Dual pillar career paths or intertwined career patterns? (Unexpected) Insights into the German science system

Abstract Academic career paths are shaped not only by individual aspirations but also by social-institutional arrangements and organizational opportunity structures. In Germany, the science system is traditionally portrayed as a “dual pillar” structure, comprising universities and non-university research institutions (NURs). Although collaboration between these pillars has increased, particularly through science policy initiatives such as the Excellence Strategy and the Pact for Research and Innovation, it remains unclear whether career paths continue to follow separate tracks or increasingly span both pillars. This study investigates the career paths of doctoral graduates in six STEM disciplines using sequence analysis of CV data. We identify typical career patterns and interorganizational mobility between institutional contexts. Our findings reveal that some researchers pursue careers exclusively within universities or NURs, while others transition from one to the other. However, truly intertwined patterns crossing both types of institutions are rare and tend to be linked to specific academic goals, such as attaining a professorship. Drawing on Hermanowicz’ sociology of academic careers and Laudel and Gläser’s concept of organizational career, we conceptualize universities and NURs not simply as pillars, but as distinct organizational contexts with partially overlapping logics and structural conditions. Despite increasing collaboration in research, employment conditions and career incentives remain asymmetrical. To enable more dynamic and cross-institutional career paths, science policy must move beyond fostering research collaboration and address structural disparities that shape long-term career paths.