Call for Volunteers – Jury 2027
The University:Future Festival thrives on the commitment of its community. For the 2027 festival, themed “Strong enough”, we are once again looking for volunteers to help shape the festival by contributing to the programme selection.
Would you like to actively support the U:FF and gain exclusive insights into projects, ideas and current debates on the future of higher education? Then please register by 9 November 2026 using the form below!
How the jury works
The U:FF usually receives between 550 and 600 submissions. The programme entries are selected through a two-stage jury process, in which members of the community play a key role. This ensures that a variety of perspectives and specialist expertise are incorporated into the selection process. If you’d like to get involved, we’d be delighted to receive your application to become a jury volunteer.
The two-stage process
- In the first phase, seven juries, each comprising 10 to 12 members, will assess the submissions. The juries consist mainly of members of the community and are composed in a diverse manner to reflect different stakeholder groups, perspectives and specialist expertise. We are looking for you to join these juries. Each sub-jury is assigned a randomly selected subset of the entries. The jury members first assess the entries individually and then, based on these assessments, jointly decide during a jury meeting which submissions will proceed to the second round.
- In the second round, programme committees select the entries from the shortlisted submissions to be included in the festival programme. Each programme committee has a specific thematic focus and comprises representatives of the organisers, the chairs of the sub-juries and selected experts on the relevant topic.
I’ve been a jury member before – can I apply again? Of course! Even if you’ve already supported the U:FF as a jury member in a previous year, we’d be delighted to receive your application again! New for 2027: in the first round, submissions will no longer be divided into content-based tracks, but will instead be allocated to the juries at random. As a jury member, you will therefore assess the quality of entries from a variety of subject areas and gain an insight into the full breadth of the festival’s content. The diverse composition of the juries ensures that a range of experiences, expertise and perspectives are incorporated into the selection process.
Haven’t been a jury member at the U:FF before? Even so, we’d love to hear from you. Fresh perspectives and experiences are invaluable to us!
I’d like to be a jury member, but I’d also like to submit a session – is that possible? Of course, even as a jury member, you can submit your own session for U:FF 2027. Naturally, you must not evaluate your own submissions.
Time commitment
To prepare for your role on the jury, you will receive a briefing, take part in an online training session and be introduced to the Sessionize assessment platform.
You should allow a total of around 8 to 12 hours for the online training, individual assessment and jury session. The actual time commitment may vary depending on the total number of entries. All jury work takes place online.
Key dates in the judging process
- Online training sessions for jury members: 25 and 27 November 2026 (It is sufficient to attend one of the two sessions, as the content is identical.)
- Assessment phase: 13 to 28 January 2027
- Jury sessions: 2 or 3 February 2027 (The exact date will be determined in consultation with the respective jury chair.)
Our Thank You
- As a jury member, you will gain exclusive insights into current projects, ideas and debates on the future of higher education. We would also like to thank you for your commitment:
- As a jury member, you will be named on our website.
- As a jury member, you will receive a certificate acknowledging your voluntary work for U:FF 2027.
- You will receive a little surprise 🙂
Join our Call for Volunteers now!
Are you keen to get involved and work with us to make the University:Future Festival 2027 a special experience for everyone taking part?
If so, please apply via our form between 19 October and 9 November 2026. We’ll let you know by 17 November 2026 at the latest whether you’ve been selected to be a member of one of the U:FF 2027 juries.
Click here for the form.
