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Stefanos, Public Policy Alumni, tells us about his time at UCL.
Tell us a bit about yourself and your background
My name is Stefanos Geros and I come from Athens, Greece. I studied Political Science and History at Panteion University in Athens and then completed a Master’s in Public Policy at UCL (2020-2021). I have previously worked at the European Parliament, focusing mainly on the Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs and the Committee on Budgets. After graduating from UCL, I joined Cefic (The European Chemical Industry Council) in Brussels, working as a Public Affairs Manager. During this time I have worked on different legislative files, such as the PFAS restriction, water and soil legislation, as well as the Net Zero Industry Act. I was also given the opportunity to work in the preparation of the Antwerp Declaration, one of the biggest initiatives ever organised by industry in the European policy context.
Can you share your overall experience as a student at UCL and in the Department of Political Science?
The wide range of modules provided by the Department of Political Science enabled me to focus on the areas that I was most interested in. Mainly legislation and policies related to the European Union and its institutions, as well as the dynamics between them. Being part of such a big University like UCL, I enjoyed the benefit of participating in workshops and seminars from other departments and coming into contact with students with very different interests and academic backgrounds.
How was your experience on the Public Policy programme?
UCL’s Public Policy MSc programme is an excellent programme and I was particularly pleased by the focus towards quantitative methods of research which is something that is often lacking in the political science sphere. The programme’s modules provided me with all the technical expertise to conduct research based on analysis of big datasets and statistical modelling, a sought after skill in today’s marketplace. The interactive nature of the seminars also offered a great platform for exchange of ideas with my peers and professors, and discussions expanding farther than the contents of the curriculum.
How did the programme prepare you for your current career?
The programme helped me to prepare for my current career by putting an emphasis on case studies from the “real world” and not focusing solely on the theories of public policy and management. This combination enabled me to better understand how the theories can actually be observed in existing legislation and policy making. I was also given the opportunity to conduct my thesis on the European Commission’s State aid response to the COVID-19 outbreak, a novel issue which was not studied much at the time but has been very important for most European industrial sectors in recent years.
