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Employment
Employment Contract or Appointment
Academic employees at universities conclude employment contracts with the university which state the salary scale and conditions of employment. In Germany, however, many professors and academic staff are public servants, and they are appointed. Public servants’ salaries are laid down by the “Bundesbesoldungsgesetz” (the law regulating the salaries of public servants) and the corresponding regulations of the respective Federal State. The salary scale for professors is called “W”. In most Federal States academic staff are paid according to a collective pay agreement known as “TV-L”.
You will have to sign your employment contract before you officially start working. Your institute or the personnel department will tell you in advance which forms and documents have to be submitted in order to draw up the contract. As an employee you will usually be required to pay tax and social security contributions. This is dealt with in chapters 8 and 9. Please read them carefully.
If you are a fellow or visiting researcher you are, of course, entitled to use all the facilities such as libraries, refectories or sports amenities. So far, Philipps-Universität Marburg does not issue a special identity card for visiting researchers. However, on request, your institute will be pleased to give you a letter confirming the duration of your research stay which you can present if required.
As a new member of staff you are bound to have lots of questions about organisation and workflow at the university: Where do I go to register travel on university business and how do I claim expenses? How do I get hold of material and equipment for my workplace? Who will repair my computer? Who can help me in case of conflict? What opportunities are there for continuing education and consultancy at the university?
You can find information on these and other questions in the column at the side and in chapter 3 (Facilities and Institutions at the University). To discover how other matters are dealt with at your particular institute it is best to ask your colleagues.
Personnel Department (Personalabteilung):
The personnel department at Philipps-Universität Marburg is located in the administrative building in Biegenstraße 10.
Insider Info: What to do academics earn in Germany?
Insider Info: One peculiarity in German universities is the so-called “academic-quarter” lectures often begin a quarter of an hour later than the time stated on the timetable. These lectures are usually marked as “cum tempore” (c.t.) in contrast to those that begin on the hour marked “sine tempore” (s.t.).