Riga Technical University (RTU) invites secondary school pupils, vocational education students, and bachelor’s degree students to apply for a scholarship competition. Pupils will be able to receive a scholarship for developing a research project, project work, or module assignment, while bachelor’s students may receive support for developing their final thesis on smart concrete and asphalt solutions.
Secondary school pupils and vocational education students will receive a monthly scholarship of EUR 250 for up to three months. During the development of their work, young participants will be supported by RTU researchers. They will have the opportunity to work in modern laboratories and take part in research on construction and road-building materials and technologies that could be used in future road, bridge, and building construction in Latvia and worldwide.
Young people who plan to develop their work in the next academic year are also eligible to participate in the competition.
To apply, pupils from general and vocational education institutions must submit an application form, CV, and motivation letter between 2 March and 2 April by sending the documents to lachmat@rtu.lv.
Approved participants will also be required to submit their basic education certificate and academic transcript, as well as a certificate from their educational institution confirming their enrolment and participation in the project.
The competition for bachelor’s students is open until 1 June. Students will receive a monthly scholarship of EUR 1000 for the development of their final thesis. The scholarship may be awarded for three months.
To apply, students must submit an application form, CV, motivation letter, and confirmation of participation in the project by sending the documents to lachmat@rtu.lv.
Inspiration Topics
Secondary school pupils, vocational education students, and bachelor’s students may define their own research topics or choose from the inspiration topics proposed by researchers:
- How can sensors be used to assess road quality?
- How does data usage help roads last longer?
- Environmentally friendly asphalt binder instead of petroleum bitumen.
- Sustainable solutions for developing new road surface materials.
- Reuse of old asphalt in new road surfaces.
- How can 3D printing with clay become an environmentally friendly construction solution?
- Use of low-CO₂ materials in 3D printing.
- Concrete spraying technologies.
- Use of fibre-reinforced concrete in bridge repairs.
- What are the application possibilities of ultra-high-performance fibre-reinforced concrete (UHPC)?
32 Future Professionals to Be Involved
The competition is organised within the Swiss–Latvian Cooperation Programme “Applied Research” project LACHMAT. In close cooperation with the Swiss Federal Laboratories for Materials Science and Technology (Empa), RTU researchers are developing, improving, and bringing advanced road pavement and construction materials and technologies closer to the market. More information is available.
One of the project’s goals is to increase interest in STEAM subjects among pupils, especially girls. Therefore, alongside students, doctoral candidates, and postdoctoral researchers, school pupils are also involved in the development and research of these new materials.
In total, 16 secondary school pupils and vocational education students will gain early research experience in advanced materials within the project. It is also planned to involve 16 bachelor’s level students.
The scholarship competition will be announced regularly until 2029.
The “Applied Research” programme is part of Switzerland’s contribution to EU Member States, aimed at promoting scientific excellence, innovation, and economic development. A total of EUR 12.3 million is available for the development of science and research in Latvia under this programme.
