BSc Public Governance: Public Administration, Economics and Law

Program 

Many social issues do not stop at our national borders and require a joint international approach. The Public Governance program has a strong multidisciplinary approach and offers an innovative and interactive education, by combining activities such as games, simulations and action research. Public Governance integrates insights from three fields of expertise that are crucial for tackling cross-border problems: public administration, economics and law.

• In the first year, you get an introduction to what 'Public Governance' is and you lay the foundation for the most important disciplinary perspectives. From the start, you will have to deal with the research design and skills training, essential for completing your Bachelor’s program.
• In the second year, you will become more familiar with public administration and policy making. This year brings substantive depth into each of the disciplinary perspectives and methods of research. You touch the core of the Public Governance expertise, included in the Strategic Public Management course.
• The third year includes a mobility window: you can go abroad on an exchange semester, or choose to take in-depth courses in Tilburg. Year 3 also has room for an internship.

Every year, you will put the theory into practice by working on real issues in a Governance Clinic. You will be conducting, for instance, a research for an organization such as Oxfam Novib (read: Public Governance students make Oxfam Novib Clinic a real success)

Many contemporary topics are covered in the program:

• Prof. dr. Harald Benink will take you on the subject 'Italy and the Eurozone' (video - 4:14 min)
• Prof. Mr. Dr. Stavros Zouridis brings a current topic under discussion: 'Why the Rule of Law has failed in Europe' (video - 5:23 min)

Typical courses are:

Because of the multidisciplinary approach of the program, your range of subjects also looks very varied:

• Political Science
  Study the different models of democracy, systems of supervision and accountability.
• Macroeconomics and International Economics
  Explore and compare diverse economic systems around the world. Get acquainted with theories about the role of governments in the economy of a country. 
• Constitutional Law
  You are introduced to constitutional concepts such as the rule of law, sovereignty, freedom and equality, to the developments of constitutionalism and the various forms of government as they can be distinguished from a legal perspective.
• Strategic Public Management
  Learn about the core concepts, models, and perspectives of public management, and achieve crucial strategic management skills for governmental functions in a cross-cultural setting.

More on the program and courses

Study Public Governance in Tilburg

• The program is small-scaled and interactive, with a strong international character.
• Every year, you will practice your skills in a Governance Clinic: an assignment where you approach an interdisciplinary societal challenge from a governmental point of view. Assignments are drawn, for instance, from the sphere of mobility, law enforcement, health care, education or social security. For example, by doing research for an organization like Oxfam Novib: Public Governance students make Oxfam Novib Clinic a real success.
• The program uses innovative and interactive teaching methods including games, simulations and action research.
• Right from the start of your first year, you will get to work on real-life issues as they occur in public organizations. The program is practice-oriented and includes a series of field trips and an internship. This link between theory and practice will give you a solid foundation for your future.

What to expect when coming to Tilburg

• Why Tilburg University?
• Student life in Tilburg
• International student support
• Study in Holland

Beyond your Bachelor: Extracurricular Activities

• Join one of our student or study associations, such as Magister JFT. A great way to meet like-minded students and make friends.
• Challenge yourself by participating in one of the programs of excellence.
• Broaden your horizon by studying a semester abroad - an experience of a lifetime.

Pursue a Master's degree

After your Bachelor’s, you can opt to join the workforce right away, but most students choose to continue with a Master’s degree. The Bachelor's program prepares you for the international Master’s program in Public Governance. 

Due to the broad nature of the Bachelor's program, you can move on to many different Master's programs in the fields of public administration, politics, economics and law or international studies. 

Career prospects

The program trains you for strategic policy and management positions within the international public, semi-public and private sector. You can also think of a position such as Public Affairs Officer within an international organization. In such a position, you would develop relationships between the organization and the public sector, and try to stress the societal position of the company as a lobbyist.

You can end up working in various different public fields, such as security and law enforcement, economics or governmental finance, but also health care, education, and social security.

Admission requirements

Dutch students can check their eligibility in the application procedure for Dutch students.

The admission requirements for this program for international students are, in short:

• You have a high school diploma which is equivalent to the Dutch VWO diploma. Examples of accepted diplomas are the International Baccalaureate, European Baccalaureate and most European high school diplomas which allow direct access to a university in your own country.
• You need to prove your English language proficiency. Tilburg University accepts Academic IELTS (6.0 overall, minimum of 5.5 on individual parts), TOEFL (minimum score of 80 internet based), and Cambridge English test results: C1 advanced (formerly CAE) or C2 proficiency (formerly CPE). For both C1 and C2, we accept a score of A, B or C.

Deadlines

The application deadline for the program was May 1, 2019. Applications from non-EU students are no longer being accepted for the September 2019 intake, since the procedure to acquire a visa takes several months. You can submit your application for the September 2020 intake as of October 1.

The deadline for EU/EEA students is extended to June 1, 2019.

Go to  application and admission

Tuition fees for international students

Information about tuition fees

Monthly cost of living

Living in Tilburg is relatively inexpensive compared to other student cities in the Netherlands, such as Amsterdam, Rotterdam or Utrecht. An indication for your monthly cost of living (including rent, food and drinks, books, and insurance), of course, depending on your lifestyle:

Related Bachelor's programs

• Particularly interested in international law? LLB Global Law may be an option for you.
• Global Management of Social Issues could also interest you, if you find the organizational issues surrounding complex social problems interesting
• If you especially like combining insights from social sciences, law, humanities and business, check out the University College Tilburg: Liberal Arts and Sciences.