Children's and Youth Universities: Call for proposals for 2026 starts – € 1.75 million are available
The call for proposals for project funding for children's and youth universities for 2026 starts on 6 October 2025. Applicants can receive financial support of up to € 70,000 (or a maximum of 30% of the total costs) for their projects. Extention modules for holiday care with scientific content will also be funded again; up to € 50,000 per project will be available. The deadline for submitting funding applications is 1 December 2025. Further information: https://youngscience.oead.at/de/angebote/kinder-und-jugenduniversitaeten
Strengthening the young participants' trust in science and democracy and promoting their resilience – these are the main objectives of the Austrian Federal Ministry of Women, Science and Research (BMFWF)’s funding programme Children's and Youth Universities, which is implemented by Austria's education agency OeAD. The programme also aims to promote an understanding of sustainable development. Therefore formats will be offered in which children and young people will learn to better cope with current challenges.
"The aim of the wide range of courses offered by the children's and youth universities and their invitation to explore the world of science is to help participants to better assess current socio-political developments. This includes topics such as radicalisation, fake news and experiences of war and displacement," says the Federal Minister Eva Maria Holzleitner.
The participatory science education programmes offered by the children's and youth universities are diverse and range from lectures and workshops to small excursions. The focus is always on direct contact and exchange with scientists, which easily breaks down any reservations about science by means of play. Projects that address children and young people from peripheral regions and socially disadvantaged population groups and also use public spaces such as parks for their educational offerings are particularly relevant in this context.
The OeAD’s managing director Jakob Calice says: ‘We are particularly interested in formats with outreach character that can significantly increase the outreach of these programmes. We see many opportunities especially in peripheral regions. If we start to strengthen children’s and young people’ resilience today we invest in the future of our democracy in the long-term.’
The full-day week-long programmes for ‘holiday care with scientific standards’ that offer not only scientific programme items but also exercise and games units are very successful every year. In 2025 12 such extension modules were funded during the summer months in addition to 24 children's and youth university projects.
The OeAD also manages additional funding from the Province of Lower Austria’s ‘Department of Science and Research’ for exciting children's and youth university projects that take place in Lower Austria. A total of € 100,000 will be made available for this purpose in 2026; projects can apply for funding amounting to a maximum of € 15,000 (or a maximum of 20% of the total costs). In 2025 nine projects benefited from this additional funding provided by the Province of Lower Austria.
"Children's and youth universities offer our young people in Lower Austria a unique opportunity to experience science up close. Igniting enthusiasm for research at an early age is an investment in the future of our country and thus in the best possible future for our children," says the Deputy Provincial Governor Dr. Stephan Pernkopf.
Submission start: Monday, 6 October 2025, 12:00 noon
Submission deadline: Monday, 1 December 2025, 12:00 noon
