This website is using cookies to ensure you get the best experience possible on our website.
More info: Privacy & Cookies, Imprint
The number of doctoral students at German universities reached a new high in 2022 with a total of 205,300 people. This means an increase of 2% compared to the previous year, as the Federal Statistical Office (Destatis) announced today. The data also show a notable gender distribution as well as interesting trends across disciplines.
The doctoral landscape in Germany reflects a balanced gender distribution. The proportion of women among doctoral students remained stable at 48% (98,400 people), while the proportion of men was 52% (106,900 people). The age structure of the doctoral students also showed differences: the average age was 30.3 years, with male doctoral students at 30.7 years being almost a year older than their female colleagues at 29.9 years. The proportion of foreign doctoral candidates is also impressive, at 23% (48,100 people).
Within the departments, the subject group human medicine/health sciences is the largest group with a share of 26% (54,000 people). This is followed by mathematics and natural sciences with 23% (47,200 people), engineering with 18% (37,600 people) and law, economics and social sciences with 16% (33,600 people).
The gender-specific distribution varied significantly depending on the department. In engineering, for example, around 78% of doctoral students were men, while in the subject group art, art science 66% were women. In terms of absolute numbers, men dominated engineering with 29,200 doctoral students, while women dominated with 33,300 doctoral students in the human medicine/health sciences subject group.
A look at the number of beginners shows that 16% (33,100 people) of doctoral students in 2022 were enrolled at a German university for the first time. This represents a decrease of 9% compared to 2021. The average age of the first doctoral students was 26.9 years, with male beginners at 27.2 years being slightly older than females at 26.6 years. Around 27% (8,800 people) of first-time doctoral students were foreign nationals.
Interestingly, PhD activity was concentrated in just four universities, which together hosted 16% of PhD students. At the top of this list were the Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich and the Ruprecht Karl University of Heidelberg, each with 8,900 doctoral students, followed by the Technical University of Munich (8,500) and the Technical University of Aachen (7,300). The Rheinische Friedrich-Wilhelms University of Bonn (6,500) and the Technical University of Dresden (6,400) also recorded significant doctoral activity.
This data comes from the doctoral statistics, which has been in operation since 2017 and records all ongoing doctoral projects at German universities. Since the statistics were still under construction before 2020, no comparable data is available for previous years.
The Hamburg economy is experiencing a veritable start-up boom, according to a recent press release from the Statistical Office North. In the first half of 2023, 2,847 new businesses were founded in the Hanseatic city - an increase of a remarkable 18 percent compared to the same period last year. This not only represents a remarkable increase, but also marks a historic high since records began in 2008.
The dynamic development on the start-up market is not only reflected in the high start-up figures, but also in a positive balance of business start-ups and closures. A total of 1,568 more businesses were founded than discontinued. This positive difference underscores the strength and attractiveness of Hamburg as a business location.
Although the reasons for the increase may be manifold, it is striking that the propensity to start a business varies across Hamburg's districts. Business startup rates range from 0.6 in the Bergedorf district to a remarkable 4.2 in Hamburg-Mitte. The situation is particularly remarkable in the district of Hamburg-Mitte, where the number of business start-ups increased by more than 60 percent within one year. This could indicate a special dynamic in this district, which is characterized by entrepreneurial innovation and economic growth.
In order for a business start-up to be recorded in the statistics, certain criteria must be met. These include, for example, the legal form of the business or the number of employees. Businesses founded by natural persons can also be included in the statistics, provided they are entered in the commercial register, employ staff or have a craftsman's card at the time of foundation. The statistics thus provide an insight into those start-ups that are particularly relevant due to their economic significance.
A look at the number of start-ups per 1,000 inhabitants shows that 1.5 businesses were founded per 1,000 people in Hamburg. This figure illustrates the breadth of start-up activity within the city.
The development of business start-ups in Hamburg in the first half of 2023 not only shows a pleasing increase, but also points to the city's vibrant and diverse business landscape. The positive development of the start-up market could lead to a further strengthening of Hamburg's economy in the coming months and years and create new opportunities for entrepreneurs.
The German parcel market has seen a decline in deliveries for the first time since 2013. According to research by Pitney Bowes, an international postal services provider, parcel shipments in this country fell nearly 7 percent year-on-year to 4.2 billion. This is partly due to normalization after the surge during the corona pandemic.
Industry leader DHL, a subsidiary of Deutsche Post, lost nearly 9 percent of its market share. Other companies such as Hermes, GLS, UPS and DPD also saw slight declines. In U.S. dollar terms, the overall German parcel market shrank 12.9 percent to $25 billion.
This development is attributed to weak consumer sentiment in Germany and a decline in online sales. Year-on-year, online sales fell 12.2 percent to 19.17 billion euros in Q2 2023.
