Awards and prizes

Illustration of awards and prizes
© Uni MS - Robert Matzke

Prizes and awards not only recognise individual achievements but also advance scientific progress by creating incentives for excellence and serving as inspiration for young talent. Science awards are particularly career-enhancing for early-career researchers. They represent early recognition of outstanding research and often kickstart a successful scientific career. Awards put their recipients in the spotlight of their research community and open up a variety of networking opportunities. They also facilitate future research projects thanks to endowments and grant money.

Take your career to the next level by nominating yourself or a colleague for your/their academic achievements!

Overview of award-winning researchers at the University of Münster

Structured overview of scientific awards

We offer a structured overview of national and international academic awards for which you can nominate yourself or be nominated by others. Please note that this service is currently only available in German. The entries are categorised by career stage: established academics, early-career researchers and doctoral awards. You can use the overview to find awards that recognise your excellent research achievements or those of your colleagues.

For each award, you will find concise information on target audiences, prize money and application deadlines, as well as a link to the relevant call for applications.

At the University of Münster, you can use the FIT information service (SSO login with your University user ID) and the ELFI research funding search service to find suitable calls for nominations.

Current calls for nominations

Förderpreis from the Universitätsgesellschaft Münster
The Universitätsgesellschaft Münster is inviting nominations for its 2027 Förderpreis, which carries a prize of €10,000. The award recognises exceptional research achievements by young academics who are not yet in permanent university lecturing positions. Candidates who have produced exceptional academic work in light of the current state of development in their respective fields are eligible for the prize. Professors at the University of Münster may nominate candidates for the award.
Deadline: 30 November 2026

Bavarian Pioneer Award
The Bavarian Academy of Sciences and Humanities (BAdW) awards this prize in recognition of visionary national and international technological research that is shaping our future. The successful translation of these innovations into commercial products with a significant societal impact is a key criterion for awarding the prize. In 2027, groundbreaking innovations will be recognised in the following priority areas: quantum technologies, cyber security and innovative energy systems. The prize is endowed with 300,000 euros, which the winner may use at their discretion.
Deadline: 30 November 2026

wissen.kommuniziert. Der Preis der Universitätsgesellschaft Münster für Wissenschaftskommunikation
The Universitätsgesellschaft Münster awards this this 10,000-euro prize to researchers and initiatives from all departments at the University of Münster who succeed in communicating scientific findings in a particularly diverse, original and sustainable manner. They should have distinguished themselves through exceptional and innovative achievements, for example in the field of intradisciplinary or transdisciplinary communication, in communicating complex scientific findings to the general public, and/or in conveying scientific content in academic teaching. Proposals for the nomination of candidates or initiatives may be submitted by members of the academic staff ("Professor*innen") at the University of Münster.
Deadline: 31 December 2026

Our advice and support services

Are you interested in nominating yourself or would you like to nominate a colleague for a science award? Then please get in touch with us. We at the SAFIR research funding support office would be happy to assist you with your award nomination. 

  • We offer individual advice – from doctoral candidates to established academics – on tailor-made prize competitions and other awards such as academy memberships.
  • We provide information on current calls for nominations for science prizes and awards. We also provide you with the 2026 calendar of deadlines for Science Awards and the 2027 calendar for Science Awards.
  • We offer support obtaining the necessary documents for your nomination.
  • We review and strategically optimise your nomination documents upon request.
  • We organise and host events on the subject of science prizes and awards. We would be happy to tailor these to your individual needs upon request.
  • We offer networking events with academics and administrators at the University of Münster who are responsible for science prizes in the faculties and collaborative projects.
  • We benchmark and scout potential nominees for science awards, whom the Rectorate is authorised to nominate.

Science awards of the University Münster

Awards ceremony of the 2024 Rectorate Awards
© Uni MS - Christoph Steinweg

The University of Münster recognises outstanding achievements of its academics and students in research, teaching and studies with highly endowed prizes. Nominations for these awards are accepted at regular intervals.

Information on the University of Münster's Rectorate Awards can be found here.