Academic Champions League: The JMU on an excellence trajectory.

A behind-the-scenes look at one of Germany's toughest scientific competitions – by students for students.

"EXCELLENCE… SORRY, WHAT?"

"Excellence clusters", "excellence strategy", "excellence university" – for months you've been hearing these terms on campus, in student subject groups, in faculty newsletters or somewhere between grabbing a bite at the Mensa and everyday library life. But if we're being honest, for many students these words remain above all one thing: abstract. To change that, we've done some research for you and spoken with Prof. Dr. Caroline Kisker, Vice President for Research at JMU. She has been accompanying the excellence process for years and knows exactly what happens behind the scenes.

WILL JMU SOON BE THE "FRANCONIAN HARVARD"?

We're not quite there yet, but we're on the way. The excellence strategy is a nationwide competition run by the federal government and the states. Its goal: to make top-tier research visible and strengthen the international competitiveness of German universities. In short: if you score here, you're playing in a different scientific league.

The story behind it begins in 2006 with the Excellence Initiative of the German Research Foundation. Even then, JMU was in the running for the title. Prof. Kisker remembers that time well: "When my husband and I came from the USA to Germany in 2006, we followed very closely which universities could get excellence status. That was an important criterion when we asked ourselves: are we going to the right place?" That shows exactly the international significance of the competition. An excellence title is not yet a counterpart to the Ivy League, but it works abroad like a clearly recognisable quality mark. It signals: this university is among the top research institutions.

The rankings also show that the strategy works. TUM, an excellence university since 2006, ranks 22nd in the current QS World University Ranking – a strong international statement. Since 2019, the competition has been running under the name Excellence Strategy, even stricter, even more structured and with even more precisely defined scientific criteria.

WHAT'S REALLY BEHIND IT? THE THREE DUBIOUS TERMS EXPLAINED

1. EXCELLENCE STRATEGY: TWO FUNDING LINES, ONE GOAL

By Helena Saremba and Nele Jahrsdörfer. The entire competition consists of two funding lines: excellence clusters and excellence universities.

2. EXCELLENCE CLUSTERS

What is a cluster? An excellence cluster is a large, highly specialised research network in which researchers from different disciplines work together on a clearly defined topic – often with international relevance. What does that mean in practice? Several working groups come together, often across different faculties or even universities. The aim is to advance research in the respective specialised field internationally, not just to improve it "a bit" – clusters should show that they do top-tier research.

To do this, clusters receive high funding over a period of seven years, after which a new application is required. The current Würzburg cluster from physics, ct.qmat, received around 52 million euros from 2019 to 2025 and thus significantly advanced research in the field of quantum materials.

What do excellence clusters bring us students?: More than you might think, because clusters are not closed elite circles – quite the opposite. They often offer bachelor's and master's students exciting research opportunities through internships or final theses, create new teaching offerings such as specialised master's programmes, bring renowned international researchers and lecturers to Würzburg and influence the quality of studies in the respective field in the long term. Important to note: without at least two such clusters, a university cannot even apply for the title of excellence university.

Good news for Würzburg: JMU has cracked exactly the necessary milestone this year. Two excellence clusters are up and running and thus the ticket is secured to even be in the running for excellence university status. Our two clusters are ctd.qmat – quantum materials (with TU Dresden), the extension of the existing cluster ct.qmat, and NUCLEATE – nucleic acid research (with LMU and TUM), a new proposal.

THE CLUSTERS IN DETAIL

Let's take a closer look at these clusters. ctd.qmat researches novel quantum materials, i.e. substances in which electrons and light interact in such an unusual way that completely new properties can emerge. These include special conductivities or unusual material forms that result from their "topology". The cluster has been running since 2019 and is thus one of JMU's established excellence projects.

A particular flagship is the game app "Kitty Q – A Quantum Adventure". It was developed from the cluster and invites children, young people and actually adults too to discover quantum physics through play. In over 20 puzzles you encounter phenomena such as entanglement, chance or topological "donuts" – exactly the topics that ctd.qmat researches. The idea behind it: to make quantum physics so understandable that you can experience it even without maths or physics background knowledge. The success speaks for itself: since the launch in 2021, the app has been downloaded more than 500,000 times worldwide.

The new Centre of Excellence NUCLEATE, which starts in 2026, is dedicated to the question of how RNA and DNA work in cells and how this knowledge can be used for new medical applications. The aim is to better understand the molecular mechanisms of nucleic acids and to develop innovations for therapy, diagnostics and biotechnology from this. Würzburg brings excellent prerequisites for this. The city is already an important hub for modern RNA research through facilities such as the Helmholtz Institute for RNA-based Infection Research (HIRI), the Single-Cell Centre Würzburg and the Core Unit Systems Medicine. NUCLEATE builds on exactly this strength and connects different disciplines from molecular biology through medicine to bioinformatics.

