On March 17, 2023, the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) published the key points of a draft bill to revise the Wissenschaftszeitvertragsgesetz (WissZeitVG) (Act on Fixed-Term Employment Contracts in Academia). As professors with a permanent position or tenure track, we oppose the planned amendment. We declare our solidarity with the academic staff affected by these plans, more than two-thirds of whom are employed in fixed-term positions. Their working conditions at German universities, which are already barely acceptable, are at risk of becoming even worse.

The key points presented in the BMBF-paper do not appear to be the legal basis for a draft amendment but rather a political reinterpretation of central concepts, and especially of academic “qualification.” Concerning issues that are particularly relevant for scholars employed on fixed-term contracts, the paper remains vague or contradictory. What is clear is that the proposal from the Federal Ministry of Education and Research headed by Minister Stark-Watzinger plans to exacerbate the current situation by further reducing the maximum eligible employment under fixed-term contracts for postdoctoral researchers. For doctoral candidates, it only suggests a non-binding rule prescribing a minimum term of employment of two three-year periods. The reference made to transferable periods from the predoc phase or due to parental/family leave is nothing new. These regulations already apply under the current law. Furthermore, the draft does not address the central reform that the German university system urgently needs in order to become competitive again: after a successful qualification period (which remains subject to definition), postdocs need a better prospect of permanent employment based on performance criteria (also subject to definition) below the level of full professorship. The USA, the Netherlands, France, Denmark, or the UK, among many others, have been able to achieve this for decades, so why should this be impossible in Germany – not least given that these countries and international comparisons serve as role models for the government when it comes to research standards?

There were big hopes attached to the pending revision, especially after the massive protests in 2021 against precarious and ever shorter fixed-term employment contracts (#IchbinHanna, #IchbinReyhan, etc.) and a series of reform proposals (e.g., Wissenschaftsrat 2014). Since the introduction of the WissZeitVG in 2007, there has been ample evidence regarding its negative effects on research and teaching. Apparently, this evidence was not sufficiently acknowledged when the new paper on key points was drafted, so we will present it here. Many of the signatories have pursued their academic careers within the constraints of the WissZeitVG and have still managed to become professors. However, this in no way confirms the meritocratic argument that “you can make it if you work hard enough.” Universities need clear and efficient frameworks and conditions to enable excellent individual and collective performance in research, but also to ensure that the core academic business – the education and training of students – can be carried out reliably. The WissZeitVG has so far failed in both respects. The constant recruitment and onboarding of new academic staff has demanded a disproportionate amount of resources from both administrators and professors. The law makes it extraordinarily difficult to hire excellent researchers, many of whom no longer apply for positions in Germany because they may only be employed for a few more months before reaching the maximum allowed time of fixed- term employment. Many go abroad, and the brain drain is immense. We have been experiencing the social effects in our work for years: Talented researchers without a safety net, such as first-generation academics without savings, are leaving academia in droves. Those pursuing their doctorates with scholarship funding are not even covered by the social insurance scheme.

One of the most controversial points so far is the counting of scholarship-funded doctoral periods, for example as part of a research training group, toward the maximum possible period of employment in academic positions (“Landesstellen”). This issue is not addressed in the BMBF-paper. Does this mean that Section 2 (3) of the WissZeitVG will not be revised?

Doctoral students and postdocs perform essential work in teaching and research. Many of them have only half-day or part-time positions and a comparably higher teaching load, in some cases up to 10 courses per year. The BMBF paper does not make any proposals for improvement (e.g. in terms of labor law) with regard to either of these points even though they represent the two greatest obstacles to “further qualification” (see above). The immense workload often does not leave much time for research. But non-permanent academics want and need to further qualify (doctorate, habilitation/second book or equivalent achievements). This should be uncontroversial because it is precisely this qualification goal that, according to the government, justifies the fixed-term contract in the first place. The special demands on postdocs and doctoral researchers call for a more dependable career path, fewer fixed-term contracts, and realistic job opportunities. A doctorate in Germany takes an average of 5.7 years (excluding medicine), and a habilitation is seldom completed in under 6 years. If you add the two together, “qualification” in the German system takes an average of 12 years. Having completed this “qualification,” you still do not automatically receive a professorship – you are only eligible for appointment.

