The Universidad.es Foundation and its counterpart in Germany, the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD), have announced the launch of the first Julián Sanz del Río Prize for young researchers in Spain and Germany. The prize is aimed at highly qualified researchers who have obtained their doctorates at a university in Germany or Spain and who have strong professional and academic links with the other country.

The project promotes the work carried out by talented young researchers and their contribution to the scientific and cultural understanding between the two nations. The prize will be awarded annually, and each year will focus on a different area of knowledge; in 2010, it will acknowledge work in the Social and Legal Sciences.

This joint project bears witness to the close cooperation that the Universidad.es Foundation has maintained since its creation with the German agency DAAD. The two institutions trust that the award of this prize will promote cultural dialogue and academic and scientific cooperation between Spain and Germany.

The deadline for applications is 15 March. The conditions and the application forms can be consulted at www.universidad.es/premio or www.daad.es/premio.

Universidad.es is a public sector foundation that aims to promote the Spanish university system throughout the world. The foundation was set up by the Spanish government with the support of Spain’s universities, the regional governments and other institutions. Universidad.es was formally constituted on 23 December 2008.