Ms Madeker studied in Passau and Verona, obtaining a Master’s in International Business and Cultural Studies in 2004. She then received a scholarship from the Friedrich Naumann Foundation, and spent time as a visiting scholar at the European University Institute in Florence. Ellen Madeker spent two years in Berlin, working as personal assistant to the General Secretary of the German Association of Liberal Professions. In spring 2008, she was accepted as a mentee in the FDP’s mentoring programme.