Study Public Economics and Policy
The one-year specialisation in Public Economics and Policy provides you with the knowledge and practical skills to analyse complex societal challenges at an advanced level. At the same time, you learn how to translate theoretical insights and empirical evidence into clear and actionable policy advice.
- In Period 1 (Sep–Oct), you’ll take methods courses in Microeconomics and Econometrics. These give you a strong foundation for the rest of the specialisation — both for the Public Policy field courses and for a wide choice of electives.
- In Period 2 (Nov–Dec), you’ll take the first field course: Economics of Public Policy. This course gives you the tools to analyse taxation, public debt, government efficiency, public goods, and more. It connects theory with real-world issues. In the same period, you’ll choose an elective in a specific area of economic policy. A recommended elective is Economics of Environmental Policy, which studies primarily market-based policy instruments to address a variety of environmental problems.
- In Period 3 (Jan), you will write a Policy Brief on a topic of your choice, with individual supervision from a lecturer. This sharpens your skills in independent, policy-oriented writing.
- In Period 4 (Feb–Mar), the second field course Public Finance and Social Insurance takes centre stage. You’ll examine how welfare programmes — such as health care, unemployment insurance, and pensions — can be designed in ways that are both fair and efficient. You will also choose another elective course. The recommended elective in this period is Urban Economic Challenges and Policies that evaluates effective policies related to housing and cities.
- In Periods 5 and 6 (Apr–Jun), you’ll write your master’s thesis, with personal supervision from a lecturer, making an original contribution to research on the Economics of Public Policy.
The start date of this programme is September 1st.