European University Institute

The European University Institute (EUI) is an international centre for doctorate and post-doctorate studies and research. The four departments at the EUI – economics, history and civilization, law, and political and social sciences – host a multi-national community with no one dominant culture, consisting of nearly 900 scholars who represent more than 60 nationalities. Since its establishment in 1972 by the six founding members of the then European Communities, the EUI has earned a reputation as a leading international academic institution with a European focus, successfully pursuing its aim to provide advanced academic training in the social sciences for doctoral and post-doctoral researchers. The EUI was established with the goal of fostering research in fields that are of particular interest for the development of Europe. The research carried out at the EUI is thus not only on subjects that are relevant to the internal policies of the European Union, but also to subjects that aim at assessing Europe’s role on the global stage, such as international security, comparative foreign policy and global governance. Besides being a teaching and research institute, the EUI acts as a hub for a network that includes various European universities, international organisations, national research centres and institutions. The EUI has a strong commitment to fostering learning at post-doctoral level though the Max Weber Programme for Postdoctoral Studies, the largest international postdoctoral programme in the social sciences and humanities in Europe, which provides advanced training to young academics from around the world. In addition, the EUI is home to the Robert Schuman Centre for Advanced Studies, which conducts interdisciplinary, comparative and policy research on integration, governance and democracy, regulating markets and governing money, and 21st-century world politics and Europe. Admission to the EUI is very selective. Each year only 160 researchers from the best universities in Europe and beyond are admitted on the basis of the quality of their curriculum and research proposal. The EUI offers excellent career prospects for its researchers and postdoctoral fellows. More than 30 per cent of all EUI alumni now occupy senior positions in their chosen career paths; 69 per cent of EUI graduates go on to careers in academia or research (universities and research centres); 19 per cent develop their careers in the private sector and in national public authorities; and 12 per cent play a role in the international arena by joining European institutions and other international organisations.