We know full well that there are far fewer professorships than aspirants. It is therefore essential to create more permanent and attractive positions besides the professorship, including junior professorships. The system needs significantly more tenured positions on all levels, not just the approximately 15% tenured professorships at the top. We had expected the BMBF to propose the key points for designing and financing such a reform. After all, successful postdocs have to leave the universities after those 12 years at the latest if their positions are not made permanent – with permanent positions being the exception rather than the rule. The constant back-and-forth of shirking responsibility between the federal and state governments is detrimental to those affected and to academia as a whole. Making academic employment more attractive through permanent positions is the only way to address the current and increasing difficulties of filling job vacancies. This is particularly the case with jobs that reserve only a small amount of time for research. This harms the entire system and, in the long term, society.

Even under the current legal situation, the 12-year rule proves disastrous for everyone involved, from the professors to the students, who cannot plan reliably who will supervise their final theses. This is no way to ensure continuity in teaching or the interconnection between teaching and research with e.g. laboratory experiments, excursions, or fieldwork.

Many institutes at German universities do not have a single permanent position for academic mid-level staff. At the same time, these employees are responsible for the majority of teaching and are also constantly burdened with new tasks: digitization, research transfer, scientific outreach, etc. The assumption that precarious employment will lead to particularly successful innovation is a political fallacy and has long been empirically disproven. The fact that the universities were able to cope with the pandemic years so well was due above all to the great commitment, the didactic innovations, and the technical expertise of many doctoral and postdoc researchers.

Instead of extending the possible 12 years of fixed-term employment for regular academic positions, the BMBF-paper has reduced the span to 9 years. We are stunned by how detached from reality this proposal is. Particularly appalling is the idea to leave only 3 years for postdocs to complete their qualifications. This is tantamount to canceling the postdoc qualification altogether. In the case of the habilitation (which is still the norm in many subject areas), the examination procedure alone takes a year following submission of the thesis. It often takes even longer to get a manuscript through the peer-review procedure and accepted in a good journal or commissioned by a good publisher, not to mention the average duration of appointment procedures for professorships. Equally detached from reality is the stipulation that third-party-funded employment will only be allowed after exhausting the maximum eligible time of employment on state-funded fixed-term contracts – the BMBF-paper can be read this way in its deliberate vagueness. It is hard to imagine less flexibility: If appointments to positions are determined by rigid structures rather than quality, this certainly does not serve academic excellence. This also applies to the habilitation. Abolishing it has been an issue of debate for over 20 years now, but it has de facto been retained in many subjects and states for good reasons. Different cultures of academic disciplines must be respected and allowed to continue. We criticize the attempt to make the habilitation practically impossible in Germany through the backdoor of rules related to fixed-term contracts or by imposing laws based on practices from specific disciplines (usually natural sciences) upon all of academia.

Attractive job arrangements such as the prospect of tenure as mid-level faculty (senior lecturer/senior researcher) following evaluation after four years have already been created by some German universities. However, they will be undone by the reduction of the postdoc phase proposed in the BMBF paper. One possible solution would be to explicitly exclude tenure-track positions from the WissZeitVG.

The postdoc phase is often the life stage in which academics wish to start a family. Researchers are also mothers and fathers; they have parents or other relatives to care for; they have to and want to do care work. How can this be reconciled with a phase of only three years in which they must acquire third-party funding, publish books and articles, take on project management and personnel responsibilities, teach, travel internationally, supervise students and doctoral students, and conduct research? How can they carry out innovative, but also time-consuming, inter- and transdisciplinary research projects that involve a high level of travel within only three years? The recently published draft revisions would penalize women in particular, and all those who take on care work in general. This contradicts all equality and diversity efforts, which contribute decisively to academic excellence. So far, non-binding recommendations, such as those already included in the WissZeitVG, have hardly guaranteed the adequate consideration of the interests of academic employees.

