My Personal Background
To the best of my knowledge, I was the first person in my family ever to see a university from the inside. But that is not all. Because I was not only the first one to obtain an Abitur (the German qualification required for university admission), I was also the first one to earn a Bachelor’s degree, a Master’s degree, and ultimately the first one to complete a PhD.
Both of my parents, on the other hand, only attended a Hauptschule, the lowest level of secondary education in Germany. After that, my father spent his entire working life with Deutsche Bahn, the German railway operator. My mother worked as a saleswoman in a small shop in my small hometown until her early retirement. They are both very nice people, but we live in very different worlds.
But I was not only the first person in my family to embark on an academic path, I also did so rather late. Since my first attempt at education had not been particularly successful, I started attending an evening school at the age of 24. Over the following three years, I earned my Abitur and then began studying at the age of 27.
But that is still not all. Because I graduated top of my class, I was fortunate enough to receive a scholarship from the Studienstiftung des deutschen Volkes (German Academic Scholarship Foundation), Germany’s most prestigious scholarship foundation (according to Wikipedia). This scholarship gave me the opportunity to focus entirely on my studies and enabled me not only to pursue a Master’s degree in the United Kingdom, but also to complete a PhD in just three years. As a result, I started studying at the age of 27, but completed my PhD at the age of 36—a rather normal age at which to earn a PhD in Germany.
Why do I put this information out there on the internet? Surely to brag, right? Maybe a bit, to be honest, but that is definitely not the most important reason. Mostly, I want to make this background information about myself available so that people can understand why I have a rather peculiar perspective on education.
I am a First-Generation Academic who, at the age of 16, failed ninth grade at a Realschule, the second level of the German secondary school system, which does not provide direct access to university. And at the age of 36, I completed a PhD on ancient oracles, financed by a very prestigious scholarship, with the highest possible distinction, summa cum laude. If you go through such extremes, you develop a rather unusual perspective on education. And these pages are, not least, meant to provide a space in which I can share this perspective.
The Situation in Germany
My personal background and my perspective become even more unusual when one takes a closer look at the situation in Germany:
- Out of 100 children from academic families, roughly 80 go on to higher education, 63 complete a Bachelor’s degree, 45 earn a Master’s degree, and 10 eventually obtain a PhD.
- Among 100 children from non-academic families, however, only about 25 enter higher education, 15 complete a Bachelor’s degree, 8 earn a Master’s degree, and only one eventually obtains a PhD.
Purely statistically speaking, I am that one person out of 100. And if one adds my late start, the distinctions and the rather peculiar field I chose to the equation, I suppose the numbers would become even more improbable.1
Nevertheless, Germany is nothing like the United States or other Anglophone countries. Whereas in those countries it is perfectly normal to talk about social background and the specific challenges that come with it, especially in the context of higher education, in Germany these issues are much less a matter of public discussion.
One possible reason for this is, of course, that in financial terms the German educational system is considerably more accessible. Moreover, over the last few decades Germany has developed a much stronger discomfort with anything that resembles an “elite culture”. Nowadays, almost everyone in this country seems to want to belong to—and therefore often presents themselves as belonging to—the “middle class”.
But, of course, social mobility is not purely a matter of finances. One does not have to study Bourdieu to understand that social mobility is also largely a matter of habitus, established networks, and gatekeeping. Or, to put it in simpler terms: hard work will only get you so far. You also need to know how to manoeuvre within certain social environments.
In this respect, Germany is no different from other countries. From my personal experience, I would even go so far as to say that it can be more difficult here because of the tendency to deny the importance of social background. And, to be frank, many of us First-Generation Academics simply do not know how to navigate these environments. But even if we eventually learn how to do so, many of us do not really want to. Because adapting to something that does not come naturally to you can be incredibly draining.
ArbeiterKind.de
The two points above explain why I have been volunteering for the non-profit organisation ArbeiterKind.de since 2018. ArbeiterKind.de is partially funded by the German Federal Ministry of Research, Technology and Space and, according to its statutes, “encourages and supports students from families without prior university experience to become First-generation academics”.
ArbeiterKind.de was originally founded in 2008 by the couple Katja Urbatsch and Wolf Dermann purely as a network for First-Generation Academics to connect and support each other. But it quickly developed into an organisation that now spans the whole of Germany and counts several thousand volunteers across about 80 local groups, which can be found at most German universities. In recognition of her work, Katja Urbatsch was awarded the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany (Bundesverdienstkreuz am Bande) in 2018.
During my own work for ArbeiterKind.de, I have helped students secure funding through scholarships, worked as a mentor, managed booths at exhibitions, and carried out a wide variety of other organisational tasks. And while doing so, I have also found friends for life. In short, my time with this organisation has been one of the most rewarding experiences of my life.
Jens Fischer 