Emerging Researcher Prize

On June 17, 2026, at its annual conference held at the University of Teacher Education St. Gallen, the Swiss Society for Educational Research presented the Emerging Researchers’ Award for Educational Research for the eighth time. This award, which is presented every two years, aims to recognize outstanding scholarly work by early-career researchers in the field of educational research that has been published or accepted for publication in scholarly journals or edited volumes.

The award was presented by SSRE Board Member and former SSRE President Prof. Dr. Zoe Moody of the University of Lausanne. The jury consisted of her as well as renowned education researchers from various universities in Switzerland:

• Prof. Dr. Antje Barabasch, Swiss Federal Institute for Vocational Education and Training (EHB)
• Prof. Dr. Dorothee Brovelli, Lucerne University of Teacher Education
• Prof. Dr. Isabelle Capron-Puozzo, University of Teacher Education Valais
• Prof. Dr. Roxanne Gagnon, University of Teacher Education of the Canton of Vaud

Of the eleven contributions submitted from German- and French-speaking Switzerland, the jury nominated one outstanding paper for the award:

Hürlimann, F., Lüdtke, O., & Schmerse, D. (2025). Language in good company: Unraveling peer effects on language development in early education using integrative data analysis of six German studies. Journal of Educational Psychology. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1037/edu0000977

The first author and award recipient is Franziska Hürlimann, who works at the FHNW School of Education and is pursuing her doctorate at the Institute for Educational Sciences, which is jointly funded and managed by the FHNW School of Education and the University of Basel and is attached to the Rectorate of the University of Basel.

The SSRE extends its heartfelt congratulations on this achievement!