Cultural Fundraising

Basics – Strategy – Practice
CITY | BUILDING | CULTURE Department
Sonne scheint auf Tisch mit Laptop und Arbeitsmaterialien
© Adobe Stock

Apply for funding, but to whom? Or would a fundraising campaign be better? Then maybe crowdfunding? If you want to understand better how cultural funding works, our training programme is the perfect course for you. We provide you with in-depth knowledge of funding programmes, strategic acquisition and innovative financing methods such as crowdfunding. Our practice-oriented training gives you the opportunity to deepen your expertise and successfully finance your projects.

Period:

In planning for 2027

Status:
In preparation
Format:
Certificate Course
Degree:
University certificate
Credits:

4 ECTS credit points

Requirements:

Basic knowledge of practical cultural work

Educational leave:

Recognised in Brandenburg and Berlin

  • Prof. Dr. Julia Glesner

    In this training programme, you will acquire basic knowledge of cultural funding, funding law and the theory of fundraising. On this basis, we develop the skills to successfully meet the demands of professional fundraising practice on a professional basis.

    Prof. Dr. Julia Glesner
    Scientific management
  • Portraitfoto der Dozentin
    © Sophie Gnest

    For me, crowdfunding is a brilliant opportunity for growth for your project and for yourself. As a project consultant, I will support you in making your campaign a complete success!

    Sophie Gnest
    Lecturer, startnext

At a glance

In the cultural sector, many people - especially freelancers - are faced with the key question of how they can access financial resources for their projects. In this further education course, we work together to develop the basics of cultural funding and funding law, familiarise ourselves with various funding methods in non-profit management and develop strategies for successful acquisition. The modules offer a structured overview of public cultural funding, fundraising basics as well as professional acquisition techniques and innovative financing methods such as crowdfunding.

Presentation and feedback: At the end of the course, you will have developed your own financing concept for your cultural project, which you will present to the group of participants in the last module.

Target group

  • professionals from the arts and culture and related fields
  • freelancers who are new to fundraising or would like to deepen their knowledge of fundraising

Methods

  • Theoretical and practice-orientated inputs
  • Work on case studies and participants' topics
  • Plenary discussions
  • small group or single work, exercises, presentations

Lecturers

Modules & Contents

  • Cultural sector: introduction to the structure and special features of the cultural sector

  • Basic terms: clarification and definition of basic terms in the context of cultural financing

  • Financing in non-profit management: discussion of financing mechanisms and strategies in non-profit management

  • Strategic acquisition: in-depth study of the strategic approach to acquiring resources

After reflecting on the structural characteristics of the cultural sector, you will develop the basic concepts of cultural financing. Building on this, the most important mechanisms and financing strategies in non-profit management will be discussed on the basis of case studies – ideally from your professional practice. On this basis, you will define the requirements for strategic acquisition in the cultural sector.

  • Public funding bodies: analysis of the various public funding bodies in the cultural sector
  • Funding programmes: examination of common funding programmes and their criteria
  • Funding law: understanding and applying the legal aspects associated with grants

The awarding of grants by public funding bodies follows its own logic, which you will analyse using practical examples. You will examine current funding programmes from various funding bodies and reflect on the criteria used to award grants. This analysis is deepened by an understanding of the legal aspects, in particular the law on grants.

  • Basic concepts of fundraising
  • Presentation of different methods and fundraising instruments
  • In-depth consideration of donation and sponsorship opportunities
  • Application of fundraising strategies based on specific practical examples

Here you will gain a differentiated understanding of the basic concepts and assumptions in the context of fundraising. The focus is on acquiring donations and sponsorship. Based on (own) practical examples, concrete strategies of cultural organisations and projects in fundraising are analysed and evaluated.  

Funding research: Explanation of effective methods for identifying potential funders

  • Application: step-by-step guide to successfully submitting an application
  • Job profiles: insight into various job profiles in the field of acquisition
  • Work on your own project: practical implementation of the acquired knowledge based on your own projects

In this module, you will learn about and apply effective methods for identifying potential sponsors. Based on this, you will go through a concrete application step by step – using your own examples if you wish.

  • Crowdfunding: analysing crowdfunding methods and their application in the cultural sector
  • Personalised advice and support for your projects

The module focuses on how crowdfunding works and how it can be used profitably in the cultural sector. We cooperate with the crowdfunding agency startnext – one of the market leaders in the sector. You will have the opportunity to work on your crowdfunding concept and receive direct feedback from a startnext expert.

 

Portraitfoto der Dozentin
© Sophie Gnest

Crowdfunding requires courage – and a compelling narrative

What does it take for a crowdfunding campaign in the cultural sector to succeed? Why is it worthwhile to rely on your own community, even when resources are scarce? Sophie Gnest is a crowdfunding consultant at Startnext. In this interview, she talks about personal lessons learned, common stumbling blocks – and why crowdfunding is much more than just a pot of money.

Interview with Sophie Gnest

Registration & Information

ZEW – Centre for Further Education

weiterbildung@fh-potsdam.de
House 4
Room 1.10

Julia Sammler

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