Press Release No. 31 | 18 August 2026

GAIN26 opens up new prospects for international researchers

Career paths between North America and Germany

Joint press release from the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation (AvH), the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) and the German Research Foundation (DFG)


August 21 - 28 2026 - Save the date

The “German Academic International Network” (GAIN) is hosting its annual conference in San Francisco from 21 to 23 August – the largest networking event for German academic careers outside Europe. The 26th GAIN conference will focus on career opportunities for early-career researchers from Germany working on the American continent. The conference is also open to international postdocs in the USA who are interested in Germany as a research hub. Members of the media are warmly invited to attend the first day of GAIN26.

 

Whether it’s career paths leading to a professorship, a move into research management, careers at universities of applied sciences, or leading a junior research group: for three days at the end of August, the GAIN conference will focus entirely on Germany as a centre for research. At this joint event organised by the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD), the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation and the German Research Foundation (DFG) in San Francisco, postdoctoral researchers will receive in-depth advice on career planning at German universities, research institutions or in the research-intensive private sector. More than 35 workshops will cover topics such as the Excellence Strategy, resilience in academia and generative AI, or offer insights into appointment procedures. The GAIN conference also includes the annual ‘Talent Fair’, at which nearly 80 German research institutions will this year present career opportunities and advertise vacancies. In addition, the DAAD, the DFG and the Humboldt Foundation will provide information on their programmes for researchers at the early stages of their careers. As always, alongside information and networking, GAIN26 will also feature entertaining science communication: in a Science Slam, postdocs will present selected aspects of their research findings.

Distinguished guests

On 21 August, the presidents of the three organisations will open the GAIN conference following a welcome address by the Federal Ministry of Education and Research. High-ranking representatives from the worlds of science and politics will be attending, including a delegation from the Bundestag Committee on Research, Technology, Space and Technology Assessment, as well as eight science ministers from several federal states. Over the course of the three-day event, representatives from politics, universities, funding organisations and non-university research institutions  will be on hand to answer participants’ questions.

The GAIN conference is once again proving highly popular: around 500 people have already registered. In addition to the in-person event, GAIN is also offering a digital workshop on 17 September, aimed at interested postdocs worldwide. 

The German Academic International Network

The German Academic International Network (GAIN) is the network for German researchers working around the world. Since 2003, GAIN has been supporting researchers through a diverse programme of activities designed to maintain links with German research institutions, prepare researchers for a return to Germany as a centre of research, and help them articulate their interests to policy-makers. GAIN is a joint initiative of the Humboldt Foundation, the DAAD and the DFG, and is funded by the Federal Ministry of Research, Technology and Space. Associate members include the Fraunhofer Society, the Helmholtz Association, the Leibniz Association, the Max Planck Society, the German Rectors’ Conference, the German National Academic Foundation and German Cancer Aid. Other partners from academia, industry and politics regularly support GAIN’s work.

GAIN-Programm

GAIN26 will take place from 21 to 23 August at the Marriott Marquis San Francisco Hotel. Information on the network can be found at www.gain-network.org; Conference programme can be found here(externer Link)

Arrangement of interview opportunitites with participants at the GAIN conference:

Latest news about the conference on social media: #GoGAIN26

Please direct any questions to:

, GAIN Programme Director , +1 (212) 758-3223-217 
(please note the time difference of minus 6 hours (New York) or minus 9 hours (San Francisco))

Press contacts

AvH: , Head of Press, Communications & Marketing, +49 228 833-144

DAAD: , Press Officer, +49 228 882-454

DFG: , Press Officer, +49 228 885-2109