The cluster is not only intended to further network research, but also to open up new ways in which students can be introduced to current topics in nucleic acid research at an early stage, for example through more research-oriented teaching or new specialised offerings. In the long term, NUCLEATE thus strengthens Würzburg's role as a significant hub for RNA and DNA technologies.

Prof. Kisker, who coordinates NUCLEATE together with Professor Cynthia Sharma, talks about the first planning meetings in conversation and visibly becomes enthusiastic: "I'm looking forward to it. These meetings, this excitement that then bursts out of everyone – that's exactly what such a cluster should achieve."

Here it quickly becomes clear: a Centre of Excellence is more than a funding label. It brings researchers together, creates space for ideas and generates exactly the enthusiasm that makes major projects possible at all. Or, as Ralph Waldo Emerson put it timelessly:

"Nothing great was ever achieved without enthusiasm."

That said, one should not forget how fiercely contested such a cluster is. For the current funding round, 143 sketches were submitted to the DFG. Only 41 of these made it to the next round, and in the end 25 new clusters were approved. NUCLEATE is one of them. This is cutting-edge research that has prevailed – and Würzburg is playing a leading role.

3. CENTRE OF EXCELLENCE UNIVERSITY

Whilst clusters focus on individual research topics, the Centre of Excellence University is about the entire university as an institution. So the question is not: "Is JMU particularly strong in a particular area?", but rather: "How good is the university overall? How does it promote research, teaching and junior researchers? How clear is its vision for the future and how internationally, innovatively and reliably does it implement it?" The Centre of Excellence status is thus a kind of quality seal for the entire university.

And what does that bring students? Quite a lot. The degree gains international weight, top researchers are more likely to come to Würzburg and stay, the infrastructure for research and teaching is further expanded, cooperations and exchange programmes become easier and applications to international universities or large employers stand out much more. Or to put it pictorially: a Centre of Excellence is like a particularly strong module – a Centre of Excellence University, on the other hand, is the entire degree programme that convinces from start to finish. Prof. Kisker also emphasises: "The Centre of Excellence status is very visible internationally. Students benefit from this directly."

Currently there are ten Centres of Excellence Universities in Germany as well as the Centre of Excellence Alliance BUA (Berlin University Alliance). In the current procedure, a maximum of five more can be added. JMU is competing against ten other new applications that have also been submitted.

HOW IT ALL BEGAN – AND HOW IT CONTINUES

With the new presidency, JMU adopted a bottom-up approach from 2021 onwards. Decisions about what should be funded are not made "from above"; instead, researchers themselves develop their ideas, build networks and submit idea sketches to the university management. This resulted in projects from very different areas: the humanities and social sciences concept "Commoning", the climate-oriented design "EcoGlob", the medical ideas "RESET" and "GOFM", and finally the two full proposals that are now being funded as Centres of Excellence.

Such designs do not grow overnight. They often involve years of preparation behind them. The application for funding as a Centre of Excellence University was – very fittingly – submitted on 11.11. (if that's not a good omen). The next crucial step comes in April 2026: a multi-day on-site review will take place then. From 14 to 17 April, JMU, including us students, will be scrutinised intensively. Twelve international reviewers are expected, four members of the expert commission, discussions with researchers, deans, cooperation partners and students, tours of laboratories, facilities and campus locations, as well as strategy, research and presentation sessions on all important subject areas of the university – timed to the minute.

After these four days, it's time to wait. The final decision will be made in September 2026 following internal consultations, meetings and votes at federal level. Should Würzburg convince, funding as a Centre of Excellence University will begin on 1 January 2027. Until then, the university is eagerly awaiting the review in April. Prof. Kisker puts it very directly: "These will be intensive days in which we will fight together for Centre of Excellence status and defend our application with enthusiasm."

In order for JMU to present itself from its best side, not only the presidency and working groups are called upon – we students can also do our part.

WHAT YOU CAN DO (YES, REALLY YOU!)

• Be informed: The university will present the proposal. Whoever knows what is being discussed not only comes across as more convincing, but also feels less like they're in a surprise test.
• Attend information events: There are several dates on which the JMU's strategy and future vision will be explained. Students are explicitly welcome – and no, it's not a secret circle. Just go along, listen, ask questions.
• Provide constructive feedback: How's your studies going? Supervision, teaching quality, campus, services – what works well, what's annoying? Honest, factual feedback helps the presidency develop the university further. You can send feedback to exstra@uni-wuerzburg.de.
• Exchange with the assessors: During the assessment days, a planned student discussion, affectionately called a "coffee break", takes place with 21 pre-selected students. There, the assessors want to hear directly how things really are for us. Being authentic is just as important here as having good knowledge of the university and the proposal.
• Show commitment: Student subject groups, initiatives, social projects, research or culture – everything that brings the campus to life also shows the assessors: This university lives, breathes, discusses and develops.

With the proposal, JMU has taken the first major step. Whether Würzburg becomes an excellence university will be decided by the Science Council after all universities have been reviewed. The decision will be announced on 2 October – until then we are all waiting with bated breath.