Periodic Reporting for period 1 - Skills4EOSC (Skills for the European Open Science Commons: Creating a Training Ecosystem for Open and FAIR Science)
Periodo di rendicontazione: 2022-09-01 al 2023-08-31
Skills4EOSC brings together leading experiences of national, regional, institutional and thematic Open Science (OS) and Data Competence Centres from 18 European countries with the goal of unifying the current training landscape into a common and trusted pan-European ecosystem, in order to accelerate the upskilling of European researchers and data professionals in the field of FAIR and Open Data, intensive-data science and Scientific Data Management.
Competence Centres (CC) are seen as centres of gravity of OS and EOSC activities in their countries. These entities can either be established national initiatives (as is the case of ICDI in Italy) or initiatives under establishment (e.g. Austria, Greece and the Nordic countries) or organizations which have the leading or mandated contribution to the OS activities nationally. CCs pool the expertise available within research institutions, universities and thematic and cross-discipline research infrastructures. They offer training and support, empowerment, lifelong learning, professionalization and resources to a variety of stakeholders, including not only researchers and data stewards, but also funders, decision makers, civil servants, and industry.
Thanks to their position at the heart of the above described multi-stakeholder landscape, the CCs represented by the Skills4EOSC partners play a pivotal role in national plans for Open Science and in the interaction with scientific communities. They also have close access to policy makers and the related funding streams. The Skills4EOSC project will leverage this reference role to establish a pan-European network of CCs on OS and data, coordinating the work done at the national level to upskill professionals in this field.
The Skills4EOSC CC network will drive the co-creation of harmonised trainer accreditation pathways, academic and professional curricula and skills quality assurance, recognition frameworks, and learning material creation methodologies.
Competence Centres (CC) are seen as centres of gravity of OS and EOSC activities in their countries. These entities can either be established national initiatives (as is the case of ICDI in Italy) or initiatives under establishment (e.g. Austria, Greece and the Nordic countries) or organizations which have the leading or mandated contribution to the OS activities nationally. CCs pool the expertise available within research institutions, universities and thematic and cross-discipline research infrastructures. They offer training and support, empowerment, lifelong learning, professionalization and resources to a variety of stakeholders, including not only researchers and data stewards, but also funders, decision makers, civil servants, and industry.
Thanks to their position at the heart of the above described multi-stakeholder landscape, the CCs represented by the Skills4EOSC partners play a pivotal role in national plans for Open Science and in the interaction with scientific communities. They also have close access to policy makers and the related funding streams. The Skills4EOSC project will leverage this reference role to establish a pan-European network of CCs on OS and data, coordinating the work done at the national level to upskill professionals in this field.
The Skills4EOSC CC network will drive the co-creation of harmonised trainer accreditation pathways, academic and professional curricula and skills quality assurance, recognition frameworks, and learning material creation methodologies.
During the first year of the Skills4EOSC project (September 2022 - August 2023), significant progress was made:
1. Objective Achievement: The project successfully advanced its main goal of enhancing Open Science skills by unifying the European training landscape and addressing three key gaps: a lack of Open Science expertise, undefined data professional profiles, and fragmented training resources.
2. Competence Center Definition: Clear definitions for Competence Centers were established, focusing on Open Science, FAIR management of research outputs, and EOSC, guided by benchmarking existing initiatives.
3. Onboarding Strategy: Plans were developed to onboard select competence centres, tailoring strategies to each centre's country, context, and maturity level to pilot the coordination network and upskilling mechanisms.
4. Coordination Network and Competence Centers: Work commenced on creating a coordination network of competence centres and developing a methodology to transfer essential competencies to these centres for upskilling.
5. Landscaping and Mappingy: Foundational work was completed in landscaping and mapping activities, forming the basis for the Skills4EOSC Competence Centers Registry and supporting future training initiatives.
