Publications

Most German states have recently reduced the duration of university preparatory schooling from 13 to 12 years without changing the graduation requirements. We use nationwide data on high school graduates and the different timing of reform introduction in the federal states to identify the effects on postsecondary education decisions and to evaluate potential effect mechanisms. The results show that university enrollment of female students decreased in the first year after graduation in all analyzed states, whereas participation in voluntary service or staying abroad increased. Furthermore, students from non-academic families are more affected than students from an academic family background

Teachers with an immigration background are still underrepresented in Germany. Whether this is only due to a lower academic rate among immigrants or to a lower selection of lecture-related courses of study and possible increased study breaks is to be examined in the article using data from the National Educational Panel (NEPS). The results of group comparisons as well as a regression analysis suggest that lecture students with a history of immigration are generally more inclined to dismissal and feel less well integrated into their studies; However, a differentiated view of the origin groups shows considerable differences

We identify factors influencing young scientists’ plans for research stays abroad by embedding theories of social inequality, educational decision making, and migration into a life course framework. We test the developed model of international academic mobility by calculating a structural equation model using data from an online survey of scientists employed at German universities below the rank of full professor. We find that earlier international mobility mobilises scientists to plan a research stay abroad. This turns out to be a potential channel of social inequality reproduction, as individuals from a high social origin in particular spend time abroad in their early life course.