Europe
Read the stories of our alumni specialised in the area of Europe here.
Alumni dreams #47
After BAIS Kseniia Maliuta became an International Relations and Communications Intern at StartupAmsterdam. With her team, she helps Amsterdam realize its full potential as a hyper-connected centre point for startups in the European tech scene.
She works on management of projects on international cooperation between municipal startup organisations across Europe, attracting international entrepreneurs to Amsterdam and developing a digital community platform for business information exchange.
She also helped prepare Prins Constantijn's visit to Ukraine as representative of StartupDelta with StartupAmsterdam!
This requires her to learn a lot. However, skills acquired during BAIS and especially PRINS are providing her with considerable professional advantages for this kind of job.
Alumni dreams #74
Giuseppe Del Vecchio has relocated to London to pursue a MSc. in International Public Policy at UCL. This postgraduate study has opened many opportunities, as he holds three part-time positions aside from his studies (triple wow)!
The PRINS course sparked a passion for research-based consultancy which led him to apply and it definitely impressed recruiters faced so far.
Most relevant Giuseppe is a researcher for the UNDP Ghana office, where he provides them with information regarding Disaster Risk Reduction.
He is also research analyst for Country Risk Solutions, a political risk firm based in the U.S. This provided the opportunity to publish articles, in collaboration with its CEO, on media outlets such as HuffPost and think tanks such as International Policy Digest!
Amazing progress Giuseppe!
Alumni dreams #84
Zsigmond Bérczes worked half a year in a café as kitchen manager to fund his travels. He then started travelling Europe: Bosnia, Albania, Montenegro, Serbia, Switzerland, Lichtenstein, Italy, Germany, Romania... Zsigmond left to Puerto Rico, following the US East coast, after the States he left to South-East Asia for more than two months in Thailand and Laos.
With Ana Maria Spariosu he also started a website as a long term cultural project. The goal is to write articles on different cultures around the world and share the different cultures with wider public. CulturalNomads is also in the process to be registered as a cultural non-profit organisation!
Zsigmond came back to Europe to work for Pro Progressione, a non-profit realising cross-cultural projects around Europe. As a Project Manager intern he works with the international project team and writes and edits proposals for the European Culture Foundation.
Rich experiences and interesting progress Zsigmond!
Alumni dreams #85
After International Studies Iris Martijn did an internship at a recruitment company Page Personnel where she learned that helping people is what fits her personality best (well done).
After the internship she took an opportunity for a job in Human Resources (HR) at Officium CVT! So far she really enjoys being in HR and the skills she learned at university such a writing and researching have been really helpful in her work.
Iris deals with all kinds of questions from every aspect in the company which keeps it very interesting. In her future career she would like to master all features of HR and also work for a big international company!
Sounds like the perfect fit for you Iris!
Alumni dreams #89
After BAIS Leonie Viktoria Schirmbeck did an internship at the Berlin Senate Department for Economics, Energy and Public Enterprises in the Area of Foreign Trade, European Economic Policy, Development Cooperation.
After she began a Master of European Studies at Freie Universität and Technische Universität Berlin, which was a perfect fit for her, having already specialized in the EU in her BA!
Due to learning the value of internships through the course Organizational Theory, Culture and Behavior and corresponding internship at Berlin Partner für Wirtschaft und Technologie GmbH, she decided to also do an internship throughout her Masters.
For this she has started as Junior Analyst at ISS | Institutional Shareholder Services in Brussels. She is highly excited to continue her in-depth area studies of the EU and to be able to add some practical experience in Brussels to this!
Highly capable and professional Leonie!
Alumni dreams 98#
After local NGO work Yoanna Daskalova began the MA International Relations with Culture and Politics track at Leiden. She will attend Prague Summer School week to further grasp the interplay of construction and formation of cultural and political identities and cultural underpinnings of policies and political discourses in the EU.
She coordinated a youth project of the Council of Europe and the European Commission on Human Rights Education, Human Trafficking Prevention and Fostering of Intercultural Dialogue for NGOs in Bulgaria.