In contrast, the global parcel market nevertheless saw growth of 1 percent to 161 billion shipments, with India standing out with an 18 percent increase. DHL has benefited from this boom in India after it acquired Blue Dart, an Indian delivery company, in 2006.
Employment in Germany continues its positive trend, as announced by the Federal Statistical Office (Destatis) in its current press release No. 326. In Q2 2023, around 45.9 million people were employed in Germany. Compared to the previous quarter, the seasonally adjusted number of employed persons recorded an increase of 67,000 persons (+0.1%). Compared with the same quarter of the previous year, growth of 0.7% was observed. This development reflects an overall positive economic momentum, although the pace of growth is slowing compared to the previous quarter.
The increase in employment is also reflected in the non-seasonally adjusted view. Compared to the previous quarter, the number of employed persons increased by 240,000 persons or 0.5%. This increase is common in the spring, due to the revival of outside occupations. However, this year's spring revival was much more subdued, with a 0.5% increase, than last year's 0.7% growth.
Positive development in service sector
The service sector made a significant contribution to the increase in the number of people in employment. In particular, public service providers, education, health (+0.9%), trade, transport and hospitality (+0.7%) and business service providers (+0.9%) recorded significant increases. Employment in information and communication also grew dynamically by 2.9%. The financial and insurance services sector, on the other hand, recorded a slight increase of 0.1% after years of downward trend.
Labor volume and employment types
The average hours worked per employed person increased slightly by 0.1 hours to 319.1 hours. The total economic volume of work, which takes into account the increased number of employed persons and hours worked per employed person, increased by 0.8% to 14.6 billion hours. The average number of hours worked per employed person increased by 0.1% to 319.1 hours.
The positive 0.7% year-on-year growth in employment was largely driven by employment subject to social security contributions and employees in marginal jobs. The number of employees rose by 0.8% to 42 million persons, while the number of self-employed persons, including family workers, declined by 0.3% to 3.9 million persons.
European comparison
In a European context, employment increased by an average of 1.3% in the 27 European Union (EU) countries and by 1.5% in the euro area compared with the same quarter last year, which is stronger than the increase in Germany.
Conclusion and outlook
The development of employment in Q2 2023 shows continued positive momentum in the German labor market. Despite somewhat slower growth compared with the previous quarter, the upward trend remains year-on-year. The service sector in particular is contributing to the increase in employment, while the manufacturing sector also posted slight gains. The revival of the labor market is also apparent in the European context. However, possible effects of international events, such as the war in Ukraine, should be kept in mind as they could impact future developments. The strength of employment thus remains an important indicator of Germany's overall economic health.
Note: The results presented here are based on preliminary calculations by the Federal Statistical Office (Destatis) and could be revised by further data updates.
The latest ifo Business Survey, published on August 16, 2023, shows an increase in the shortage of skilled workers in German companies. The survey was conducted among approximately 9,000 companies from various industries throughout Germany. The results make it clear that more and more companies are having difficulty finding qualified workers. This trend is considered a cause for concern by experts, as it continues despite the current economic challenges.
Increasing shortage of skilled workers despite economic uncertainty
According to the results of the survey, a total of 43.1% of companies surveyed in July 2023 reported suffering from shortages of qualified workers. This represents a slight increase compared to the 42.2% in April 2023. One interesting aspect is that this increase was recorded despite a weakening economy. This trend illustrates that finding suitable employees remains a high priority for many companies.
Sector-specific challenges
The service sector is particularly affected by this shortage of skilled workers. In areas such as legal and tax consulting as well as auditing, 75.3% of the companies surveyed stated that they could not find enough applicants* with the required qualifications. Also the traffic range as well as architecture and engineer's offices are strongly concerned, whereby here even a new high level for these industries was reached.
In the area of IT equipment manufacturers, 43.1% of the companies surveyed are affected by a shortage of skilled workers, while in mechanical engineering the figure is 40.9%. In the manufacturing sector as a whole, the proportion has decreased slightly to 34.6%. In trade and construction, slightly less than one-third of companies complain about a shortage of qualified workers.
Outlook and conclusions
The continuing difficulty in finding qualified workers, despite economic uncertainty, raises questions about the future of the German economy. Experts stress that this shortage of skilled workers could hamper growth and innovation in the long term. Companies are increasingly being called upon to find creative solutions to meet their need for qualified employees. This could include investing in targeted education and training programs, promoting career paths in affected industries, and using technology to optimize work processes.
Overall, the Ifo Business Survey shows that the shortage of skilled workers in Germany continues to be a serious concern for companies in various industries. This requires a coordinated effort by business, educational institutions and government to address this challenge and ensure the competitiveness of the German economy in the long term.