German Education Monitor 2025: Bavaria ranks second again

On behalf of the New Social Free Market Initiative (INSM), the Cologne Institute for the German Economy (IW Köln) presented the 2025 Education Monitor for Germany. The study included 98 indicators in 13 fields of action. These include, for example, indicators on childcare conditions, such as the student-teacher ratio, indicators on educational poverty, such as the school dropout rate, and indicators on school quality, which describe the extent to which the education system imparts a high level of skills. The education monitor thus shows the relative strengths and weaknesses of the individual German states.

Key Results of the Education Monitor for Germany

Saxony and Bavaria have the highest-performing education systems in Germany - followed by Hamburg, Baden-Württemberg and Thuringia. Nationwide, from 2013, the first year with the new methodology, progress has been made in the areas of educational spending, childcare ratios and funding infrastructure. However, the challenges have increased in the areas of school quality, prevention of educational disadvantage and integration.

Strengths of the Bavarian Education System

Bavaria is particularly strong in the areas of vocational training, prevention of educational disadvantage, school quality, internationalization, expenditure prioritization and digitalization. The Free State takes second place in these areas:

• Highest proportion of further training qualifications among young adults
• Lowest proportion of school dropouts
• The young people in the ninth grade achieve above-average skills
• Third highest proportion of foreign students among students
• High expenditure per young person at secondary schools
• Many trainees in IT professions

Importance from an Economic Perspective

The educational economics perspective of the Education Monitor is a distinguishing feature. The comparative study examines the extent to which individual states are reducing educational disadvantage, helping to secure skilled workers and promoting growth. "We are delighted that Bavaria has once again secured second place. This demonstrates the consistent strength and high quality of our education system. A good school education lays the foundation for young people’s future professional success and secures the workforce and skilled labor for our Bavarian companies. However, in view of the overall decline in educational standards nationwide, we cannot rest on our laurels, but must continue to consistently develop the quality of our educational offerings. The Bavarian State government has already set the right course here with its offensive following the PISA shock in 2023,” explained Bertram Brossardt, CEO of vbw – Vereinigung der Bayerischen Wirtschaft (Bavarian Industry Association).

All results of the Education Monitor 2025 as well as numerous graphics can be found at www.insm-bildungsmonitor.de (in German).