This article discusses effectively maintained inequality considering two different examples from the Germany education system: secondary school attainment and enrolment in highly ranked universities among freshmen. In our analyses of secondary school attainment, we investigate whether considering differentiation in upper secondary education leads to other conclusions than restricting the analyses to the conventional distinction between the traditional degree levels. In our analyses of university choice, we investigate whether the introduction of university ranking lists has created a new qualitative dimension of inequality in the German higher education system.