Parliamentary State Secretary to the Federal Minister of Education and Research

Dr Jens Brandenburg has been Parliamentary State Secretary to the Federal Minister of Education and Research since December 2021.

Dr Jens Brandenburg has been a Member of the German Bundestag representing the constituency of Rhein-Neckar since 2017. In the 19^th legislative term he was spokesperson of the Parliamentary Group of the Free Democratic Party for studies, vocational training, lifelong learning and LGBTI rights. He also served as spokesperson of his parliamentary group on the Committee on Education, Research and Technology Assessment and on the Study Commission “Vocational Training in the Digital Work Environment”. He headed the working group on education and research for his parliamentary group.

Dr Brandenburg has a B.A. in political science and economics from the University of Mannheim (2008) and an M.A. in political science (2010). He finished his PhD in 2015 at the Graduate School of Economic and Social Sciences of the University of Mannheim. During his studies he worked at the Mannheim Centre for European Social Research (MZES) and in various departments at the University of Mannheim. Prior to becoming a member of the German Bundestag, he worked for a global management consulting firm (2014-2017).

Dr Brandenburg has volunteered for better educational opportunities and diversity in society, including on the Board of Trustees of the Deutsche AIDS-Stiftung (since 2019), on the Board of Trustees of the Bundesstiftung Magnus Hirschfeld (since 2018), as chairman of the Baden-Württemberg branch of the Young Liberals (youth section of the FDP) (2010-2013), in the Free Democratic Party (since 2006), with the Liberal Students Groups (2005-2009, e.g. General Student Committee (AStA) of the University of Mannheim 2006/07) and in the SchLAu information campaign on gender diversity and identity issues at schools in North-Rhine Westphalia (2001-2005). He spent a year in Little Rock, Arkansas (USA) as a school student.

Dr Jens Brandenburg was born in Simmerath on 8 March 1986. He is married.