6. Competence Harmonization: A detailed strategy was developed for defining and harmonizing competencies, with specific roles identified for Minimum Viable Skillset (MVS) profiles. Training of Trainers (ToT) pathways were kicked off in competence centres.
7. FAIR-by-Design Methodology: An approach for creating FAIR-compliant educational materials was introduced, ensuring fairness in both trainees' and trainers' perspectives, and this methodology will be applied to all Skills4EOSC ToT initiatives.
8. Skills4EOSC launched its Fellowship Programme to stimulate life-long learning through knowledge and experience exchange between data professionals across different institutions.
The project's next steps include pilot programs to assess skills in real-world scenarios, contributing to the development of a skilled EOSC-ready workforce and a more unified and effective training ecosystem for Open Science.
1. Objective Achievement: The project successfully advanced its main goal of enhancing Open Science skills by unifying the European training landscape and addressing three key gaps: a lack of Open Science expertise, undefined data professional profiles, and fragmented training resources.
2. Competence Center Definition: Clear definitions for Competence Centers were established, focusing on Open Science, FAIR management of research outputs, and EOSC, guided by benchmarking existing initiatives.
3. Onboarding Strategy: Plans were developed to onboard select competence centres, tailoring strategies to each centre's country, context, and maturity level to pilot the coordination network and upskilling mechanisms.
4. Coordination Network and Competence Centers: Work commenced on creating a coordination network of competence centres and developing a methodology to transfer essential competencies to these centres for upskilling.
5. Landscaping and Mappingy: Foundational work was completed in landscaping and mapping activities, forming the basis for the Skills4EOSC Competence Centers Registry and supporting future training initiatives.
6. Competence Harmonization: A detailed strategy was developed for defining and harmonizing competencies, with specific roles identified for Minimum Viable Skillset (MVS) profiles. Training of Trainers (ToT) pathways were kicked off in competence centres.
7. FAIR-by-Design Methodology: An approach for creating FAIR-compliant educational materials was introduced, ensuring fairness in both trainees' and trainers' perspectives, and this methodology will be applied to all Skills4EOSC ToT initiatives.
8. Skills4EOSC launched its Fellowship Programme to stimulate life-long learning through knowledge and experience exchange between data professionals across different institutions.
The project's next steps include pilot programs to assess skills in real-world scenarios, contributing to the development of a skilled EOSC-ready workforce and a more unified and effective training ecosystem for Open Science.
During the first reporting period (Sep 2022 - Aug 2023), Skills4EOSC made significant progress in advancing Open Science skills. It aimed to unify the training landscape into a trusted pan-European ecosystem, addressing gaps in Open Science competences identified in the EOSC SRIA. The project focused on establishing a coordination network for competence centers and developing methods to transfer required skills. Landscaping activities played a crucial role in defining the Skills4EOSC Registry of Competence Centres and supporting training initiatives.
Skills4EOSC defined Competence Centers within Open Science, FAIR research output management, and EOSC domains, benchmarking existing initiatives and planning a coordination network. The project aimed to onboard selected competence centers for piloting the network and ensuring necessary competences. A strategy was adopted for defining and harmonizing competences, targeting specific roles, via MVS definition and employing Training of Trainers pathways.
The project planned to conduct pilot programs to assess the strategy's effectiveness in transferring competences and ensuring a skilled EOSC-ready workforce. Additionally, it focused on identifying target roles for training, defining methodologies, and establishing FAIR-compliant learning materials.
Skills4EOSC defined Competence Centers within Open Science, FAIR research output management, and EOSC domains, benchmarking existing initiatives and planning a coordination network. The project aimed to onboard selected competence centers for piloting the network and ensuring necessary competences. A strategy was adopted for defining and harmonizing competences, targeting specific roles, via MVS definition and employing Training of Trainers pathways.
The project planned to conduct pilot programs to assess the strategy's effectiveness in transferring competences and ensuring a skilled EOSC-ready workforce. Additionally, it focused on identifying target roles for training, defining methodologies, and establishing FAIR-compliant learning materials.