International Competition for Master’s and PhD Students to Participate in the St. Gallen Symposium 2027 in Switzerland
Applicant criteria
- No specific age required
- Both
Opportunity criteria
Opportunity description
The St. Gallen Symposium offers the Global Ideas Competition 2027, an international competition for master’s, doctoral, and postgraduate students from around the world. The competition aims to attract new, practical ideas for addressing contemporary global challenges.
The 2027 edition focuses on the question:
What could we solve, if we could agree?
Participants are invited to identify a real-world problem that requires cooperation among different stakeholders and propose an idea explaining how that cooperation can be built and transformed into a practical, implementable solution.
Applicants are required to prepare a Solution Brief of no more than 1,000 words, covering the problem, its analysis, relevant evidence, the proposed solution, and how it could be implemented. They must also submit an explanatory video of no more than 3 minutes presenting the idea clearly and directly.
Benefits
The top 100 participants will be selected to join the Leaders of Tomorrow program.
Participation in the 56th St. Gallen Symposium in Switzerland.
Travel, accommodation, and meal expenses will be covered for selected participants.
The opportunity to take part in sessions and discussions with more than 600 leaders and experts from business, politics, academia, and civil society.
The top 3 ideas will share a total prize fund of CHF 20,000.
Selected top ideas may be presented on the main stage of the symposium.
Eligibility criteria
Applicants must:
Be enrolled in a master’s, postgraduate, or doctoral program at a recognized university.
Be born in 1997 or later.
Be enrolled in the eligible academic program as of February 1, 2027.
Applicants from any academic discipline may apply.
The competition is open to students from around the world.
Undergraduate students are generally not eligible unless their current academic level is officially considered equivalent to postgraduate study and their university can formally verify this.
Required Documents
A copy of a passport or government-issued ID.
Proof of university enrollment in a master’s or postgraduate program.
A Solution Brief that does not include the applicant’s name, university, or any identifying information.
An explanatory video of no more than 3 minutes.
A short 200–300 word summary submitted through the registration form.
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