The EPRC postgraduate community were once again represented at the Open Days in Brussels, with EPRC student Alba Smeriglio winning a place to attend the prestigious EU Open Days University Master Class, which ran from 5-8 October 2014 in Brussels as part of the Open Days - European Week of Regions and Cities.
The Open Days draws thousands of policy officials, practitioners and academics from across Europe and includes the Open Days University which presents new research on regional and urban development. Now its second year, the Master Class is run to improve the understanding of EU Cohesion Policy and its research potential among selected European postgraduate students and early-career researchers (ECRs), and is organised jointly by the Regional Studies Association, DG Regio and the Committee of the Regions. In addition to lectures on the latest developments in research on European regional and urban development and EU Cohesion Policy, the event enables postgraduates and ECRs meet with EU politicians, officials and senior academics in the field of European regional and urban development and policy and network with students from countries inside and outside the EU and with the wider EU policy and academic communities.
Alba Smeriglio - who is undertaking a PhD on administrative capacity-building in Cohesion policy, funded by the European Investment Bank - was one of 30 students from throughout Europe participating in the Master Class. On behalf of the Regional Studies Association, John Bachtler contributed to the development of the Master Class programme, and coordinated a World Café debate among the students together with senior officials from DG Regio, DG Empl, DG Mare and the Committee of the Regions.