Our ‘Dual Focus PhD’ series tracks the working lives of our part-time PhD fellows. Many work at the highest of levels, both nationally and internationally, including for other parts of the UN System. They come to Maastricht for our unique PhD Dual Career Training Programme in Governance and Policy Analysis (GPAC²). This time we catch up with Nicolas Echarti, whose thesis looks at vocational rehabilitation in Germany. … You defend your dissertation with us on Thursday, 21 November 2019. When you ...

A unique partnership between the United Nations University and Maastricht University in the south of the Netherlands, our Master in Public Policy and Human Development features seven specialisations. See our new video interviews for the inside track on all the above. ...

In many parts of the world free-will and decision-making are not considered natural rights for women. I was born and raised in one such country, where women have to negotiate or fight against man-made laws on a daily basis. When I use the term “man-made laws” I refer not only to the legal system but also the culture, which is inherently restrictive towards females....

“It's the first time I've felt 'at home' so quickly in a new environment. Every day at UNU-MERIT is a pleasure. The tutorial sessions are alive, dynamic and very interesting! You can tell that every student is happy to be here and entirely committed.” ...

"Clearly, policy designs can look great on paper but their ultimate success is shaped by many factors. Unlike in Western Uganda, the government does not own the land in the West Nile region. The land belongs to local communities. As a result, the government relies on the willingness of host communities to make land accessible to refugees." Elsemarie Jorissen, MSc. Student, UNU-MERIT ...

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It was a pleasure to present our SMART choices and SMART tools project at the Association for Public Policy Analysis and Management (APPAM) Spring Conference – particularly the development and roll out of our tailor-made toolkits. Following a discussion on the employability of public policy graduates and skillsets required by employers, we were asked to share our open access project with our peers and the public. Access all our SMART toolkits here. Not only was it unique for me to have a full ho...

Every year in mid-June, students on our Master of Science in Public Policy and Human Development (MPP) are finally ready to immerse themselves in their Master’s thesis. Digging into the materials, it quickly becomes clear: a good Master’s thesis starts with a good literature review. But what exactly does that mean? And more importantly, how do you write a good literature review? Access all our SMART toolkits here. During the programme we train our students to develop a research proposal, b...

Peacebuilding is an arduous challenge — one that demands creative and comprehensive solutions. ‘Solutions’ that are all too often built on sand. ‘Solutions’ that are only really sustainable when built inclusively, from the ground up, with various actors. In April 2019, UNU-MERIT joined three sister institutes to lead a training event aimed at future policymakers, focusing on how best to tackle the challenges of long-term peacebuilding — all in support of SDG16...

One of the most pressing and cross-cutting issues on the international agenda today is global migration – an issue only made more challenging by climate change and armed conflict. Against this backdrop, UNU-MERIT joined a global event designed to train future policymakers how best to tackle the challenge of refugee crises in support of SDG16 — for Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions. UNU-MERIT continued its partnership with the Network of Schools of Public Policy, Affairs, and Administr...