Scholarships
The application period for the European Forum Alpbach 2026 has closed!
If you have any questions regarding your application, send an email to scholarship@senza-confini.com.
This year’s application period lastet from March 2 to April 5, 2026.
EFA 2026 will last from August 24 to September 4, 2026. Our arrival to Alpbach will be on Sunday, August 23.
Our Club has been granting scholarships to the annual European Forum Alpbach (EFA) since 2003!
We want motivated students and young professionals from the Alpe-Adria region – Carinthia, Northern Italy (Friuli-Venezia Giulia and Veneto) Slovenia – to experience what we have experienced in Alpbach: meaningful discussions, unforgettable moments, diversity as an added value.
Are you our next scholarship holder?
As a first time scholarship holder, you are entitled to a scholarship that covers the participation fees and all your accommodation costs for your entire stay. Breakfast is included in your stay. For other meals, you can explore nearby restaurants and shops, or prepare your own food in the fully equipped apartment kitchens.
We will support you during your time in Alpbach! Our team of returners will organize events, fireside chats, team building activities, and more. Therefore, a small self-contribution will be asked to cover the club activities during the Forum, and to cover a small part of the accommodation costs.
If you are granted a scholarship by our club, you are to participate at our annual scholarship holder award ceremony and are required to attend the Forum for its entire duration.
Our aim is to provide scholarships to young people who have ties and connection with the Alpe Adria region. Thus, we consider eligible everyone aged 18-30 who lives, studies or works in Carinthia, Northern Italy (Friuli-Venezia Giulia and Veneto) or Slovenia. You can also apply if you were born, grew up, and/or received most of your education in one of these regions.
NB: a C1 level of English is needed; you do not need to show proof of your English level.
In case you are not sure whether you fulfill the criteria for application, please reach out to us at scholarship@senza.confini.com; we are happy to assess your eligibility with you.
We warmly invite you to apply for our scholarship for EFA26!
This year’s application period lasts from 2-31 March 2026.
We look forward to receiving your application once the application period has started!
To apply for our scholarship, please fill out our application tool and upload the following documents online in ONE PDF file titled YOURLASTNAME_YOURNAME_2026 (example: SMITH_JANE_2026)
- CV in English WITHOUT a photo
- Academic transcripts of your highest and most recent stage of studies
- Answer the following questions:
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- What do you expect from EFA26, and the European Forum Alpbach in general? What would you expect to take away from the Forum? (max. 200 words)
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- What is your personal connection to the Alpe Adria Region? How can you contribute to Club Alpbach Senza Confini (CASC), and why should we choose you? (max. 200 words).
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- If you could give a speech to the Alpbach audience, which single topic would you focus on? Why does this topic matter to you right now, and what key message would you want people to take away? (max. 250 words)
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- In a format of your choice, describe a challenge Europe and the world are facing today and how young people can use their voice to shape a better future. You can express your ideas through a drawing, photograph, (very) short essay, poem, postcard, or any other creative format. Show us your vision of Europe’s future! (if written, max 150 words)
As we want to keep the scholarship selection process as unbiased and transparent as possible, do not include any pictures or videos of yourself. Any inclusion of such materials will make your application invalid.
We kindly ask you not to use AI tools when preparing your application. The use of translation tools (e.g., DeepL) for language assistance is permitted. Please indicate, by selecting the appropriate checkbox below, the extent to which you have complied with this request.
We especially encourage applications from people with disabilities, members of ethnic or religious minorities, people with non-privileged socio-economic or non-academic backgrounds.
In case you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact us via e-mail or on our social media channels.
When the selection process is over, we will send you an email to inform you about the outcome of the selection. We evaluate your time and efforts, and we are looking forward to receiving your application!
Once the applications have been collected, Club Alpbach Senza Confini board proceeds with the selection of candidates. Each member of the board evaluates each candidate’s essay, whereas the academic and professional curricula are evaluated by the board members coming from the candidate’s region.
A preliminary ranking for every region (Austria, Italy, Slovenia) is given according to the evaluation results. From it a list of the top 7 candidates per region emerges, which is then discussed by the board in a joint session, until the winners are defined. In these discussions we take also in consideration the activism and extracurricular activities of the candidates which state a clear commitment to the European values, their potential growth during and after the European Forum Alpbach, and the commitment prospects for the Alpe Adria region.
The winners are announced during the month of May and invited to the Scholarship recipient ceremony, an event held on Saturday, 27 June, in Klagenfurt and attended by local personalities and institutions. Scholarship recipients are expected to be present.
Are you a former scholarship holder under the age of 35 and would like to return to Alpbach? Then you are eligible to apply for a returner scholarship!
Send your application in ONE PDF file titled YOURLASTNAME_YOURNAME_2026 (example: SMITH_JANE_2026) to scholarship@senza-confini.com and state why you are applying for a returner scholarship and what your preferred dates in Alpbach are. Applications are open from March 2-31, 2026.
Additionally, please answer the following questions to state your motivation of returning to the Forum:
- Returners are expected to contribute to the furthering of CASC’s activities in Alpbach. How would you contribute to our club while at the Forum?
- What are you particularly interested in this year’s Forum, and what outcomes and learnings are you expecting for yourself after participating in this year’s Forum?
Note: we cannot guarantee that your preferred dates will be taken into consideration.
Application period is over, please wait for next year
Thoughts on EFA
EFA had so many surprising things to offer- all these amazing opportunities added a lot of value to my days at the Forum and offered yet another way to express myself.
The events at the Forum made me aware of how many things we don’t know about yet, or do not have complete information about. I am very happy that I got to deepen my understanding on certain issues and learn new things.
My highlight of Alpbach were certainly the incredible people I’ve met during my time there. I had discussions with new friends that I never would have expected, on both a personal and professional level.
