[vhb] Enrich your teaching with vhb materials: Next funding rounds of the Virtual University of Bavaria (vhb) 2026
The vhb’s offerings represent an enriching addition to your teaching portfolio and can also be used strategically, e.g., as curricular courses, as part of flipped classroom concepts, for internationalization, or as bridge courses.
Did you know?…
- that you can apply for funding for your online teaching from the vhb through various funding lines, e.g. to develop curricular and open online courses (CLASSIC vhb & OPEN vhb)? Further information can be found here.
- …that you can apply for additional funding from the FAU Competence Center for Education, for example, for support in the context of media didactic design or for media didactic implementation in the learning platform or production of learning content (e.g., educational films, educational podcasts, etc.) for your CLASSIC vhb course from the vhb?
Get support
In addition to financial support from the vhb for the development of new digital courses, FAU provides support in all phases of project development:
- Idea generation
- Application submission
- Implementation and execution of your vhb offerings.
The instructional designers at the FAU vhb Office offer you tailored support, whether it be in terms of media didactics and organizational application coordination or in the conception, production of content, implementation, and support. Feel free to contact us.
Submit an application in the next funding roundThe dates for the next funding rounds are already in sight:
April 30, 2026
- Deadline for submitting funding applications for CLASSIC vhb and OPEN vhb to the vhb (via the vhb Office at FAU). Further information and documents will soon be available on the vhb website (funding round 2026-I).
- Tip: If you plan to apply for funding for a CLASSIC vhb or OPEN vhb course, start looking for your partner university now. We are happy to assist you with this.
- Please note the internal deadlines in the run-up to the application submission. We will keep you informed about the exact deadlines.
May 15, 2026
Deadline for submitting funding applications for SMART vhb to the vhb (through the FAU vhb Office)
Further information and documents can be found on the vhb website.
Your contact at FAU
- Email: vhb-office@fau.de
You can find more information here.
The vhb: Three options: the vhb funding lines
To promote higher education in Bavaria, the vhb offers a wide range of online courses in various disciplines. These are developed by lecturers from the participating institutions with the help of funding. The vhb has three main funding lines:
- [CLASSIC vhb] Online courses anchored in the curriculum.
CLASSIC vhb offers a wide range of online courses developed and supervised by lecturers from at least two Bavarian partner universities. These courses are offered in semester format and are intended for enrolled students. Participation is free of charge for students. ECTS credits can be earned for the course. - [OPEN vhb] Open online courses.
OPEN vhb courses are open to a wider target group and offer introductions to various specialist topics. They also allow external interested parties to participate in the online courses. Here, too, consortia of at least two Bavarian partner universities work together. - [SMART vhb] Repository for learning resources.
SMART vhb offers 45-minute digital learning units such as lecture videos, interactive modules, and e-books to enrich teaching with online content. Teachers can use these materials to supplement their own (face-to-face) courses and enable students to learn independently, explore topics in greater depth, and prepare for exams, for example, in the context of blended learning or flipped classroom courses.
Further information on funding lines and the vhb’s offerings can be found on the vhb website.
Recognition of achievements
For students, vhb courses offer the opportunity to earn ECTS credits that are recognized by participating institutions and contribute to fulfilling study requirements. Information on this can be found in the respective course descriptions in the CLASSIC vhb course program.