Saarbrücken once again a meeting place for young IT talents

Participants and instructors of the 2024 Research Days

Forschungstage supports the next generation of scientists with lectures, workshops, and insights into latest computer science research

From June 25 to 27, 2025, Saarbrücken will once again become a hub for young computer science enthusiasts from across Germany. Since 2008, the Saarbrücken Research Days have provided selected high school students with the opportunity to dive deeper into the world of computer science than is typically possible in regular school lessons. The event is aimed at 14 to 20 year-olds who have excelled in the subject and are seeking an introduction to academic computer science. The goal of the Forschungstage is to inspire young talent to pursue a degree in computer science, to help them establish early contacts in the research community, and to support them on their path into academia.

This year, 56 participants are expected, including 12 young women. Invitations have been extended to the top participants of the second round of the 43rd German National Computer Science Competition (Bundeswettbewerb Informatik), as well as to outstanding high school graduates who have particularly excelled in advanced computer science courses.

The event kicks off on June 25 with a welcome evening, offering a chance for participants to get to know each other. On the following two days, June 26 and 27, a diverse program of exciting lectures, classes, and workshops awaits. A total of 19 different workshops will be offered, with each participant attending three in small groups. The topics range from theoretical computer science and machine learning to cybersecurity and practical robotics.

The workshop instructors come from renowned research institutions in the region, including Saarland University, the Max Planck Institute for Informatics, the Max Planck Institute for Software Systems, the German Research Center for Artificial Intelligence (DFKI), the Center for Bioinformatics, and the CISPA Helmholtz Center for Information Security.

Participants can also look forward to a high-caliber lecture program with presentations by Prof. Markus Bläser, Prof. Jürgen Steimle, Dr. Marc Habermann, and Sarah Sterz, who will provide insights into their current research projects.

The Saarbrücken Research Days are organized in close cooperation with the National Computer Science Competitions and share the common goal of attracting young computer science enthusiasts to the field. The German National Computer Science Competition has taken place annually since 1980 and is sponsored by the German Informatics Society (Gesellschaft für Informatik e.V.), the Fraunhofer ICT Group, and the Max Planck Institute for Informatics. It is supported by the Federal Ministry of Education and Research.