The BMBF paper suggests that the pending amendment of the WissZeitVG is intended to serve as a tool for implementing a large-scale restructuring of universities and of teaching and learning. It will significantly restrict the diversity of the research landscape. This would be fatal for Germany as a center of science, and for civil society as well. The best students have long stopped coming to study here, and if they do, they don’t stay. Greater internationalization and a diversification of the university landscape, which German politicians and universities have been striving for, cannot be achieved this way. The promotional video on “research wonderland” Germany that the BMBF shows on its YouTube channel to attract international students is a fiction in which the WissZeitVG does not exist. In reality, the WissZeitVG must either be fundamentally revised and resubmitted or finally rejected.

---

Initial signatories

• Prof. Dr. Paula-Irene Villa Braslavsky, Soziologie, LMU München 
• Prof. Dr. Nicole C. Karafyllis, Philosophie, Technische Universität Braunschweig 
• Prof. Dr. Alena Buyx, Institut für Geschichte und Ethik der Medizin, TU München 
• Prof. Dr. Joachim Baur, Empirische Kulturwissenschaft, Technische Universität Dortmund 
• Prof. Dr. Hansjörg Dilger, Sozial- und Kulturanthropologie, Freie Universität Berlin 
• Prof. Dr. Robert Kindler, Geschichte Osteuropas, Freie Universität Berlin 
• Prof. Dr. Armin Nassehi, Soziologie, LMU München 
• Prof. Dr. Hedwig Richter, Neuere und Neueste Geschichte, Universität der Bundeswehr München 
• Prof. Dr. Stephan Lessenich, Soziologie, Goethe-Universität Frankfurt a.M. 
• Prof. Dr. Bernhard Müller, School of Physics and Astronomy, Monash University 
• Prof. Dr. Stefan Liebig, Soziologie, Freie Universität Berlin 
• Prof. Dr. Claudine Moulin, Germanistik, Universität Trier 
• Prof. Dr. Steffen Mau, Soziologie, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin 
• Prof. Dr. Johanna Pink, Islamwissenschaft, Universität Freiburg 
• Prof. Dr. Daniel Siemens, Geschichtswissenschaft, Newcastle University 
• Prof. Dr. Frank Sowa, Soziologie, Technische Hochschule Nürnberg Georg Simon Ohm 
• Prof. Dr. Daniel Stein, Anglistik, Universität Siegen 
• Prof. Dr. Eva-Maria Troelenberg, Professur für Transkulturelle Studien / Institut für Kunstgeschichte, HHU Düsseldorf 
• Prof. Dr. Martin Lenz, Philosophie, Rijksuniversiteit Groningen 
• Prof. Dr. Niels Werber, Philosophische Fakultät, Universität Siegen 
• Prof. Dr. oec. habil. Jan Schnellenbach, Volkswirtschaftslehre, Brandenburgische Technische Universität Cottbus-Senftenberg 
• Prof. Dr. Jan Philipp Röer, Lehrstuhl für Allgemeine Psychologie, Universität Witten/Herdecke
• Prof. Dr. Ulrich Bröckling, Soziologie, Albert-Ludwigs-Universität Freiburg
• Prof. Dr. Sabine Müller-Mall, Rechtswissenschaft, Technische Universität Dresden
• Prof. Dr. Theresa Gessler, Politikwissenschaft, Europa-Universität Viadrina Frankfurt/O.
