About 1.9 million people in Germany with university-level qualifications were at risk of poverty in 2025, an increase of roughly 350,000 compared with 2022, according to data from the country’s statistics office. The figures were released following a request from the Sahra Wagenknecht Alliance (BSW).
The rise comes as the total number of graduates in Germany reached about 21 million. Data from the Federal Employment Agency also show unemployment among people with academic qualifications increased to 3.3% in 2025, up from 2.2% three years earlier.
Sahra Wagenknecht, founder of the BSW, warned that ‘decline and poverty now affect all levels of education’ and urged policymakers to revive the economy and restore pathways to social mobility through work.
The risk of poverty remains considerably higher for those with lower or medium educational attainment. Of roughly 14.3 million people with low qualifications, about 4.1 million were classed as at risk of poverty in 2025.
Under Germany’s measure, a person is considered at risk of poverty if their income is less than 60% of the national median — equivalent to €1,446 per month for a single adult last year.
Edited by: Roshni Majumdar