| 1993-1998 | Student of Business Administration at the University of Augsburg |
| 1996-1997 | Student of Economics at the Wayne State University Detroit, field of concentration: macro economics (degree: M.A. in Economics) |
| 1999 | Diploma in business administration at the University of Augsburg (degree: Dipl. Kfm.) |
| 1999-2004 | Assistant at the Chair of Professor Dr. Horst Hanusch, Department of Economics, University of Augsburg |
| June 2002 | Dissertation on "Entrepreneurship – A New Perspective" (degree: Dr. rer. pol.) |
| 2004-2005 | Research Fellow, GREDEG-CNRS (IDEFI), Sohpia Antipolis, France |
| since 2006 | Research Group "InnoHeart" at the University of Jena, Friedrich-Schiller-University Jena |