• Prof. Dr. Heike Paul, Amerikanistik, Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg
• Prof. Dr. Jürgen Zimmerer, Geschichte, Universität Hamburg
• Prof. Dr. Dr. Isabell Lorey, Queer Studies / Kunst- und Medienwissenschaft, Kunsthochschule für Medien, Köln
• Prof. Dr. Martina Winkler, Geschichtswissenschaft, Christian-Albrechts-Universität zu Kiel
• Prof. Dr. Tobias Matzner, Medienwissenschaft, Universität Paderborn
• Prof. Dr. Peter Niesen, Politische Theorie, Universität Hamburg
• Prof. Dr. Frank J. Müller, Inklusive Pädagogik, Universität Bremen 
• Prof. Dr. Natascha Korff, Inklusive Pädagogik, Universität Bremen
• Prof. Dr. Florian Sprenger, Medienwissenschaft, Ruhr-Universität Bochum
• Prof. Dr. Simon Rothöhler, Medienwissenschaft, Ruhr-Universität Bochum
• Prof. Dr. Robin Celikates, Philosophie, Freie Universität Berlin
• Prof. Dr. Christian Leßmann, Volkswirtschaftslehre, Technische Universität Dresden
• Prof. Dr. Gülay Çağlar, Politikwissenschaft, Freie Universität Berlin
• Prof. Dr. Talja Blokland, Soziologie, Humboldt Universität zu Berlin
• Prof. Dr. Elif Özmen, Philosophie, Justus Liebig-Universität Gießen
• Prof. Dr. David Kaldewey, Wissenschaftsforschung, Rheinische Friedrich-Wilhelms-Universität Bonn
• Prof. Dr. Elizabeth Prommer, Kommunikations- und Medienwissenschaft, Universität Rostock
• Prof. Dr. Julia Budka, Ägyptische Archäologie und Kunstgeschichte, LMU München
• Prof. Dr. Mona Motakef, Soziologie, TU Dortmund
• Prof. Dr. Friedemann Vogel, Sozio- und Diskurslinguistik, Universität Siegen
• Prof. Jennifer Evans, PhD, History, Carleton University Ottawa
• Prof. Dr. Sarah Engler, Politikwissenschaft, Leuphana Universität Lüneburg
• Prof. Dr. Regina Ammicht Quinn, Internationales Zentrum für Ethik in den Wissenschaften und Zentrum für Gender- und Diversitätsforschung, Universität Tübingen 
• Prof. Dr. Philipp Staab, Soziologie, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin 
• Prof. Dr. Julian Hamann, Hochschulforschung, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin 
• Prof. Dr. Eva Marlene Hausteiner, Politikwissenschaften, FAU Erlangen-Nürnberg 
• Prof. Dr. Dan Verständig, Erziehungswissenschaft, Universität Bielefeld
• Prof. Dr. Sonja Blum, Politikwissenschaft, Universität Bielefeld
• Jun.-Prof. Dr. Johannes Paßmann, Medienwissenschaft, Ruhr-Universität Bochum 
• Prof. Dr. Martin Sökefeld, Institut für Ethnologie, LMU München 
• Prof. Dr. Gesa Mackenthun, Institut für Anglistik und Amerikanistik, Universität Rostock 
• Prof. Dr. Armin Schäfer, Politikwissenschaft, JGU Mainz 
• Prof. Dr. Andreas Bock, Politikwissenschaft, Akkon Hochschule für Humanwissenschaften, Berlin 
• Prof. Dr. Bernd Sommer, Soziologie, TU Dortmund 
• Prof. Dr. Elisabeth Timm, Kulturanthropologie, Universität Münster 
• Prof. Dr. Sabine Broeck, English-Speaking Cultures, Universität Bremen 
• Prof. Dr. Franziska Müller, Politikwissenschaft, Universität Hamburg 
• Prof. Dr. Dietmar Till, Allgemeine Rhetorik, Universität Tübingen 
• Prof. Dr. Andrea Geier, Germanistik/Gender Studies, Universität Trier 
• Prof. Dr. Johannes Marx, Politikwissenschaft, Universität Bamberg 
• Prof. Dr. Daniel Martin Feige, Philosophie, Staatliche Akademie der Bildenden Künste Stuttgart 
