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Second Competition Round 2024-2026: Call for Proposals and Assessment for the Funding Period of 2027-2033

Excellence Strategy of the Federal and State Governments | Logo

The application process for the second round of the Universities of Excellence funding line was launched with the publication of the call for proposals on 28 March 2024. Up to four additional universities or university consortia can be included in the funding line if they are successful in the competitive procedure. Furthermore, one additional spot has become available following the departure of an existing funded university, bringing the total number of potential new entrants to up to five.

Formal funding requirements

As in the first competition round, an individual university is eligible to apply if it has at least two Clusters of Excellence or is involved in two joint Clusters of Excellence. The submission of an application as a consortium of two or three jointly applying universities requires the funding of at least three Clusters of Excellence at these universities. Each of the universities participating in the consortium must either have at least one Cluster of Excellence or be involved in at least one joint Cluster of Excellence as an applicant.

Based on the decisions on the Clusters of Excellence on 22 May 2025, universities and university consortia had to submit their letters of intent by 27 June 2025. Proposals had to be submitted until 12 November 2025. The on-site visits took place from April to June 2026. On 2 October 2026, the Commission for Excellence will decide on the inclusion of up to five additional Universities of Excellence and University Excellence Consortia as part of the Excellence Strategy. The results will be announced on the same day at a press conference.

Timetable for the 2nd competition round of the two funding lines Clusters of Excellence and Universities of Excellence (Juli 2025) Timetable of the two funding lines Clusters of Excellence and Universities of Excellence for the second competition round (Juli 2025) Source: WR/DFG


Briefing video for reviewers

An overview of the structure and objectives of the funding line as well as the review process is also provided in our briefing video (YouTube) for reviewers:

Universities of Excellence Funding Line | A Compact Briefing for Reviewers


The necessary application documents and information sheets for the Universities of Excellence funding line are listed below:

General documents:

  • Timeline for the Excellence Strategy until 2027 (German and English)
  • Call for proposals (German and English)
  • Instructions on writing a letter of intent for a planned proposal (German only)
  • Data protection information for new proposals (German only)
  • Guidelines on use of funds (German and English)
  • Funding Criteria – Institutional Strategy (German and English)

For applications as an individual university:

  • Proposal template with explanatory notes, new proposal as an individual university (German and English)
  • Model tables for the data annex for a proposal as an individual university (German and English)

For applications as a university consortium:

  • Proposal template with explanatory notes, new proposal as a university consortium (German and English)
  • Model tables for the data annex for a proposal as a university consortium (German and English)