Do you want to update your knowledge, lean into recent challenges in your professional environment or move up in your career ? 

At Sciences Po Executive Education, we advocate a multidisciplinary approach to learning. Participants gain a strong grounding in the social and human sciences, complemented by insights into the reality and actuality of different sectors. The programmes offered at Sciences Po Executive Education are designed to equip you with the skills you need to fulfil your career aspirations. 

Here are our top five tips to help you choose the programme that best fits with your experience and expectations: 

• Be clear on your professional goals
• Decide what skills you’d like to developp
• Determine how much time you have
• Explore funding options for your studies
• Learn more about Sciences Po Executive Education

1) BE CLEAR ON YOUR PROFESSIONAL GOALS

This is the first step you need to take to find the right programme for you: be laser- focused in defining your career plan. Do you currently work in a sector that is going through a transition and want to upskill? A short programme will ensure you are aligned with your organisation’s requirements and stay competitive in your role, or even give you an edge. Do you have your sights set on a much more senior position? Consider taking one of the accredited or certificate programmes dispensed by Sciences Po Executive Education.

If you’re mid-career and want to learn how to see the bigger picture in terms of your job and the technological, environmental and societal challenges impacting your sector, a long-term accredited programme, such as one of our Executive Masters, is your best bet. This will not only allow you to build your skills: it will also train you how to challenge the status quo and carry out a deep dive into your economic environment. To develop your critical mind and acquire new insights, you will get to study the social sciences, the bedrock of learning at Sciences Po Executive Education. As a discipline, it will further your knowledge in the areas you require to step into a management role or make a successful career switch. In addition, you will be awarded a Sciences Po certificate or degree: a hallmark of recognition and excellence around the world. What’s more, you will have access to the Sciences Po alumni network, a community of over 90,000 graduates that fosters a sense of inclusion, influence and belonging.

2) DECIDE WHAT SKILLS YOU'D TO DEVELOP

Sciences Po Executive Education has just the programme you need, whether you’re looking to boost your operational acumen or expand into new disciplines. Do you want targeted training that homes in on one particular area of expertise? Our range of short programmes are designed to direct your focus on specific professional skills (design thinking, practising administrative litigation, etc.) or a subject that is gaining traction in organisations (religion and business, corporate management, etc.). Certificate programmes are another option to further your knowledge on a specific challenge (cooperative enterprise governance, ecological transition and company change, etc.). You might also decide to shore up your soft skills and lean towards short programmes specialising in these qualities (effective negotiation techniques, emotional intelligence, etc.). 
 

Are you interested in exploring a specific topic in all its multi layered complexity? Our Executive Masters give you deep insight into the major challenges facing your organisation (health and public policy management, digital transformation strategies and management, management, etc.), combining academic study with direct interaction with experts and industry professionals. These programmes not only update your theoretical knowledge, they also develop your soft skills and hands-on experience through real-life case studies, while engaging your critical thinking (dissertation). 

3) DETERMINE HOW MUCH TIME YOU HAVE

How much time can you reasonably set aside in your schedule to study? It’s no small question, and one you need to ask well ahead of starting your training, especially as some programmes require a long-term commitment. 

Our Executive Masters take place two to three days a month over one or two years. They also involve a lot of self-study outside the classroom. It’s important that this commitment is manageable alongside your work and home life. If the time you have available to study is limited, short programmes make for a more flexible solution. 

They are dispensed over one to five days, and some are taught in several sessions through the year. Certificate programmes offer the best of both worlds: these run in sessions of up to two weeks spread over several months and are ideal if you don’t want to take too much time away from your professional responsibilities.

4) EXPLORE FUNDING OPTIONS FOR YOUR STUDIES

Your company may cover the cost of training as part of its skills development obligations. Of course, the question of financing is likely to have a bearing on the programme you choose. First, it’s important to know the price ranges (about €1-4K for a short programme, €5-16K for a certificate programme, €17-30K for an Executive Master) as well as the different options available to you to finance your studies. They will vary depending on your status (public- or private-sector employee, sole trader, etc.) and your employer. Get in touch with your HR manager to find out more about your options. 

Similarly, if you work for a French employer, you can apply for funding as part of your Personal Training Account (CPF) or Professional Transition Plan (PTP). If you are in the public sector, you might be interested to know that Sciences Po Executive Education has a study agreement with local elected officials, helping them to finance their study. 

5) LEARN MORE ABOUT SCIENCES PO EXECUTIVE EDUCATION

Want to know more about the programmes we offer? Visit our website or follow us on social media to find out what our alumni have to say about their time with us. We also publish articles in which we attempt to decipher the most pressing questions in your professional sectors. In addition, get in touch with Sciences Po Executive Education directly: programme managers for our Executive Masters are on hand to give any help or advice you need. You can also find out the course requirements for the different programmes we offer, which we have made as accessible as possible. To study with us, you don’t need to have earned a previous qualification from Sciences Po or be in a management role. Read up on our study recommendations, too: these give you personalised guidance on the sources of financing adapted to your past experience and career plan.

Learn more about our programmes

To Find out More

• 7 tips for the perfect work, life and study balance
• “I Wasn't Looking For A Toolbox, But New Perspectives”