• Prof. Dr. Marvin Anas Hahn, Mathematik, Trinity College Dublin 
• Prof. Dr. Katharina Wesselmann, Klassische Philologie, Christian Albrechts-Universität zu Kiel 
• Prof. Dr. Céline Teney, Soziologie, Freie Universität Berlin 
• Prof. Dr. Susanne Gruß, Anglistik, Universität zu Köln 
• Prof. Dr. Thomas Demmelhuber, Politikwissenschaft, FAU Erlangen-Nürnberg 
• Prof. Dr. Manuela Boatcā, Soziologie, Albert-Ludwigs-Universität Freiburg 
• Prof. Dr. Frieder Vogelmann, Philosophie, Albert-Ludwigs-Universität Freiburg 
• Prof. Dr. David Richter, Psychologie, Freie Universität Berlin 
• Prof. Dr. Manuela Bojadzijev, Europäische Ethnologie, Humboldt-Universität 
• Prof. Dr. Caroline Friedel, Bioinformatik, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München 
• Prof. Dr. Maximilian Benz, Literaturwissenschaft, Universität Bielefeld 
• Prof. Dr. Jörg Döring, Germanistik, Universität Siegen 
• Prof. Dr. Claudia Jünke, Romanistik, Universität Innsbruck 
• Prof. Dr. Jiré Emine Gözen, Medien- und Kulturtheorie, University of Europe for Applied Sciences 
• Prof. Dr. Theresa Heyd, Englische Sprachwissenschaft, Universität Greifswald 
• Prof. Dr. Stephan Packard, Medienkulturwissenschaft, Universität zu Köln 
• Prof. Dr. Marco Bünte, Politikwissenschaft, FAU Erlangen-Nürnberg 
• Prof. Dr. Klaus Oschema, Mittelalterliche Geschichte, Ruhr-Universität Bochum 
• Prof. Dr. Katja Crone, Philosophie, TU Dortmund 
• Prof. Dr. Jens Eder, Film- und Medienwissenschaft, Filmuniversität Babelsberg Konrad Wolf 
• Prof. Anna-Maria Meister PhD, Architekturtheorie und -wissenschaft, TU Darmstadt 
• Prof. Dr. Mischa Honeck, Geschichte, Universität Kassel 
• Prof. Dr. Thomas Bedorf, Philosophie, FernUniversität in Hagen 
• Prof. Dr. Annette Keck, Neuere deutsche Literatur, LMU München 
• Prof. Dr. Michael Koß, Politikwissenschaft, Leuphana Universität Lüneburg 
• Prof. Dr. Tim Freytag, Humangeographie, Universität Freiburg 
• Prof. Dr. Sabine_ Hark, Soziologie, Gender Studies, TU Berlin 
• Prof. Dr. Claudia Liebelt, Sozial- und Kulturanthropologie, Freie Universität Berlin 
• Prof. Dr. Peter Dabrock, Evangelische Theologie, FAU Erlangen-Nürnberg 
• Prof. Dr. Kilu von Prince, Linguistik, Heinrich-Heine-Universität Düsseldorf 
• Prof. Dr. Heinz Drügh, Germanistik, Goethe-Universität Frankfurt a.M. 
• Prof. Dr. Thomas Wortmann, Germanistik, Universität Mannheim 
• Prof. Dr. Christine Wimbauer, Soziologie, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin 
• Prof. Dr. Stephan Hoppe, Kunstgeschichte, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München 
• Prof. em. Dr. Clemens Knobloch, Linguistik, Universität Siegen 
• Prof. Dr. Juliane Prade-Weiss, AVL, LMU München 
• Prof. Dr. Julia Obertreis, Geschichte, Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg 
• Prof. Dr. Michael Coors, Theologie, Universität Zürich 
• Prof. Dr. Ömer Alkin, Angewandte Medien- und Kommunikationswissenschaften, Hochschule Niederrhein 
• Prof. Dr. Ulrike Bergermann, Medienwissenschaften, HBK Braunschweig 
• Prof. Dr. Christine Hanke, Medienwissenschaft, Universität Bayreuth 
• Prof. Dr. Carsten Reinemann, Kommunikationswissenschaft, LMU München 
• Prof. Dr. Ruth Mayer, American Studies, Leibniz Universität Hannover. 
