What I like the most about my job, is that I can contribute to society
Alumna Master Digitalisation, Surveillance & Societies
Study programme: Master Digitalisation, Surveillance & Societies (now: Master Media, Digitalisation & Society)
Graduation year: 2023
Job: Policy Officer at the Ministry of the Interior and Kingdom Relations
Meet ESHCC alumna Karlijn van der Plaat. In 2023, she obtained her master's degree in Digitalisation, Surveillance and Societies. During her studies, she took a first step in her professional career by working as an intern in the Digital Inclusion team at the Ministry of the Interior and Kingdom Relations. She gained insights into the political and administrative playing field and connected with a broad network of public, private, and social organisations working on societal challenges surrounding digital inclusion. She enjoyed the internship and her team so much that, after graduating, she decided to apply for the position of policy officer in the same team. She now works on the AI and government portfolio.
Can you tell us more about your role within the AI and Government team and your daily tasks?
As a policy officer, you are responsible for a specific theme, or portfolio as we call it. In my case, that is AI knowledge and skills of civil servants. You act as a spider in a web, liaising with various stakeholders working on this theme. You are responsible for implementing the policy objectives of the minister, or in my case, the State Secretary for Digitalisation and Kingdom Relations.
In my daily work I investigate, among other things, how we can implement the objectives of the portfolio, for example by providing grants, setting up programmes or creating regulations or frameworks. An important part of my work also involves politics. We prepare debates in the Senate and House of Representatives and handle correspondence with parliament, such as answering parliamentary questions or drafting parliamentary letters.
What do you like the most about your job?
The most special aspect of my work is that I can contribute to society. I also enjoy being at the centre of the playing field, as it allows me to connect with many different, interesting people and organisations. This makes the work very educating. At the same time, the work can also be hectic sometimes. Politics is a dynamic field, and the topic of digitalisation is quite hot at the moment, so you need to be able to switch quickly.
How does the knowledge and/or skills you acquired in your master's programme help you in your current job?
The Digital Society Department deals with many of the themes that were discussed during the master, for example AI, social media platforms, and privacy. I also find it useful that various theoretical frameworks through which you can view technology and digitalisation were covered in the master. This gives me a critical perspective on the work I do.
What advice would you give to master's students who are about to enter the job market?
Be bold! Go networking, have a coffee with interesting contacts, send emails to companies or organisations you find interesting. People are often willing to talk to you and help you on your way to interesting places.