Yesterday (9 July), the European Commission announced the results of the latest selection round of the ‘European Universities’ initiative: 23 German universities were successful with their applications. This means that 68 German universities are now involved in European university alliances. German universities are also represented in all 20 alliances selected in this round. The German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) congratulates the successful universities.

The European Commission has selected 19 existing European University Alliances for continued funding, with one new alliance added. German universities are involved in all 20 selected alliances. Around 146 million euros are available for the current call for proposals. Each alliance will thus receive up to seven million euros for the next two years.

The DAAD and the Federal Ministry of Research, Technology and Space (BMFTR) are providing additional funding to the successful German universities as part of the national accompanying programme ‘European University Networks (EUN) – National Initiative’.

New to the funding scheme:

• University of Hohenheim

The following German universities will receive funding for a further two years:

• Dresden University of Technology
• Duale Hochschule Baden-Württemberg Stuttgart
• Freie Universität Berlin
• Hamburg University of Technology
• Heidelberg University
• Hertie School
• Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz
• Julius Maximilian University of Würzburg
• Karlsruhe Institute of Technology
• Karlsruhe University of Applied Sciences
• Kiel University
• Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich
• Otto von Guericke University Magdeburg
• Ruhr West University of Applied Sciences
• Technical University of Darmstadt
• University of Bremen
• University of Freiburg
• University of Hamburg
• University of Leipzig
• University of Potsdam
• University of Rostock
• University of Tübingen

Background: European Universities

Currently, more than 570 universities from 35 countries are involved in the 65 existing European Universities, including 68 German universities in 60 European University Alliances.

The European Universities initiative was launched by French President Emmanuel Macron. These cross-border university alliances are designed to pool the strengths and diversity of European research and teaching, strengthen the European Higher Education Area and make it more resilient to crises. Funding for the alliances is an integral part of the EU’s Erasmus+ programme. Around 1.1 billion euros has been earmarked for this purpose until 2027.

The current call for proposals on European Universities was aimed in particular at existing European University Alliances that have received funding since the 2022 selection round. However, participation was not restricted to these alliances. The two-year funding is intended to bridge the gap until the start of the EU’s next multiannual financial framework (MFF) in 2028.