International Centre for STEM Education (ICSE)

What International Centre for STEM Education (ICSE) does

International Centre for STEM Education (ICSE) is an internationally connected research centre located at the University of Education in Freiburg, Germany, founded in 2018 as a cooperative institution of Pädagogische Hochschule Freiburg. The organization exists to improve STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) education across Europe through practice-related research and its transfer into practice. It operates as a portfolio of EU-funded projects, networks, and convening events rather than a single commercial product; core initiatives include the ICSE Science Factory (an Open Schooling project spanning Germany, Portugal, Croatia, Cyprus, and Turkey under Horizon Europe), the ICSE Academy consortium of approximately 100 partners across 13 European countries, NBS4school (Nature Based Solutions for Schools), teach4Life, the 1h4teachers online workshop series, and the biennial Educating the Educators international conference. Supporting assets include classroom, teacher professional development, and higher education resource libraries, plus networks such as GEMnet (female empowerment in STEM) and EOSNet (Open Schooling).

Name

International Centre for STEM Education (ICSE)

Legal name

International Centre for STEM Education (ICSE)

Website

https://icse.eu

Company type

Private

Founded year

2018

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

ICSE is a research centre at the University of Education Freiburg that improves STEM education across Europe via EU-funded projects, professional development workshops, and cross-border convening events for teachers, schools, and policymakers.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

STEM Education Research and Professional Development Services

NAICS

Educational Support Services (611710), Educational Support Services (61171)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro industry

PRIMARYEDAHAFAM

Teacher Professional Development & In-Service Training Institutes

Education/Higher Education (Colleges & Universities)/Teacher Training Colleges (Education Schools)

SECONDARYEDAFAIAA

MOOC & Open Course Platforms

Education/Education Technology (EdTech) & Digital Learning/Education Marketplaces & Course Platforms (MOOCs, Cohort-Based, Creator Platforms)

SECONDARYEDAGAJAB

Open Courseware & Course Modules (OCW)

Education/Educational Publishing & Learning Content/Open Educational Resources (OER) & Open Textbooks

Keywords

• STEM education research
• Teacher professional development
• Open schooling initiatives
• Educational consortium networks
• STEM curriculum design

Headquarters

HQ city

Freiburg im Breisgau

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. EU Research Project Funding: ICSE operates primarily through EU-funded research projects including Horizon Europe, Erasmus+, and other European funding programmes. These projects support the organization's activities in teacher professional development, Open Schooling initiatives, and STEM education research across Europe.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

ICSE is a publicly funded research centre that improves STEM education across Europe by conducting practice-related research and transferring it into classroom practice. It delivers this mission through EU-funded projects (e.g., ICSE Science Factory, ICSE Teacher Academy, NBS4school, teach4Life), the 1h4teachers online workshop series, the biennial Educating the Educators international conference, and downloadable STEM teaching materials for schools, teacher trainers, and higher-education institutions.

Product overview

ICSE (International Centre for STEM Education) is an internationally connected research centre located at the University of Education in Freiburg, Germany. The organization operates as a portfolio of interconnected projects, conferences, and educational resources rather than a single software product. Key offerings include the ICSE Science Factory (Open Schooling initiative), ICSE Teacher Academy (professional development), 1h4teachers workshop series, and the biennial Educating the Educators conference. Supporting resources include classroom materials, teacher professional development materials, and higher education materials. The organization also runs networks like GEMnet (female empowerment in STEM) and EOSNet (Open Schooling). Most activities are free, online professional development events focused on improving STEM education across Europe.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• ICSE Science Factory: Open Schooling project focused on building partnerships between schools, researchers, businesses, and community organisations across Europe.
• ICSE Teacher Academy
• 1h4teachers
• GEMnet
• EOSNet
• NBS4school

Products and services

• ICSE Science Factory Open Schooling project that strengthens partnerships between schools, researchers, businesses, and community organisations across five European countries to promote scientific literacy and STEM careers through local conventions, public science fairs, and real-life problem-solving activities. Audience: schools, researchers, businesses, and community organisations in Germany, Portugal, Croatia, Cyprus, and Turkey.
• ICSE Teacher Academy Professional development programme for school teachers focused on bringing participants up to date in research and teaching practices in STEM subjects, with emphasis on interdisciplinarity, collaboration, mobility, and European dimension. Audience: school teachers, STEM initial teacher education staff, and CPD providers across 13 European countries.
• NBS4SCHOOL

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability6 records

Partnerships

Seven partnerships are on record, tiered minor, core and major.