• Prof. Dr. Christian Metz, Neuere Deutsche Literatur, RWTH Aachen 
• Prof. Dr. Susanne Strätling, Allgemeine und Vergleichende Literaturwissenschaft, FU Berlin
• Prof. Dr. Sabine Flick, Soziologie, Hochschule Fulda 
• Prof. Dr. Anne Reichold, Philosophie, Europa-Universität Flensburg 
• Prof. Dr. Adrian Hermann, Religionswissenschaft, Rheinische Friedrich-Wilhelms-Universität Bonn 
• Prof. Dr. Ingrid Baumgärtner, Geschichte, Universität Kassel 
• Prof. Dr. Simone Derix, Geschichte, FAU Erlangen-Nürnberg 
• Prof. Dr. Christof Schöch, Digital Humanities, Universität Trier 
• Prof. Dr. Gerhard Reese, Umweltpsychologie, RPTU Kaiserslautern-Landau 
• Prof. Dr. Birgit Blättel-Mink, Soziologie, Johann Wolfgang Goethe Universität Frankfurt/Main 
• Prof. Dr. Susanne Lüdemann, Neuere deutsche Literaturwissenschaft, LMU München 
• Prof. Dr. Silvia Schultermandl, Englisches Seminar, Universität Münster 
• Prof. Dr. Jens Weiß, Verwaltungswissenschaften, Hochschule Harz 
• Prof. Dr. Julia Pauli, Ethnologie, Universität Hamburg 
• Prof. Dr. Moritz Baßler, Neuere deutsche Literatur, Universität Münster 
• Prof. Dr. Marc Andre Matten, Sinologie, FAU Erlangen-Nürnberg 
• Prof. Dr. Stefanie Middendorf, Geschichte, Friedrich-Schiller-Universität Jena 
• Prof. Dr. Christian Volk, Politikwissenschaft, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin 
• Prof. Dr. Erdmute Alber, Sozialanthropologie, Universität Bayreuth 
• Prof. Dr. Cornelius Schubert, Soziologie, TU Dortmund 
• Prof. Dr. Alexander Markschies, Kunstgeschichte, RWTH Aachen 
• Prof. Dr. Jared Sonnicksen, Politikwissenschaft, RWTH Aachen 
• Prof. Dr. Serhat Karakayali, Soziologie, Leuphana Universität Lüneburg 
• Prof. Dr. Sina Farzin, Soziologie, Universität der Bundeswehr München 
• Prof. Dr. Dorothee Brantz, Geschichte, Technische Universität Berlin 
• Prof. Dr. Jan Slaby, Philosophie, Freie Universität Berlin 
• Prof. Dr. Martin Saar, Philosophie, Goethe-Universität Frankfurt am Main 
• Prof. Dr. Andrea von Hülsen-Esch, Kunstgeschichte, Heinrich-Heine-Universität Düsseldorf 
• Prof. Dr. Maren Möhring, Kulturwissenschaften, Universität Leipzig 
• Prof. Dr. Annelie Ramsbrock, Geschichte, Universität Greifswald 
• Prof. Dr. Sabine Bollig, Erziehungswissenschaften, Universität Trier 
• Prof. Dr. Martin Nonhoff, Politikwissenschaft, Universität Bremen 
• Prof. Dr. Theocharis Grigoriadis, Volkswirtschaftslehre, Freie Universität Berlin 
• Prof. Dr. Martin Zillinger, Institut für Ethnologie, Universität zu Köln 
• Prof. Dr. Michi Knecht, Institut für Ethnologie und Kulturwissenschaft, Universität Bremen 
• Prof. Dr. Sybille Bauriedl, Geographie, Europa-Universität Flensburg 
• Prof Dr. Martin Aust, Osteuropäische Geschichte, Universität Bonn 
• Prof. Dr. Kersten Sven Roth, Germanistische Linguistik, Otto-von-Guericke-Universität Magdeburg 
• Prof. Dr. Donja Amirpur, Migrationspädagogik, Hochschule Niederrhein 
• Prof. Dr. Bettina Brockmeyer, Historisches Institut, Justus-Liebig Universität Gießen 
• Prof. Dr. Daniel Loick, Philosophie, Universität Amsterdam 
