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What is the base pay earned by W3 professors in Germany?

Base pay for W3 professors varies greatly from state to state in Germany. Most states do not specify additional levels within the pay categories. However, the German federal state, Bavaria, Hesse and Saxony do reward professional experience with regular raises after five or seven years.

What is the base pay earned by junior (assistant/associated) professors (W1)?

Base pay for junior professors varies from state to state and is based on the salary group W1. Hesse abolished the junior professorship in 2016 and introduced the qualification professorship, which is also remunerated in accordance with W1.

In most states, base pay remains unchanged for the duration of the junior professorship. Only Saxony applies a second pay level following a successful interim evaluation.

Junior professors are required to pay income tax on their salary. Social insurance contributions must only be paid if junior professors acquire health and long-term care insurance through the public (as opposed to private) health insurance system.

What is the W salary scale?

The W salary scale regulates the salaries earned by civil servant (tenured) professors in Germany and was introduced in 2002 as the successor to the C salary scale. A professor鈥檚 salary consists of three elements:

• base pay,
• family allowance and
• additional performance bonuses.

There are three levels of pay: W1 applies to junior professors while W2 and W3 is for all other professors with civil servant status.

Junior professors (W1) earn a gross salary (depending on their state of employment) of between 4,600 euros and 5,500 euros per month (current as of February 2023). W2 and W3 professors make between 5,900 euros and 8,000 euros per month.

Freely negotiated performance bonuses can significantly increase gross salaries, though only very few German states have experience-based pay levels. Professors at universities of applied sciences are comparatively rarely granted W3 pay status.

Base pay received by professors, assuming they have received a university appointment, is determined by the state or, at a federal institution, by the federal government. Base pay is independent of age. But in Bavaria, Hesse, Saxony and at the federal level, salary level increases can be reached after five or seven years of experience, similar to raises available to research assistants.

Professor salaries can be boosted with additional performance bonuses. They are agreed during job appointment and retention negotiations between the university and the professor (see below). By law, however, junior professors only rarely receive such bonuses, though these regulations have been diluted in some states (see below).聽

Professors who are married or live in a registered partnership also receive a family allowance in addition to their gross salary. Professors with children receive an additional supplement for each child.

The job description will state whether the position is a junior professorship or a W2 or W3 professorship. In the vast majority of cases, professors at universities of applied sciences are granted W2 status, with W3 salaries a rare exception. At universities, however, there are almost twice as many W3 professors as W2 professors. Particularly those holding prominent professorships or who have a strong reputation will be paid at the W3 level.

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How much do professors earn at universities of applied sciences?

Like their counterparts at universities, professors at universities of applied sciences (called HAWs or FHs in Germany) may also be remunerated according to salary groups W2 and W3. However, W3 positions at universities of applied science are rare. Additional performance bonuses are also possible, but the scope for negotiation is much narrower than at a university.

What counts as an additional performance bonus?

The Federal Civil Service Remuneration Act (Bundesbesoldungsgesetz) distinguishes between:

• appointment and retention benefits;
• special performance bonuses (e.g., for special services in research and teaching);
• administrative supplements; and
• research and teaching supplements.
  
  

Appointment and retention benefits may be granted if a university has a particular interest in attracting or retaining a professor. They can come in the form of a one-off lump payment or as a monthly extra. They are agreed during appointment or retention negotiations and are freely negotiable.

Performance bonuses are also part of appointment and retention negotiations. These are granted for special services generally performed over an extended period of time 鈥� such as extensive grant acquisitions, publications in professional journals or an above-average commitment to teaching. The maximum level of these additional benefits is mandated by The Federal Civil Service Remuneration Act, state law and the respective university guidelines.

Administrative supplements are paid to those who take on extra tasks as part of academic self-government, such as rectors, presidents and deans. Some universities specify fixed rates, while in others, they are negotiated.

Research and teaching supplements are available to professors who secure grants from third parties and carry out the relevant research or teaching projects themselves 鈥� or in cases where the grant provider explicitly earmarks money for such a supplement. They can be paid out monthly or as a one-time bonus, but they may not exceed the professor鈥檚 annual salary and may only be received for the duration of the research or teaching project.

Some states provide additional pay to remain competitive in the academic system. Such payments are specified in the state's salary laws. No additional services are associated with these supplementary payments.

Are civil servant professors in Germany required to make social security contributions?

As a rule, professors switch to the private health insurance system once they become civil servants, because their employer (state or federal) is required to pay a contribution for their doctor visits, medications or hospital stays. In such cases, professors must pay income tax, but they do not have to pay social insurance withholdings, such as retirement insurance and health insurance, into the public health insurance system. Some German states, however, have begun paying contributions also for those professors who remain in the public health insurance system. Those who remain in the public health insurance system must pay withholdings just as non-civil servants do.

Those who only become civil servants temporarily, such as junior professors, should ensure that they are well informed before arranging private health insurance, as it is not always possible to return to statutory insurance.

Which components of the W salary are pensionable?

The pension or retirement pay received later in life is calculated on the basis of the last monthly salary received by a civil servant before retiring. Not all components of a professor's salary are taken into account in the calculation of their future pension.

The base salary and family allowance are factored into the calculation, but additional performance bonuses may not be. Such bonuses must first be declared as pensionable and can usually only factor into the pension up to a maximum of 40 percent. The percentage and the pensionability in general of such payments are determined during negotiations over such benefits 鈥� during appointment and retention negotiations, for example.