About 64,300 trainees signed a new nursing contract in 2025, a roughly 8 % increase-about 4,900 more-than the 59,400 contracts recorded in 2024, according to preliminary figures from the Federal Statistical Office (Destatis). These figures refer to trainees who still had an active contract as of 31 December 2025. The total number of trainees in nursing on that date also rose: roughly 158,000 people were in a nursing training program, the highest level since the introduction of the generalist nursing education under the Nursing Professions Act.
Women continue to dominate the field. Of the newly signed contracts, about 71 % were held by women (45,800) and 29 % by men (18,500). While women remain the majority, the male share has grown more rapidly-men increased from 16,200 in 2024 to 18,500 in 2025, a 15 % rise, compared with a 6 % increase for women. Over the longer term, the proportion of men starting a nursing apprenticeship has risen by five percentage points since the new apprenticeship format began in 2020, from 24 % men and 76 % women.
In 2025, roughly 800 students began the newly introduced nursing degree program, which earned them both a bachelor’s degree and the nursing qualification. Among these new contract students, women also dominate: 77 % were women and only about 22 % were men. As of 31 December 2025, the total number of nursing students was about 1,800.