Meet Harmke Kruithof

• 2-year, full-time programme (120 ECTS) in English, MPP degree
• Specialise in policy analysis or management and organisation
• Integrated professional development: Internship and Professional Year programme
• Tuition: 18,250 euros per year (more about tuition and fees)
• Scholarships available  
• Career services, professional and alumni network
• Leading international faculty
• International academic exchanges and dual degrees
• Qualifies for a job-seeking visa in Germany (up to 18 months after graduating)
• Accredited by German Accreditation Council

In the first year of study, you will develop robust analytical skills in statistics and economics, while also learning the principles of public management, law and governance, the policy-making process, and project management. Through these courses, you will acquire a broad and interdisciplinary theoretical and analytical framework to examine contemporary governance challenges, while also honing practical skills such as policy writing and research design. Toward the end of the first semester, students select one of two areas of concentrations:

• In the Policy Analysis (PA) concentration, students learn cutting-edge statistical and analysis tools and use them to make sense of empirical evidence on governance challenges and design, implement and evaluate public policies to address those challenges. Causality is a key issue addressed in the Policy Analysis concentration: How do we know if a policy is effective? How can a causal relationship between a policy intervention and the outcome of interest be established?
• In the Management and Organisation (MO) concentration, students are trained in modern concepts and methods of leadership, decision-making, public management and strategy. Whereas the Policy Analysis concentration focuses on what policies are most effective to address specific challenges, in Management and Organisation a central question is how to ensure the successful implementation of policies and how to design and lead organisations in a responsible and effective way.

In the second year, you will be able to delve deeper into the key issues of your area of concentration, but will nonetheless have the opportunity to take courses outside your concentration. You will also have the opportunity to make an original contribution to the scientific study of a specific policy challenge by writing a master’s thesis under the supervision of a faculty member.

Regardless of the concentration that you choose, the MPP will enable you to effectively analyse data and complex empirical evidence, design, implement, and evaluate effective policy instruments, and make informed recommendations on actionable solutions to societal challenges. At the core of the program are not only analytical and critical thinking skills but also ethical considerations about the meaning of, and conditions for, good governance as a rich and multilayered concept.