About this opportunity
The Global Ideas Competition is the route into the St. Gallen Symposium for graduate students. Each year the International Students' Committee, a student run organisation at the University of St. Gallen, asks competitors to answer one question about cooperation. The 2027 question asks what could be solved if people could agree: you identify a problem that stays unsolved because the parties cannot come to an arrangement, then propose a new arrangement that would make solving it work.
A submission has two parts. The Solution Brief is a document of no more than 1,000 words written on the published template across four sections, where you name a real problem, support it with evidence, propose the partnership that could fix it and show how that partnership would actually operate. The Video Explainer is a clip of up to three minutes in which you pitch the same idea as though you had met your dream speaker at the Symposium. Everything is in English.
The competition is open to students enrolled in a master level or higher programme in any field at a regular university, born in 1997 or later, and you must be able to show a copy of your passport and a confirmation of enrolment proving you are on a graduate programme as of 1 February 2027. Work is individual, no group entries are accepted, and your brief must be written only for this contest. The first round is marked anonymously, so your name, email address and university must not appear in the file. Use of AI tools is allowed but has to be declared, every source must be cited, all entries are checked for plagiarism, and failing to acknowledge an aid leads to disqualification.
Around 200 competitors are chosen as Leaders of Tomorrow and join the 56th Symposium on 27 to 29 April 2027 in St. Gallen, where they sit with more than 600 senior leaders from business, politics, academia and civil society. Participation is free, and the committee covers travel, board and lodging, with the three best ideas sharing a prize fund of CHF 20,000. There is no entry fee, and the closing time is 11:59 p.m. on 1 February 2027 in the last time zone, which is UTC minus 12.
What you receive
- A fully funded place at the 56th St. Gallen Symposium on 27 to 29 April 2027 in Switzerland
- Travel, board and lodging covered by the International Students' Committee for selected Leaders of Tomorrow
- A share of a CHF 20,000 prize fund split between the three best ideas
- A year of dialogue with a community of about 200 young minds and more than 600 senior leaders from business, politics, academia and civil society
- Membership of the Leaders of Tomorrow network that continues after the Symposium
- A structured, template based brief that is marked anonymously on the strength of the idea alone
Who can apply
- You are enrolled in a graduate or postgraduate programme at master level or higher, in any field of study, at a regular university
- You were born in 1997 or later
- You can provide a copy of your passport or other identification, translated into English if it is in a non Roman language
- You can provide confirmation of enrolment from your university proving you are on a graduate or postgraduate programme as of 1 February 2027
- You submit individual work, since group entries are not accepted
- You can take part in the Symposium in St. Gallen, Switzerland in late April 2027
Who should not apply
- Undergraduate students who are not yet enrolled in a master level or higher programme
- Applicants born before 1997
- Group submissions and any brief that has already been entered elsewhere or written for another purpose
- Entries that fail to declare auxiliary aids such as AI tools, proofreading or translation services, which leads to disqualification
Documents to prepare
- A Solution Brief of no more than 1,000 words completed on the official template, with your name, email address and university removed from the file, its name and its metadata
- A Video Explainer of up to three minutes, which the jury only views in the second round
- A copy of your passport or other identification, in English where the original is in a non Roman language
- A confirmation of matriculation or enrolment from your university showing graduate level study as of 1 February 2027
How to apply
- Read the 2027 competition question on the Global Ideas Competition page of the St. Gallen Symposium website
- Download the official Solution Brief template and watch the instruction video linked from the same page
- Write your 1,000 word brief across the four sections and record a three minute video explainer of the same idea, in English
- Cite every source and list any auxiliary aid you used, including AI tools, since unacknowledged help leads to disqualification
- Check that your name, email address and university appear nowhere in the brief or its file metadata
- Submit through the official 2027 Global Ideas Competition registration form before 11:59 p.m. on 1 February 2027 in the last time zone, UTC minus 12
Selection process
- The first round marks the Solution Brief anonymously, so only the quality of the idea is weighed
- In the second round the jury views your Video Explainer to confirm the idea is your own
- Around 200 competitors are hand selected as Leaders of Tomorrow and invited to the Symposium, and the committee contacts them with the enrolment and identification documents to supply
- The three best ideas are named at the Symposium and share the CHF 20,000 prize fund
Sources and verification
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Questions applicants ask
Does it cost anything to enter or to attend?
No. The competition is free to enter, and for selected Leaders of Tomorrow participation at the Symposium is free with travel, board and lodging covered by the organising committee. Bringing a little pocket money is recommended.
I am not studying in Switzerland or Europe. Can I still apply?
Yes. This is a global student competition open to graduate and postgraduate students enrolled at a regular university anywhere in the world, provided you meet the age rule and can show proof of enrolment.
Can I work on the brief with a classmate?
No. Individual work is expected and group work is not allowed. The brief must also be written exclusively for this contest.
Am I allowed to use AI tools?
Yes, but you must declare them. Judging focuses on originality and the strength of your own thinking, and every auxiliary aid and source has to be cited correctly. Failing to acknowledge help results in disqualification.
When exactly does the competition close?
At 11:59 p.m. on 1 February 2027 in the last time zone, which is UTC minus 12. That gives competitors in every time zone the full day to submit.
Important disclaimer
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