Research Institutions : Germany

Research in Germany is conducted by the universities, by public and private non-university and non-industry institutes, and by industry itself.Research by university teachers has a long tradition in Germany. “The unity of research and teaching” has been a pillar of German academic life since Wilhelm von Humboldt reformed the Prussian universities in the early 19th century. The universities are the bedrock of German research. They are the only institutions whose research embraces all scientific disciplines. Most basic research is done there, and they produce successive generations of scientists and thus ensure continuity.

Non-university research is primarily an extension of the work done at the universities. For instance, major research projects, especially in the natural sciences, can only be managed by big teams using expensive technology and with heavy financial backing. Such large-scale research is best done in the government-funded centers for physics, new sources of energy (e.g. nuclear fusion), aerospace, medicine, molecular biology, and environmental and polar research.

A total of approximately 475,000 people in the Federal Republic of Germany have jobs connected with science and research. About 48 percent of them are scientists and engineers; the remainder are about half technical staff and half other personnel. In 1996, gross domestic expenditure for research and development totaled DM 80 billion (2.25 percent of the gross domestic product). The biggest contribution came from industry (a good DM 48 billion); the Federal Government furnished about DM 1 7 billion, just under DM 2 billion of which were expended for research abroad, and the states DM15 billion. This put Germany in fourth place among the major industrial states in expenditure for research and development, behind Japan (2.84 percent of GDP in 1994), the United States (2.55 percent) and France (2.34 percent of GDP in 1995).