• Prof. Dr. Beate Binder, Institut für Europäische Ethnologie und Zentrum für transdisziplinäre Geschlechterforschung, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin 
• Prof. Dr. Swen Hutter, Soziologie, Freie Universität Berlin 
• Prof. Dr. Marc Priewe, Amerikanistik, Universität Stuttgart 
• Prof. Dr. Anke Schmitz, Deutschdidaktik, Leuphana Universität Lüneburg 
• Prof. Dr. Thomas Meier, Ur- und Frühgeschichte, Universität Heidelberg 
• Prof. Dr. Andrea Rapp, Computerphilologie und Mediävistik, Institut für Sprach- und Literaturwissenschaft, Technische Universität Darmstadt 
• Prof. Dr. Nicole Zillien, Soziologie, Justus-Liebig Universität Gießen 
• Prof. Dr. Beate Sodeik, Virologie, Medizinische Hochschule Hannover 
• Prof. Dr. Bernhard Huss, Romanische Philologie, Freie Universität Berlin 
• Prof. Dr. Christian Neuhäuser, TU Dortmund 
• Prof. Dr. Ulrike Vedder, Neuere deutsche Literaturwissenschaft, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin 
• Prof. Dr. Kristina Großmann, Abteilung für Südostasienwissenschaft, Universität Bonn 
• Prof. Dr. Rahel Jaeggi, Philosophie, HU Berlin 
• Prof. Dr. Fotis Jannidis, Digital Humanities, Julius-Maximilians-Universität Würzburg 
• Prof. Dr. Simone Winko, Neuere deutsche Literaturwissenschaft, Universität Göttingen 
• Prof. Dr. Anne Fleig, Neuere deutsche Literaturwissenschaft, Freie Universität Berlin 
• Prof. Dr. Christian Bunnenberg, Geschichtswissenschaft, Ruhr-Universität Bochum 
• Prof. Dr. Ute Hüsken, Kultur- und Religionsgeschichte Südasiens, Universität Heidelberg 
• Prof. Dr. Mita Banerjee, Amerikanistik, Johannes Gutenberg-Universität Mainz 
• Prof. i.R. Dr. Thomas Stamm-Kuhlmann, Neueste Geschichte, Universität Greifswald 
• Prof. Dr. Kerstin Radde-Antweiler, Institut für Religionswissenschaft und Religionspädagogik, Universität Bremen 
• Prof. Dr. Simone Leiber, Politikwissenschaft, Universität Duisburg-Essen 
• Prof. Dr. Anna Katharina Mangold, Rechtswissenschaft, Europa-Universität Flensburg 
• Prof. Dr. Ulrike Kluge, Psychiatrie und Psychotherapie, Charité 
• Prof. Dr. Susanne Leeb, Kunstgeschichte, Leuphana Universität Lüneburg 
• Prof. Dr. Ulrike Lindner, Historisches Institut, Universität zu Köln 
• JProf. Dr. Gerhild Perl, Ethnologie, Universität Trier 
• Prof. Dr. Tina Terrahe, Ältere deutsche Sprache und Literatur, Universität Greifswald 
• Prof. Kathrin Zippel, PhD, Soziologie und Gender Studies, Freie Universität Berlin 
• Prof. Dr. Heike Schäfer, Amerikanistik, Goethe-Universität Frankfurt am Main 
• Prof. Dr. Sebastian Haunss, Politikwissenschaft, Universität Bremen 
• Prof. Dr. Stephan Kraft, Neuere deutsche Literaturwissenschaft, Universität Würzburg 
• Prof. Dr. Dieter Wrobel, Fachdidaktik Deutsch, Universität Würzburg 
• Prof. Dr. Uta Ruppert, Politikwissenschaft, Goethe-Universität Frankfurt am Main 
• Prof. Dr. Tabea Scheel, Arbeits- und Organisationspsychologie, Europa-Universität Flensburg 
• Prof. Dr. Claus Pias, Medienwissenschaft, Leuphana Universität Lüneburg 
• Prof. Dr. Thomas Schmidt-Lux, Kulturwissenschaften, Universität Leipzig 
• Prof. Dr. Zülfukar Çetin, Soziale Arbeit. Evangelische Hochschule Berlin. 
