After graduation

After a year of working at a local municipality, I started this master’s programme hoping to gain a better understanding of public administration processes related to urban development. Looking back, I am very happy I made the decision to pursue this master’s, as it has significantly increased my understanding of governance processes across different public sector organisations.

The international environment, and especially the variety of study backgrounds, proved to be valuable aspects of the programme. Working with students from different backgrounds improved my ability to work in interdisciplinary teams, while also helping me understand what knowledge I can contribute in group settings and explore topics of interest. The course load is nicely distributed, with at least one course in every block that aligned with existing knowledge (human geography and planning, in my case), and at least one that introduced newer concepts (public administration, for example). This mix stimulated working alongside classmates with different backgrounds, allowing us to learn from each other and get to know one another better.

What I especially appreciated was the exposure to real-world questions and professionals. Throughout the year, there were multiple guest lectures from aldermen, city planners and city branding professionals, which opened up interesting discussions and helped connect theory with practice. The Urban Governance Lab was a separate course that allowed us to work on one-day cases as well as a three-month assignment for the Bank Dutch Municipalities regarding the Regional Energy Strategy (RES).

There are also ample opportunities to undertake an internship during your thesis to gain relevant work experience, as well as the option to choose an internship location yourself. I would definitely recommend pursuing an internship while writing your thesis, as it allows you to bridge the gap between theory and practice. The programme can also be combined with extracurricular options, such as joining the student board, where you can plan activities and review courses with the coordinator, or participating in an honours programme, which was introduced during one of the lectures in the first block.

If you are looking to develop yourself academically, professionally and personally in an urban governance/public administration context with a focus on sustainability and inclusion, I would definitely recommend pursuing this master’s. I look back on a fantastic year and know for certain that I have learned valuable things that will help me throughout my career.

As of writing this testimonial, I have a couple of job interviews planned, but nothing definitive yet. Do not let this scare you off; this has not been because of a lack of options! This master’s has left me in the fortunate position of being able to critically examine which jobs I do and do not want to pursue, so I have no doubt that I will soon be working in a job I really enjoy. I wish everyone all the best, and please feel free to contact me if you have any further questions!

I followed the Master Urban Governance of Inclusive Sustainable Cities at Erasmus University Rotterdam to understand urban challenges and their complexity. I enjoyed the combination of courses at ESSB and HIS (Institute for Housing and Urban Development Studies).

On the one hand, IHS allowed me to engage with urban economics, urban governance and spatial planning while lectures at ESSB developed my knowledge in public administration.

In Urban Governance Lab, we had the opportunity to apply theories learned on real-life cases. In this course, we worked in groups to advise organizations on urban challenges they might encounter. Our last assignment was an advisory assignment for the Municipality of Alkmaar, spread over two months, concluded by a group presentation to city practitioners and urban professionals. 

Junior researcher

I am currently doing a PhD at Eindhoven University of Technology. The master Urban Governance of Inclusive Sustainable Cities prepared me to carry out my research. This programme reinforced my research skills and knowledge on governance, sustainability, and justice challenges in cities. The great autonomy granted in the master's thesis strengthened my abilities as a junior researcher. The thesis circle process (group review of drafts and joint supervision meetings) prepared me for the peer-reviewing procedure one encounters in academia.

Excellent opportunities

In addition, the possibility to follow an (optional!) internship while working on my master's thesis at block 4 was extremely valuable. It allowed me to complete an internship in a research programme at Erasmus University Rotterdam and initiate my PhD journey. If you wish to pursue a career in academia, the master Urban Governance of Inclusive Sustainable Cities offers excellent opportunities. The teaching team was also helpful, as two professors supported my doctoral application process.

The impact of the choices made by policymakers and administrators on how people live together in society is great. This was made clear early in the bachelor's programme in Public Administration. During my internship at the municipality of Rotterdam, it became clear to me that this is especially true in cities, where the whole of society comes together and the effect of decisions taken at the local level is much more directly visible.

The relationship between the citizens and the government in cities was decisive for me to choose the master in Urban Governance of Inclusive Sustainable Cities after graduating in Public Administration. How can citizens themselves directly influence how their city looks? And when is urban policy really legitimate? The answer to these questions was covered more than once in this master, for example, in the course Spatiality and Justice in Urban Governance or during one of the most hands-on courses, Urban Governance Labs, where you actively engage with real-life urban challenges.

Plenty to choose

By getting to work myself, I also got a better idea of what it means to be a professional in the field later. After this master, you can work as a civil servant at the municipality, province, water authority or national government, but you can also work in a business consultancy. I did the latter. While completing my thesis, I found a job with a consultancy that aims to make cities in the Netherlands and far beyond even better places to live in. Plenty to choose from!

I have always had a great interest in topics related to the urban realm. However, with my academic background in cultural and tourism studies, I felt the need to dive deeper into the managerial and administrative aspects of urban development during my master’s studies. That’s why I chose the master Urban Governance of Inclusive Sustainable Cities.

The master’s degree Urban Governance of Inclusive Sustainable Cities was a suitable option for me because it offers a broad overview of today’s cities’ complex challenges. The Master studies the different ways of tackling these issues in an interactive and collaborative way, while also encouraging students to delve deeper into their areas of interest in individual research projects - all in just one year! 

Creating strategies

After completing the programme, I have moved back to my home country Germany to start my first job in a consultancy firm that deals with diverse issues as city management and marketing, retail analyses or integrated local development. Hence, the tasks and responsibilities of my job tie in perfectly to the curriculum of the Urban Governance of Inclusive Sustainable Cities track. Especially the opportunities and challenges related to citizen participation in urban governance are reoccurring themes when creating strategies and concepts which attempt to integrate citizens’ everyday knowledge for the sake of developing context-specific and effective strategic measures.

The combination of practice-oriented and theoretical seminars made the joint master’s degree of the IHS and ESSB so enjoyable to me! Especially the Urban Governance Lab was crucial for shaping my career path. Students collaborate intensively in small groups during the governance lab to create strategic advice during full-day sessions for both real-life and fictional case studies. The strategy-making and -presenting methodology we acquired during the lab not only prepared me well for becoming an urban professional but - most importantly- incited my interest in the field of public sector consulting.

A great learning and networking experience

Besides the Urban Governance Lab, my master’s thesis on urban resilience let me get valuable insights into the challenges the Dutch municipalities of Rotterdam and The Hague faced when leveraging the lessons learned during the corona crisis into urban resilience strategies. The strong connections between the faculty and the municipality of Rotterdam granted me the unique opportunity to combine my thesis writing with a policy analysis commissioned by the city of Rotterdam – a great learning and networking experience!

As a final note, I should stress that while the restrictions related to the corona crisis had a significant impact on student life during the past academic year, the highly collaborative approach of the master’s programme allowed me to connect and learn from my international fellow students nevertheless – even in the hybrid or digital format.