Monitoring Research Careers in Germany – Allowing for informed decision-making and transparent career paths

In December 2023, the Council of the European Union recommended, inter alia, that member states monitor “relevant aspects of research careers in the Union” to “support better understanding of challenges and opportunities by researchers, and promote the attractiveness of Union research performing organisations for the best talents” (p. 51). In the following, the article offers two examples showing that monitoring research careers systematically over time and based on sound statistical methods yields valuable insights for stakeholders of German academia. In particular, as outlined below, these insights contribute to answering questions such as “how does the relevance of the different career paths in German academia develop?” and “which effects does the recent implementation of tenure-track positions have on researchers’ job market in Germany?”The German higher education system offers several career paths to a permanent professorship position as an established researcher (R3) after receiving a doctorate. Traditional career paths include a habilitation process (“second book”, the highest academic qualification in Germany), a junior or temporary professorship, or a research group leadership. In addition, tenure-track professorships were established as a new career path in Germany a few years ago: In 2016, a joint initiative of the Federal Ministry of Education and Research and the federal states (“Länder”) launched the Joint Federal Government-Länder Funding Programme for Junior Academics. As a result of this Tenure-Track Programme, 971 newly created tenure-track professorship positions have been filled at 75 universities.

© VDI/VDE-IT

A recent evaluation of the Tenure-Track Programme highlights its achievements: 

  • Strengthen equal career opportunities of men and women in academia: about half of the professors in the Tenure-Track Programme are female
  • Support predictable and transparent career prospects: tenure-track professors are appointed during an earlier career phase (average age: 35.9 years) 
  • Personnel structure changes: tenure–track professorships have been established at German universities beyond the programme. Furthermore, German universities have begun to develop tenure-track career paths to a permanent position besides professorships, e.g. to permanent positions as Lecturer 

VDI/VDE-IT: Administering and monitoring the development of research careers 

Throughout the establishment phase and the first eight years of the Tenure-Track Programme, VDI/VDE Innovation + Technik GmbH (VDI/VDE-IT) as the funding agency has supported the Federal Ministry of Education and Research in administration and monitoring of the programme. By collecting statistical data on the funded universities and professorships, and the processes of appointment and evaluation of tenure-track professorships, VDI/VDE-IT informed the monitoring reports carried out by the Joint Science Conference (Gemeinsame Wissenschaftskonferenz, monitoring report 2023 (German only)).

Apart from monitoring tenure-track positions, the German government also monitors the relevance of different career tracks in German academia systematically in periodic reports, such as the National Report on Junior Scholars (Bundesbericht Wissenschaftlicher Nachwuchs). This report is prepared by an independent scientific consortium – since 2017 under the direction of the Institute for Innovation and Technology (iit) in the VDI/VDE-IT. It aims to compile and analyse current findings and data concerning young academics in Germany, making this information accessible for research purposes. By providing a solid foundation of empirical knowledge, the report supports the federal and state governments, scientific institutions, and funding organisations in strategic decision-making. Additionally, it acts as a valuable point of reference for young academics themselves. An English summary of the key results of the 2021 report is available at buwin.de (https://buwin.de/dateien/2021/buwin-2021-keyresults.pdf). The next report will appear in January 2025.

These examples show that monitoring career tracks in academia using established research methods is valuable to a broad variety of stakeholders in academia, as it enables an informed decision-making on reforms. VDI/VDE-IT supports the government in implementing these reforms.