• Cyprus Mathematical SocietyminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 29 November 2024Co-organizer of Cyprus STEAME Festival where ICSE Factory team offered workshops on Open Schooling.
• University of Education FreiburgcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerICSE is a cooperative institution of the University of Education Freiburg. The university provides institutional support, facilities, and legal representation for ICSE.
• ICSE Academy Consortium PartnerscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerApproximately 100 partners from 13 European countries including higher education researchers, STEM initial teacher education staff, CPD providers, educational policy makers, schools, and teachers joined forces through the ICSE Academy project.
• ICSE Science Factory Partners (Germany, Portugal, Croatia, Cyprus, Turkey)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerICSE Science Factory project builds cross-sector partnerships between schools, researchers, businesses, and community organisations in Germany, Portugal, Croatia, Cyprus, and Turkey.
• Hacettepe UniversitymajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCo-organizer of the European ICSE Science Factory Conference as part of the 6th International STEM Education Conference in Istanbul.
• InSSTER Center at University of NicosiamajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCo-host of ETE 2025 (Educating the Educators V) conference in collaboration with the International Centre for STEM Education (ICSE).
• Croatian Mathematical SocietyminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner for the Evening of Mathematics project, an initiative encouraging positive attitudes towards mathematics in students.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Regional players

• Haus der Kleinen Forscher: German foundation supporting STEM early-childhood and primary education through professional development for educators. Comparable to ICSE's teacher training focus but oriented to German early-childhood institutions rather than pan-European secondary STEM.
• STEM Learning UK: UK national STEM education charity providing teacher CPD, resources, and STEM ambassador programmes. Covers similar teacher professional development and curriculum activity as ICSE, but UK-focused.

Emerging players

• PhET Interactive Simulations (University of Colorado Boulder): PhET produces free, research-based STEM simulations used by teachers worldwide. Comparable to ICSE's classroom materials and digital resources, though PhET is simulation-centric while ICSE is broader teacher development.
• Ecsite (European Collaborative for Science, Industry and Technology Exhibitions): Ecsite is the European network of science centres and museums running public engagement activities. It overlaps with ICSE's Science Factory conventions and Open Schooling events that engage schools and the public in science.
• Wyss Academy for Education: European academy focused on teacher education and social innovation in education systems. Comparable to ICSE's university-anchored teacher professional development work, though with a broader educational mandate.

Direct peers

• European Schoolnet: European Schoolnet is a network of 34 European education ministries coordinating digital and STEM education initiatives, including the Scientix community. It directly competes with ICSE for EU funding, teacher education programmes, and cross-country STEM project mandates.
• Scientix (European Schoolnet): Scientix is the European community for STEM education promoting inquiry-based and open schooling approaches. Like ICSE it operates pan-European teacher professional development and Open Schooling projects, often co-funded by the same EU programmes.
• STEM Alliance (European Schoolnet): STEM Alliance connects schools, teachers, and industry partners to advance STEM education across Europe. It mirrors ICSE's mission of pairing schools with external partners and runs overlapping teacher CPD activities.

Broad incumbents

• Teach For All: Global network supporting teacher leadership and education equity across 60+ countries. While broader than STEM, it shares ICSE's emphasis on teacher development and cross-country practitioner communities.

Others

• European Commission's DG Education, Youth, Sport and Culture (EAC): EU policy directorate that funds ICSE's projects. Relevant as it shapes funding priorities and policy mandates that determine ICSE's project pipeline and competitive set.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/ICSE_freiburg
• Facebookfacebook.com/InternationalCentreforSTEMEducation
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/international-centre-for-stem-education
• Instagraminstagram.com/icse_freiburg

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about International Centre for STEM Education (ICSE)