortium consisting mainly of research institutions and technology developers.
The topic appears closely aligned with what you would like to develop. However, your analysis of the Expected Outcomes and Scope reveals an emphasis on the practical use of climate adaptation solutions by local authorities, their integration into urban planning processes and the involvement of relevant stakeholders.
These expectations could have several implications for your project:
These aspects need to be reflected in a coherent and convincing project concept. Your Call analysis, and the implications you derive from it, should then guide your consortium development and detailed work planning.
Otherwise, you risk building a project around the expertise and partners already available, only to discover later that important capacities or activities are missing.
A well-interpreted Call gives you a stronger basis for deciding what your project should achieve, how it should be implemented and who needs to be involved.
Beyond the Expected Outcomes and Scope, each topic also has conditions that can affect your proposal preparation. Some are administrative or financial, but they can have important strategic implications.
For example, check:
The topic page on the EU Funding & Tenders Portal provides the relevant conditions and links to the applicable Work Programme and General Annexes.
Checking these details early shows you whether your project fits the funding framework. This helps you avoid major changes before submission or lost points in the evaluation.
After examining the Expected Impacts, Expected Outcomes, Scope and specific conditions, you should have a clearer understanding of what the Call is asking for.
Then check how well your original idea fits:
Can our project make a convincing contribution to the Expected Outcomes and the Expected Impacts? Look beyond the general relevance of your topic. Consider which results your project would produce, which outcomes these results could lead to, and how these outcomes could contribute to the wider impacts envisaged by the Call.
Do we have a credible approach to addressing the Scope? Can you develop objectives, activities and a methodology that respond convincingly to the topic’s requirements and expectations?
Can we bring together the expertise and capacities needed? Check whether your organisation and prospective partners collectively have the expertise, resources and implementation capacities needed to deliver the proposed project.
Your analysis may confirm that your original concept is well aligned with the Call. It may also reveal opportunities to strengthen or adjust the idea, involve additional partners or develop a different implementation approach. And sometimes, it may become clear that another funding opportunity would be a better fit.
Making this assessment early can save considerable time and help you focus your proposal development efforts where they have the greatest value.
A careful Call analysis provides the foundation for many of the decisions you will make during proposal development. It helps you formulate meaningful objectives, develop a credible methodology, identify the expertise needed in your consortium and explain how your project will contribute to the Expected Outcomes and the wider Expected Impacts. It also helps you build the connections between Excellence, Impact and Implementation that evaluators need to see in a coherent proposal.
Taking the time to interpret a Horizon Europe Call strategically is therefore a valuable investment in the quality of your proposal.
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Preparing a Horizon Europe proposal for 2027?
If you’re planning to coordinate a Horizon Europe proposal or take on a more strategic role within a consortium, my Horizon Europe Proposal Writing Mastery Programme is designed to help you strengthen your proposal development skills.
Starting on 26 November 2026, this eight-session guided group programme takes you through the key building blocks of a competitive Horizon Europe proposal, from strategic Call interpretation and project concept development to Excellence, Impact, Implementation and budget planning. You’ll gain practical guidance, structured learning opportunities and expert feedback to help you develop a coherent, evaluator-aligned proposal.
Find out more about the Horizon Europe Proposal Writing Mastery Programme
Author: Astrid Mechel
https://eufundingconsulting.eu
Hello, I’m Astrid Mechel
I help organisations secure EU funding through tailored advice and practical workshops. With more than 20 years of experience in EU funding programmes and policies, I bring deep, hands-on expertise from multiple perspectives. I’ve written successful EU grant applications myself, advised applicants as a National Contact Point for Horizon 2020 and Horizon Europe, and worked in an EU Executive Agency – including as a panel moderator. Today, alongside my core work, I occasionally serve as an expert evaluator, giving me a clear and up-to-date view of how proposals are assessed.
Specialising in Horizon Europe grants for research and innovation, environmental sustainability, and social impact, I help organisations navigate the complexities of EU funding and maximise their proposal’s chances of success.
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