Excellence Strategy
Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT) has successfully acquired funding for two Clusters of Excellence within the Excellence Strategy. The Excellence Commission has agreed to continue funding “3D Matter Made to Order” (3DMM2O) for another seven years starting in January 2026.
The Excellence Strategy of the Federal and State Governments
The aim of the Excellence Strategy is to strengthen Germany’s position as an outstanding place of research in the long term and further improve its international competitiveness. Continuing the development of German universities successfully begun with the Excellence Initiative in 2005, the Excellence Strategy aims at supporting research of the highest standard, enhancing research profiles, and facilitating cooperation in the science system.
The program covers two funding lines. “Clusters of Excellence” offers project-based funding in internationally competitive fields of research for universities or university consortia. The funding line “Universities of Excellence” is to strengthen and further develop the leading international role of German universities on the basis of successful Clusters of Excellence.
The funding decision for the second round of the program line “Clusters of Excellence” was made in May 2025. Submissions of proposals in the funding line “Universities of Excellence” require funding of at least two Clusters of Excellence. Thanks to the renewed funding of 3DMM2O and the second successful Cluster of KIT POLiS – Post Lithium Storage, the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT) continues to fulfil the prerequisites for the funding line “University of Excellence”.
The current decisions on the Clusters of Excellence will provide the basis for the upcoming evaluation within the “Universities of Excellence” funding line. KIT and Heidelberg University, which have been funded as Universities of Excellence since 2019, participated in the 2025 evaluation process. In March 2026, the Committee of Experts will decide on the continued funding of the evaluated institutions and submit the results to the Excellence Commission. If the evaluation outcome is positive, the next funding period as Universities of Excellence will begin on January 1, 2027.
Clusters of Excellence
In the second round of funding for the “Clusters of Excellence,” 47 German universities submitted 98 proposals. The Excellence Commission selected 70 Clusters of Excellence for funding, including 45 renewals of existing projects and 25 new clusters. The total funding available for this program is approximately €539 million per year. The new funding period began on January 1, 2026, and will last seven years.