A new edition of the SPS Summer Academy has enlightened the EUI’s Badia Fiesolana. On 1-5 September, 27 students from European countries took part in a series of lectures, workshops, and informal presentations, shaping crucial aspects concerning Europe nowadays such as democracy, environmental sustainability, inequalities, and social issues.
Participants consistently described the event as an enriching and productive experience. Lisa Wunsch of the University of Wuppertal in Germany found the EUI a 'very vibrant environment', and was particularly impressed with the exceptional organisation and the 'insightful feedback' received during the workshops, which she believes will strengthen her will to pursue an academic career.
Similarly, Toni Gamundi, a social researcher at the Spanish National Research Council, highlighted the value of the interdisciplinary approach, which he felt was a key advantage over other summer schools. He found the detailed feedback from the lectures to be "especially relevant and useful" for developing his research ideas and ”overall extremely complete”.
Janis Jurgeleit from the University of Cologne described his participation as an "rewarding experience both on a personal level and on the academic level," noting that discussing his research with other students and Max Weber Fellows would be highly beneficial for his academic development.
From Slovenia, Meta Stuhec of the University of Ljubljana was inspired by the welcoming atmosphere and the willingness of professors and researchers to share their expertise. She particularly valued the focus on discussions and debates, which challenged her ways of thinking and has motivated her to consider applying for a PhD at the EUI.
Emilio Schlößer, a master's student from the University of Zurich, also called the week as "really productive and informative, full of interesting ideas and topics", praising the welcoming atmosphere and the opportunity to connect with other young researchers.
The core of this edition was the workshops led by EUI scholars Alejandro López Peceño, Ana Macanovic, and Tamás Peragovics. “I hope participants come away with a sense of the many rewarding aspects that an academic career can offer, both intellectually and personally” explained Alejandro López Peceño, outlining how this initiative provided “invaluable guidance for developing their research proposals before applying to doctoral programmes”.
On the other hand, Tamáš Peragović, who led the International Relations workshop, expressed satisfaction for the whole event. “We had a great couple of days researching participants project ideas and project topics. We had a lot of fun, good comments, and good discussions”. “I hope they had as much fun as I did. It's really a great programme that brings together so many diverse people from Europe”, concluded Tamáš.
Finally, reflecting on the week, EUI Professor at the Department of Political and Social Sciences Stefano Guzzini praised the sense of belonging to an academic community that the Summer School conveyed. To this end, the welcome lunch, farewell dinner, and guided tour of Florence were valuable opportunities that complemented the studying experience and allowed participants to build relationships with each other and learn more about the EUI.
This Summer Academy was funded by the EUI Widening Europe Programme. Backed by contributions from the European Union and EUI Contracting States, the programme is designed to strengthen internationalisation, competitiveness, and quality in research in targeted Widening countries, and thus foster more cohesive European Higher Education and Research Areas.