Virtual Worlds Skills Academy (ViWAS)

Building Skills for Virtual Worlds and Immersive Technologies

Skillnet Ireland is proud to be a partner in the Virtual Worlds Skills Academy (ViWAS), a major European initiative supporting the development of advanced digital skills for virtual worlds and immersive technologies.

Funded through the Digital Europe Programme, ViWAS brings together 39 partners from 16 countries, including universities, education providers, research organisations, technology companies, networks and industry stakeholders. Together, the consortium is building an inclusive and future-focused skills ecosystem that will help learners, educators, professionals and organisations engage with the opportunities created by immersive technologies.

ViWAS focuses on technologies including virtual reality (VR), augmented reality (AR), mixed reality (MR), 3D technologies, digital twins, AI-enabled environments and Web 4.0, supporting Europe's ambition to remain competitive in the next generation of digital innovation.

Addressing Europe’s Immersive Technology Skills Needs

Virtual worlds and immersive technologies are expected to transform industries including creative and cultural industries, agrifood, health, aviation, education, energy, ICT and manufacturing. As adoption accelerates, demand is growing for the skills required to develop, deploy and work with these technologies. ViWAS is addressing this challenge through the development of innovative learning pathways, competence frameworks, training resources and skills intelligence activities.

The project will directly support more than 5,000 learners across six target groups, including higher education and VET students, educators, professionals and citizens. The project will support the development of Bachelors and Masters programmes, specialisation courses and micro-credential modules, equipping learners with competencies essential to strengthen Europe’s talent pipeline for virtual worlds and Web 4.0, and to support the inclusive, responsible and industry-relevant adoption of immersive technologies.

Through this work, ViWAS will contribute to the establishment of a European Virtual Worlds Skills Academy, creating a collaborative platform for skills development, knowledge sharing and stakeholder engagement across Europe.

Our Contribution

Skillnet Ireland is the only Irish partner in the ViWAS consortium and leads the Skills Intelligence and Market Needs Analysis work package.

Through this role, Skillnet Ireland is responsible for identifying current and emerging skills needs relating to virtual worlds and immersive technologies, helping to ensure that project outputs are aligned with labour market demand and real-world enterprise requirements. Skillnet Ireland also contributes to stakeholder engagement, skills analysis and the development of insights that will inform future training pathways and support Europe's wider digital skills agenda.