• Prof. Dr. Karsten Fitz, Amerikanistik/Cultural Studies, Universität Passau 
• Prof. Dr. Moritz Klenk, Kulturwissenschaften, Hochschule Mannheim 
• Prof. Dr. Stefan Müller, Linguistik, Humboldt Universität zu Berlin 
• Prof. Dr. Nicole Weydmann, Gesundheitswissenschaften, Hochschule Furtwangen 
• Prof. Dr. Gabriele Werner, Fachgebiet Theorie und Geschichte, weißensee kunsthochschule berlin 
• Prof. Dr. Michaela Fenske, Europäische Ethnologie/Empirische Kulturwissenschaft Universität Würzburg 
• Prof. Dr. Christian Lammert, Politikwissenschaft, FU Berlin 
• Prof. Dr. Jörg Wesche, Neuere deutsche Literaturwissenschaft, Georg-August-Universität Göttingen. 
• Prof. Dr. Kathleen Otto, Arbeits- und Organisationspsychologie, Philipps-Universität Marburg 
• Prof. Dr. Liliana Ruth Feierstein, Kulturwissenschaft, Humboldt Universität zu Berlin 
• Prof. Dr. Andrea Bogner, Interkulturelle Germanistik, Georg-August-Universität Göttingen
• Prof. Dr. Carmen Birkle, Nordamerikanische Literatur- und Kulturwissenschaft, Philipps-Universität Marburg
• Prof. Dr. Philipp Osten, Geschichte und Ethik der Medizin, UKE Hamburg 
• Prof. Dr. Gwendolyn Sasse, Politikwissenschaft, Humboldt Universität zu Berlin 
• Prof. Dr. Andreas M. Wüst, Politikwissenschaft, Hochschule München 
• Prof. Dr. Tim Epkenhans, Islamwissenschaft, Universität Freiburg 
• Prof. Philipp Stelzel, Associate Professor/Graduate Director, History and Public History, Department of History, Duquesne University, Pittsburgh 
• Prof. Dr. Corinna Norrick-Rühl, Englisches Seminar, WWU Münster 
• Prof. Dr. Frauke Matz, Englisches Seminar, WWU Münster 
• Prof. Dr. Thorsten Faas, Politikwissenschaft, Freie Universität Berlin 
• Prof. Dr. Jan Sauermann, Politikwissenschaft, Carl von Ossietzky Universität Oldenburg 
• Prof. Dr. Petra Terhoeven, Seminar für Mittlere und Neuere Geschichte, Uni Göttingen 
• Prof. Dr. Laura Seelkopf, Politikwissenschaft, LMU München 
• Prof. Dr. Kerstin Martens, Politikwissenschaft, Universität Bremen 
• Prof. Dr. Sabrina Mayer, Politikwissenschaft, Universität Bamberg 
• Prof. Dietmar Süß, Neuere und Neueste Geschichte, Universität Augsburg 
• Jun.-Prof. Dr. Reto Rössler, Neuere dt. Literaturwissenschaft, Europa-Universität Flensburg 
• Prof. Dr. Berthold Rittberger, Politikwissenschaft, LMU München 
• Jun.-Prof. Arndt Leininger, PhD, Politikwissenschaft, Technische Universität Chemnitz 
• Prof. Dr. Ignacio Farías, Europäische Ethnologie, Humboldt Universität