A university president, a judge on the Federal Court of Justice, the head of a major corporation: It is relatively rare to find someone who grew up in eastern Germany in top positions in Germany. Researchers from Saxony and Thuringia are investigating the extent of this gap and why it is closing only slowly as part of the nationwide “Elitenmonitor” project. Participants include the University of Leipzig, Zittau/Görlitz University of Applied Sciences, and the University of Jena.
The researchers are examining who rises to top positions in Germany. Their database includes more than 3,000 such positions, ranging from politics and business to the judiciary, media, and academia. East Germans make up about 19 percent of the population. However, they are significantly underrepresented in top positions. Between 2018 and 2024, their share rose only slightly, from 10.9 to 12.1 percent.
More diversity at the top
The researchers are also discussing how to change the situation with people who have themselves reached top positions. One of them is Dresden native and art historian Isabel Wünsche. “First and foremost, we need to bring a broader and more diverse mix of people into leadership positions,” she says. The professor therefore considers focusing solely on East German origin to be too narrow a perspective. She also points to women, people with a migration background, different generations, and people from families with limited educational opportunities.
The anthology *The Underrepresentation of East Germans in Top Positions in Germany* also outlines specific ways to improve career advancement opportunities. For the academic sector, the authors propose, among other things, more flexible career paths and a more targeted search for talent for scholarships.
The Elitenmonitor is funded by the German federal government. Participants in the research project include Prof. Astrid Lorenz and Dr. Lars Vogel from the University of Leipzig, Prof. Raj Kollmorgen from the Zittau/Görlitz University of Applied Sciences, and Prof. Marion Reiser from the University of Jena.
Original publication:
Lorenz, Astrid/Vogel, Lars/Kollmorgen, Raj/Reiser, Marion (Eds., 2026). The Underrepresentation of East Germans in Top Positions in Germany. Dynamics, Causes, and Options for Action. Wiesbaden: Springer VS.
