Career Opportunities

The Euroculture Community

Euroculture is committed to enhancing the employability of its students upon graduation. Training our students in hands-on, transferable skills within the Eurocompetence modules, integrating a work placement during the studies, and building a community of students, alumni, and staff, all help us make the transition to the labor market easier. 

Our graduates have built careers in the fields of politics and international relations, cultural management, research, journalism, policy-making, international business, and NGOs. Others have found careers in academia, taking up PhD research in many fields in the humanities and social sciences. 

Where do Euroculture graduates end up working, and how does the Master help them to build their careers? Our student paper, the Euroculturer, regularly interviews current students as well as alumni about their internships and professional/academic experiences. We kindly invite you to find out more about them by going to the Euroculturer's website.

Positive experience

In the latest survey*, 90% of our graduates have stated that their overall experience of the programme was positive, very positive, or great. Mainly students were happy about the mobility, interdisciplinary programme, and the community feeling within Euroculture. Things like good coordination and availability of teaching staff, as well as flexibility to choose your track were also mentioned as advantages of Euroculture. 

International groups

From 1998 until 2023, students of more than 70 different nationalities have studied Euroculture. Our students come from all over the world, with German, Dutch, Italian, and French students being the majority among the EU students; and China and the USA leading in numbers of non-EU students. 

Working in diverse groups and learning from classmates from different cultures are cited among the advantages of the programme as well. They help our students to build careers in the global world.

Worldwide work placements

In the past 6 Euroculture editions, our students have carried out their work placements in 41 different countries, further stressing the international character of the programme. Belgium is a popular destination of course, as many students gravitate towards Brussels and the European institutions there (together with many NGO's and governmental agencies that have representations in the European capital). But Euroculture students do not stay bound to Brussels, and have been able to find placements from Bosnia to Mongolia, and from the Philippines to Chile.

Euroculture has its own alumni association - Arete. On top of that, Euroculture students and alumni are welcome to join Erasmus Mundus Alumni Association. Read more about them below!

Euroculture gave me the foundations to easily work in and around EU institutions as well as get a grasp on how culture is financed throughout the EU.

John Beauchamp (2005-2006)

Job Prospects

Euroculture teaches its students to critically analyze and interpret the social and political processes in Europe and the world today, and to translate this analysis into practical solutions. As the programme is diverse and flexible, the career paths of our alumni also vary across fields. Below is more information on how Euroculture graduates fare once they leave university, based on the alumni survey conducted in 2019.*

Find a job within a couple of months

The most recent Euroculture Alumni Report has shown that Euroculture graduates find their first relevant job in no time: 70% will secure a job within the first 3 months after graduation, and the rest mostly within 6 months after graduation. This is a very positive result, that shows how well the programme equips its students with skills necessary for the job market. Especially such practical courses like Project Management, and the experience our students acquire working in international teams help the Euroculture alumni be successful. 

Work across different sectors

Euroculture graduates find jobs in different sectors of the economy. While a lot of people gravitate towards work in the public sector (governments, European institutions, research centers), many alumni also work in the private sector. Many alumni ended up doing a Bluebook Traineeship at the European Commission after graduating, or have worked at the Council of Europe. Some alumni pursue a PhD after graduation. 
Read our alumni stories to get concrete examples of careers possible after Euroculture Master. 

What do the alumni do in their work?

Across the public, private, and non-profit sectors, Euroculture graduates are involved in work across various fields: from International Politics to Communications to Education and Social Affairs (see chart below). For example, they work with European Movement International on democracy and international relations; or in Neth-ER to promote Dutch research and education on the European Level. If they work with Council of Europe or European Center for Minority Issues, they are often engaged in the field of social affairs and human rights. A lot of alumni in the private sector report dealing with consultancy and marketing, which fall under the "Other" category. 

The alumni's jobs tend to focus on the following functions: 

  • Project Management;

  • Management & Coordination;

  • PR & Marketing / Communication;

  • Administrative work;

  • Research;

  • Advising / Consultancy;

  • Policy-making;

  • Lobbying;

  • Reporting, Editing, Translation

*A new alumni survey is currently being conducted and will become available in 2024.

Main sectors of employment for Euroculture graduates

Examples of positions occupied by recent graduates (Last updated - March 2024)

  • Press Officer at the Permanent Representation of Sweden to the EU

  • Analyst, Global Macro- Geostrategy at Eurogroup

  • Independent Contractor at United Nations System Staff College (UNSSC) 

  • PhD Candidate at Eötvös Loránd University

  • Bluebook Trainee at DG JUST, European Commission

  • PhD Candidate at Erasmus University Rotterdam

  • Research Associate at Indiana University Lilly Family School of Philanthropy

  • Research Fellow EU & Global Affairs Unit at the The Clingendael Institute

  • Project Coordinator Process Engineering at Sartorius Stedim Biotech

  • Research Associate & Project Manager at the Lisbon Council

Eurocompetence, which looked into project management, development and EU funding, was exceptionally helpful to get a job in an international development sector upon graduation. In fact, it became the very first training for my career in project management.

