Evidence-Based Policy Advice? The German Council of Science and Humanities

Abstract

This article examines the evolving role of the German Council of Science and Humanities (Wissenschaftsrat, WR) and assesses whether it can be regarded as an evidence-based advisory body. Drawing on historical, sociological, and organizational analyses, the paper traces how the WR’s mandate has shifted from post-war planning and federal coordination toward evaluation, accreditation, and support of national excellence policies. Despite these substantial changes, the WR’s committee structures – deeply embedded in Germany’s federal multilayered governance system – have remained largely unchanged. Three case studies illustrate the consequences of this institutional inertia: the 1968 recommendation to abolish professorial chairs, the 1988 proposal to expand structured doctoral training via graduate research schools, and the 2005/2012 selection decisions within the Excellence Initiative. The cases show that the WR’s recommendations were shaped by political consensus-seeking among federal and state executives and major non-university research organizations, leading to diluted reform proposals and limited systemic impact. The Excellence Initiative case further highlights legitimacy concerns, including extreme selectivity, path-dependent funding outcomes, and the persistence of structural size-based inequalities between universities. The article concludes that the WR primarily functions as a coordination and consensus-building body rather than an independent source of evidence-based policy advice. It argues that this arrangement fosters an “illusion of excellence”– a narrative suggesting substantial improvements in international competitiveness without commensurate structural or financial reforms. The article proposes establishing an independent expert council for higher education and science policy – potentially by expanding the mandate of the Expert Commission for Research and Innovation – to enable more rigorous, evidence-based policymaking for Germany’s university system.