Young European Summer School  

The Young European Summer School 2026 will take place from July 17 to July 31.

The Herzogin Anna Amalia Bibliothek e. V. association and the Klassik Stiftung Weimar invite young people from all over Europe who have a good command of German to a two-week summer academy at the Wielandgut near Weimar.

The summer academy has three main focuses:

   1. Reading historical texts and literature, especially from the Weimar Classicism period.
  2. Exploring Weimar – with its museums, historical sites, and the Duchess Anna Amalia Library.
   3. Exchange among participants.

Conditions of participation

The summer school is aimed at 16- to 18-year-old students from Germany and other European countries with a good knowledge of German (level B2).

Participation fees

The Young European Summer School is fully funded by the Friedrich Foundation and the Duchess Anna Amalia Library Association.

Participants are responsible for the following costs:

• Travel to and from the venue (own arrival and departure)
• Course fees € 250
• Two self-catered dinners in Weimar
• Self-catering for two excursion days (lunch)
• Train tickets for two excursion days in the surrounding area (day trips to Erfurt and the Thuringian Forest)
• The participation fees have been increased due to rising costs for food and public transportation.

Accommodation and meals

Overnight stays in shared rooms at the historic Wielandgut Oßmanstedt
Breakfast and dinner on site in Oßmannstedt
Lunch in the cafeteria of the Bauhaus University Weimar

Accessibility

Due to Weimar's historic architecture and the diversity of the program, we are unable to provide comprehensive accessibility for the entire program. If you have any special needs in this regard, please let us know in your application. We will then work together to find a solution.
Registration

The application deadline is March 31, 2026. You will receive prompt notification of whether you have been selected.

Do you have any questions or comments? Is it too late for you to book a flight after March 31, 2026? Just send us an email with the subject line “Young European Summer School” to bildung@klassik-stiftung.de – we will be happy to work with you to find a solution!

We look forward to receiving your application and working with you to question and revitalize the ideas of the Enlightenment.

We would like to thank the Anna Amalia Library Association, the Thuringian Literary Society, and the Friedrich Foundation for their support of the Young European Summer School. We would also like to thank the Andalusian Association of Germanists for promoting the event.

Review 2025

From July 13 to 26, 2025, the Young European Summer School took place at the Wielandgut in Oßmannstedt. Eighteen young people from 13 European countries engaged intensively with Weimar Classicism and the question “What is Enlightenment?” from Kant to Goethe to Wieland. The 16- to 19-year-olds had the opportunity to relate historical texts from Weimar Classicism to contemporary perspectives and issues.

In addition to morning reading seminars, the participants explored Weimar and the surrounding area, visited museums, Goethe's house, the Duchess Anna Amalia Library, Luther sites in Erfurt, and the Thuringian Forest. Creative workshops, including one with children's book author Alexander von Knorre, enabled them to create their own texts and illustrations.

Finally, the young people presented their projects on topics such as Goethe, Kant, Luther, and the origins of the Enlightenment. Blog posts reflected on the participants' personal experiences. Two weeks full of cultural exchange, new insights, and friendships came to an end.