The Innovation Fund for Teaching is a funding instrument aimed at supporting special measures and innovative activities relating to teaching and studying that was established at FAU in 2016. Anyone who teaches at FAU can apply for the Innovation Fund. In 2025, there will be separate calls for applications for the faculties and for the central institutions for funds allocated towards teaching.
Please address any questions about the Innovation Fund for Teaching to: zuv-foerderprogramme-lehre@fau.de
Innovation Fund for Teaching 2026
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The Innovation Fund for Teaching is an internal FAU funding program aimed at improving the quality of teaching. Awarding funding on a competitive basis is intended to act as an incentive to try out innovative teaching methods. The goal is to enhance student success at FAU.
Funding is available for degree programs, modules or teaching units that make a specific proposal as to how academic success could be increased in line with FAU’s student success strategy. In particular, funding is available for projects that are breaking new ground in one or more of the following areas
- Concepts for university-level teaching
- New interdisciplinary collaboration concerning content
- Educational purpose and learning outcome of teaching unit
- New teaching formats.
Funding is available for projects that identify deficits in how the student success strategy is being implemented in their specific degree program, module or teaching unit and that provide a convincing argument for how the proposed measures will contribute to increasing student success.
The following criteria are decisive:
- As a rule, projects that encourage students to complete their degree within the standard duration of study are preferred.
- Projects for teaching AI skills are favored.
- The proposed measures ought to benefit as many students as possible.
- Projects that involve students in developing the measures are preferred. We welcome measures that have been developed in light of dialog with external experts.
- The measures should increase student satisfaction.
All teaching staff at faculties at FAU can apply. The application must confirm that the project has been coordinated with the responsible persons of the respective study program, module, or course. Reapplications from the 2025 call for applications are permitted. Extensions of approved projects from the 2025 call for applications are also possible. For information regarding extension applications, please contact Franziska Kreuzer at zuv-foerderprogramme-lehre@fau.de.
The requested funds must be spent within one year, starting from October 1, 2026. The funds must be claimed no later than November 30, 2026 or will be charged directly via the Human Resources Department to cover the personnel costs. It is mandatory to sustainably transfer and integrate the successfully tested concepts into the standard teaching of the respective discipline.
A maximum funding of one 50% E13 position for six months can be granted. The project leaders have the flexibility to use the funds over a different time period (for example, a 12-month period with a 25% position is also possible). Material expenses (including funds for student assistants) are not eligible for funding.
Deadline for applications: Applications must be submitted electronically on or before May 30, 2026 to Franziska Kreuzer at zuv-foerderprogramme-lehre@fau.de. Please find the application form above.
Scope and content: Applicants should describe the planned concept for increasing student success on max. 4 pages, explicitly taking the following points into consideration:
- Brief description (max. 1000 characters with spaces)
- Description of the situation as it stands at present and an outline of requirements
- Description of project idea and goals, with reference to the target group and the intended measures for increasing student success and student satisfaction.
- Statement of criteria for success/evaluation
- Details and quantification of target group
- Long-term concept
- Schedule for the project
- Confirmation from the person responsible for the degree program, module or comparable teaching unit
The applications are submitted centrally and follow a two-tiered evaluation process: In the first stage, the Deans of Studies evaluate the applications from their own faculty according to previously determined, common criteria and recommend the order in which they believe the applications should be considered. These prioritized lists are then forwarded to the Vice President Education who takes the final decision after consulting students’ representatives. The results are announced during the final meeting of the Deans of Studies in July, and the applicants informed accordingly.
The following selection criteria apply:
- Requirements and feasibility of measures
- Actual, foreseeable impact of the project on student success
- Integration into existing structures, synergy effects
- Incorporation into curriculum
- Realistic timescale and feasibility
- Potential to become established in regular teaching (sustainability)
- Transferability to other subjects (or groups of subjects)
After the funding period has ended, a short project report must be submitted (2-3 pages in length, case report and financial section). This report should cover how the project went, a comparison of the situation before and after the project, any problems that arose, how well the new idea was received (with reference to the criteria for success from the application) and how funds were used. Two forms are provided for this purpose together with the confirmation of funding. Funds that are not spent are withdrawn after the end of the project and re-assigned to the budget for the Innovation Fund for Teaching.
In addition, you may be asked to present the project in an FAU event (Commission for Teaching and Studying (LuSt) or Tag der Lehre).