Veronika Goncharova (2007-2009)

Erasmus Mundus Students and Alumni Association - EMA

Over 15.000 bright international students took part in the Erasmus Mundus programme already. Almost 9000 of them are members of the EM Association!

The Erasmus Mundus  Students and Alumni Association (EMA) offers an international professional and personal network for Erasmus Mundus students and graduates. Members can join professional networks and service teams to network and become active within the Association. Jobs board and special entrepreneurship section are offered to our members.

EMA members are ambassadors of the Erasmus Mundus. We share the idea of international education and spread the message around the world. Since its foundation EMA members have initiated or taken part in over 150 fairs, information seminars and promotional activites worldwide, using the promotional materials of EMA.

EMA serves as channel of communication for students, alumni, universities and the European Commission. There is a Course Quality Advisory Board to respond to the suggestions of the students.

Through Programme Representatives and Country Representatives EMA enables the potential Erasmus Mundus applicants to get in touch with the current students and graduates to receive a piece of advice and recommendations based on the experience of previous generations.

Who can join the Association?

  • newly accepted students of Erasmus Mundus Master or PhD Programmes (only Action 1) who have received an acceptance letter

  • current students and graduates of Erasmus Mundus Master or PhD Programmes (Action 1)

  • alumni of those courses which no longer are offered, but retain the Erasmus Mundus brand

How to become a member?

Before Euroculture, I really struggled to get roles in the UK Government, possibly because my CV wasn’t that relevant to the public sector. I believe that Euroculture gave me the headspace, confidence and focus to plan and execute my career switch from the private sector into the public sector, as well as the EU-specific knowledge to excel in the EU-related roles I’ve had over the last 6 years.

Virginia Stuart-Taylor (2016-2018)

Arete: Alumni Association

Arete is the alumni organization of the Euroculture programme, managed by alumni and students. Its main purpose is to form a Euroculture network in order to keep in touch with each other and provide opportunities for exchanges and meet-ups.

Raison d’être

A well-functioning alumni organization is key to improve the positions graduates end up in. The Euroculture programme, with its fifteen years of connections and alumni, possesses a large potential network and Arete tries to get the most out of this. In addition, organizing and mobilizing graduates has been tough, for Euroculture operates mostly in eight European cities. With Arete it is easier for alumni to meet up, share experiences, expand their networks, do activities and most of all to have fun! In addition, it is easier for current Euroculture students to get to know alumni through the organization and make friends in higher and diverse places.

Arete: what’s in a name

The origins of the word Europe can be found in ancient Greece, where they referred to their territory as Europa. Of course the notion of Europe changed over the course of history and many have wondered –and still do- what Europe actually is. So do Euroculture students. Because of the Greek origins of the concept of Europe, the Euroculture alumni organization carries an old Greek name as well. Arete literally means ‘excellence’ and the notion was used to refer to being excellent in every way by effectively achieving results and living up to your potential. This is fitting for an organization which aims to enforce bonds among alumni of this ‘master of excellence’ in the best way possible to get the most out of everyone.

How does Arete operate?

Arete is a non-profit, voluntary organization with a personal structure. Central to the functioning of the group are representatives in different areas in Europe (and in some cases in the rest of the world!). There are two types of representatives: (1) alumni representatives, who represent their fellow graduates in the respective region; (2) student representatives, who represent current Euroculture students in their area to get students in touch with graduates. Representatives not only try to organize events themselves, they can also provide assistance to bring initiatives from other graduates and students into fruition.

Arete’s competences

  • A platform through which alumni and students can interact and connect;

  • Regular meet-ups in different cities;

  • A gateway for alumni to stay in touch and connect with each other and the Euroculture programme;

  • Regular job postings;

  • An up-to-date database for the consortium.

How can I join?

Arete’s social media presence has moved to LinkedIn and is now merged under the new banner ‘‘Euroculture Community’’. Join us by clicking the link below! LinkedIn: Euroculture Alumni: Arete

Euroculture opened my eyes to a wider world, setting me off on an international track that has enriched my career.

Floris Langen (2001-2002)

Resources

We’re committed to informing our students and alumni about career opportunities. Check out some resources deemed useful by Euroculturers past and present! Interested in being included in this section with your organization? Contact us!