If you are a schoolgirl who loves science, design, and solving real problems, here is a chance to put your ideas into action and win a trip to a major European STEM event. The Girls Go STEM Student Challenge invites teams of girls across Europe to tackle a hands-on engineering challenge and, for the winning team in each country, to attend the Women and Girls in STEM Forum 2026.
About the Challenge
Girls Go STEM, formerly the Girls Go Circular initiative, is led and coordinated by EIT RawMaterials together with other EIT Knowledge and Innovation Communities, as part of the European Institute of Innovation and Technology (EIT). The initiative aims to close the gender gap in STEM by training girls aged 14 to 19 through a learning programme on the Circular Learning Space platform, and inspiring them to pursue STEM higher education and careers.
The Student Challenge gives participants the opportunity to apply what they have learned, work together in teams, and showcase their creativity and problem-solving skills, with the chance to be recognised on a European stage.
Who Can Apply
👩🎓 Schoolgirls aged 14 to 19, in teams of 2 to 4 members, with the support of a teacher or mentor
🚫 Individual applications are not allowed
🌍 Teams can include students from different schools and countries, but each team must register under one country
🔗 Participants or alumni of the Girls Go Circular / Girls Go STEM project
Eligible Countries
🇦🇱 Albania, 🇦🇹 Austria, 🇧🇪 Belgium, 🇧🇦 Bosnia and Herzegovina, 🇧🇬 Bulgaria, 🇭🇷 Croatia, 🇨🇾 Cyprus, 🇨🇿 Czech Republic, 🇩🇰 Denmark, 🇪🇪 Estonia, 🇫🇮 Finland, 🇫🇷 France, 🇩🇪 Germany, 🇬🇷 Greece, 🇭🇺 Hungary, 🇮🇪 Ireland, 🇮🇹 Italy, 🇽🇰 Kosovo, 🇱🇻 Latvia, 🇱🇹 Lithuania, 🇱🇺 Luxembourg, 🇲🇹 Malta, 🇲🇩 Moldova, 🇲🇪 Montenegro, 🇳🇱 Netherlands, 🇳🇴 Norway, 🇵🇱 Poland, 🇵🇹 Portugal, 🇷🇴 Romania, 🇷🇸 Serbia, 🇸🇰 Slovakia, 🇸🇮 Slovenia, 🇪🇸 Spain, 🇸🇪 Sweden, 🇹🇷 Turkey, 🇬🇧 UK, and 🇺🇦 Ukraine.
How to Take Part
🛰️ Work in teams on the theme "Keeping space clean and safe"
✏️ Create a design (a drawing or a simple 3D model), explain your material choices, and show what would happen if the component failed
🎞️ Submit a slide deck and a short video (1 minute maximum) presenting your idea
Prizes
🏆 The selected finalist team in each country will be invited to attend the Women and Girls in STEM Forum 2026
🧑🏫 Each team will be accompanied by a school teacher representative
Deadline
27 July 2026, 13:00 CET
Links
🔗 Read more and take part: https://eit-girlsgostem.eu