Yoanna is now a Marketing and Communications Officer at The Hague Peace Projects for projects on conflict resolution and human rights fosterage in conflict regions like The Great Lakes Region in Africa, Bangladesh, Somalia and Turkey.
She has been able to apply her academic knowledge on the specificities of diverse world regions but also major global political developments. She also uses the rhetoric, intercultural and communication skills acquired throughout her education at Leiden University.
She is happy about it too. Enjoy work, studies and the link between Yoanna!
Alumni dreams #106
After finishing her degree while waiting for the graduation ceremony Gianina Ivodie finished 2 internships at the Jakarta Post in Indonesia and Singapore Art Museum in Singapore!
After her internships she was hired as a full time Account Manager at a Digital Branding Agency called Label Ideas & Co. Handling big clients such as Prost Beer (Indonesia), Texas Chicken - (Indonesia), Crucycle (Singapore), Muve Acoustics (India/Hong Kong) and many more!
While handling clients Gianina also joined a short thematic course by the Dutch Design School called Open Set Lab (https://lnkd.in/exSx5BW). Open Set is known as a research program on the intersection between design, film, art and the Humanities. It provides a unique opportunity for her, since she was able to give a more "Humanities" point of view among designers and curators!
In the fall she will start a Research Master in Central Saint Martins (A college of the University of the Arts London) with the pathway: Exhibition Studies!
Wishing you continued enjoyment and success in your pursuits of art and design Gianina!
Alumni dreams #142
Around the time Milou van den Broek finished her BA International Studies, she also graduated in Dutch Law and Business Sciences - Recht en Bedrijfswetenschappen (double wow!). She is now writing her thesis for the master Labor Law also at Leiden University and had a job as a paralegal at the labor union for workers in the beauty industry (FNV MOOI).
In the upcoming months Milou will be doing two internships at two law firms (quadruple wow!). In the near future she hopes to find a job as a lawyer at a large international law firm, so that she can combine both her studies in practice!
Besides this, she has been very active in the rowing sport for the last four years. Milou first rowed for two years herself at a national level. In the past two years, she coached a heavyweight freshmen eight! During this period she learned to work hard to achieve her goals.
Super impressive Milou. Whatever it is, arguing a case at (MOOT) court or rowing a race, with your drive you can do anything!
Alumni dreams #164
Mechteld Visser did her BA cum laude, she chose International Studies because of its broad outlook, matching her many interests. She also did Honours College and a minor on pre-modern European History. This led her to do a thesis on the influence of nationalism on history writing, in the cases of the Thirty Years War in Germany and the Netherlands,was nominated for the Golden Stork Award.
Unable to choose between the political and historic aspects of international affairs, she applied for the MSc Public Administration: International and European Governance and the MA History: Political Culture and National Identities. Mechteld completed her MSc cum laude, her thesis was awarded a whopping 9! Now she starts her MA aiming for similar results.
Mechteld has been working for Leiden University on the implementation of the new vision on teaching and learning. She co-organized the first Education Festival this summer, a big success!
Though she will probably never feel quite done with studying, she is excited to further branch out, enter the work field and see what the future may bring!
Exceptional Mechteld! Here she is shining at her graduation!
Alumni dreams #169
Choosing Europe as her area, Carlotta Duken discovered her interest for European and international politics and assembled her own minor focusing on the EU’s foreign, migration and security policies.
Since graduation Carlotta has worked for political think tanks and organizations in the UK and Germany. Applying her knowledge in European politics in various contexts, such as during her internship at the Friedrich Ebert Foundation in London where she closely observed Brexit negotiations (wow)! She learnt that pivotal achievements of the EU such as unity and peace cannot and should not be taken for granted and that it needs people to fight for those ideals.
Ever committed as European citizen, Carlotta returned to Germany to work for both the European Movement Germany and EUROPA EXPERIENCE an exhibition run by the Representation of the European Commission and European Parliament, to bring the EU closer to its citizens (double wow)!
Soon she starts her MA in International Relations (focus on Europe!) a joint program by the Free University of Berlin, Humboldt-University of Berlin and Potsdam University.
Way to specialize Carlotta! Enjoy your academic and professional life!