The Applied Economics (Public Policy and Development) Master’s degree is delivered by PSL or the EHESS or the Ecole des Ponts ParisTech, with the support of PSE-Ecole d’économie de Paris. Created in 2008, the program is designed to face the rising demand for evaluation and expertise on public policies to evaluate public policies in both developed and developing countries.
The Master's program focuses on the acquisition of modern techniques for the analysis and evaluation of public policies, whether they are tools of economic theory or quantitative methods in the social sciences. The Master's degree focuses on economic analysis, but training also includes economic history, political science and more generally to all disciplines likely to help students understand and put into perspective the different kinds of public action and its tools. Public policy practitioners will share their practices.
The program combines classes with a traditional lecture format introducing students to methodological and conceptual frameworks of policy evaluation, individual and team projects (especially in the first year) and classes emphasizing policy applications over pure theory (concentrated in the second year). Most policy areas are covered following a thematic approach.
• First year (M1) focuses on deepening basic skills in quantitative methods, microeconomics, macroeconomics, political economy and economic history. Students also follow courses presenting social policies in developed and developing countries, as well as the challenges of globalization. The programme also includes a series of lectures by experts and policy makers. At the end of the year, students must complete a compulsory internship in an institution that manages the development or evaluation of public policies.
• During the second year (M2), students can choose their course of study, which enables them to specialize. The curriculum allows them to choose from a wide range of courses covering social policies, global policies, economic history and quantitative methods. The writing of a research thesis, under the supervision of a researcher from the Paris School of Economics, is the culmination of the two-year Master's program.
Students may apply if they own a Bachelor's degree in Humanities and Social Sciences with a strong focus on economics and a substantial background in mathematics. Students should be especially interested in the design, analysis and evaluation of public policies both in developing countries and in developed countries.
After the Master's degree, graduates may pursue with doctoral studies in economics, or they can find positions in national administrations, international organizations, development agencies, academic institutions, non-governmental organizations and private companies.
Read the story of Mónica, a student in this Master's program