“Working in an international environment makes me a better person as well as a more accomplished professional”

“I was fourteen years old when my mother and I I moved from Trinidad and Tobago to the Netherlands. She was working for an international organization and I attended the international school in Arnhem. After having studied Medicine for a year, I switched to the Bachelor's program in Psychology and International Human Rights at Webster University in Leiden. Then I pursued a Master’s program in Human Resources Management at Webster University in Leiden, Geneva, and Vienna. I wanted to broaden my horizon, so I opted to travel with my studies.” 

Public and Private

During his studies, Jeremy did an internship at TomTom in Amsterdam and the International Criminal Court in The Hague. “Conscious decisions: I wanted to try out working in both the public and the private sectors.” Shortly afterwards, Jeremy started working as an HR specialist at Booking.com, but the public sector and further study continued to appeal to him. “I found the Master’s program of Labour Law and Employment Relations at Tilburg University. I was looking for a program to combine my interests in human rights and the labour market.” After his first Master at Tilburg University, he continued with a second one: International & European Law. “It enabled me to specialize in human rights, social policy, and international labour law. I combined new and old knowledge and thus increased my employability in a very focused way.”

Love of Tilburg 

Jeremy cherishes his time at Tilburg University, especially learning from the professors who taught in his programs. “Nikolas Rajkovic, my professor from the LL.M of International & European Law, and Bas Rombouts, Sonja Bekker, and Mijke Houwerzijl from the LL.M Labour Law and Employment Relations were crucial to my professional development. They inspired me with their knowledge and views. In addition, there were visits to the ILO (International Labour Organization) and the European Commission that further fueled my enthusiasm for my studies and possible career opportunities." Also in a social sense, Tilburg was a good choice. “I made life-long friends there.”

Combining a Master’s degree and a full-time job 

Jeremy is currently writing his Master’s thesis as well as working full-time at the OSCE in Vienna. He himself regards it as a doable challenge. Work hard and persevere, that’s his motto. “I have good online contact with my supervisor and that works just fine. And my supervisor at work is very supportive, fortunately.”  

Civilian mission through OSCE 

During his time at the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW), Jeremy acquainted himself with the work of the OSCE and with the civilian mission pool. The Netherlands supports reconstruction processes in (former) conflict areas like Mali and Ukraine. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs contributes to this by sending Dutch civilian experts abroad, often as part of peace-keeping missions, to work for international organizations. The civilian mission pool is organized by the European Commission, the United Nations, NATO, and OSCE. 

Tough procedure 

Part of the recruitment procedure was a group dynamics assessment consisting of tough mental and physical challenges to test how someone performs under great pressure. This is done to prepare people for a possible mission. “For instance I had to swim in handcuffs and find my way blindfolded,” he reminisces.  

Mission to (former) conflict area 

At the moment, Jeremy is working at the OSCE Secretariat in Vienna, but it is certainly conceivable that he could one day be part of a mission to a (former) conflict area. “I’m interested because of my passion for human rights and social justice, and the expertise I can offer in the field of labour law and HR in these missions.”

Other perspectives 

His motivation to work for the OSCE is clear. “I really wanted to work here because of the international character of the working environment. I like the dynamics that come with it and, in my position, I combine my knowledge of human rights, labour law, and HR. It is also enriching to work abroad, with people from other backgrounds, cultures, and beliefs. It is a challenge to look beyond your own ideas to find common ground. Why does something work in one country or situation but not in another? Such questions and the input they provide pique my curiosity and make me a better person, as well as a more accomplished professional.”

Where have your studies in Tilburg taken you?

Tilburg University closely monitors the quality of its degree programs, both in terms of their academic standard and regarding their alignment with the job market. That is why we keep track of our alumni’s careers, and as a graduate you can be of real help to new generations of students by telling us about your career.

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Date of publication: 14 November 2023