Besides many advantages and opportunities of the degree, the Master’s at PSIA was definitely a challenge. As many others have noted here, the scarcity of the resource of time is something one must deal with. Classes, assignments, associations, friends, work, sport – all things that require conscious decisions on how to use one’s limited amount of time. However, another thing I saw myself confronted with was the question of how to make the most out of my time at PSIA intellectually. Before I started in 2023, I sat down with myself and reflected on why I am doing this degree. Along the lines of Erich Fromm, who in one of his most famous books distinguishes between “Having” or “Being”, I did not just want to accumulate knowledge in the form of endless pages of notes. I wanted to properly engage with the content of the numerous exciting and thought-stimulating classes to get prepared to contribute as much as possible to “the real world”. For instance, I tried to note down only questions or connections to other classes or things I’ve learned/experienced in the past. This helped me to properly incorporate new insights into my existing bits of knowledge and see the bigger picture. The Grand Oral was a great opportunity to reflect once again on what were my objectives before coming to Paris? How am I and my mental models of the world different now? What does that mean for how I interact and engage in the world? Being aware of what drives you, for me, was crucial to making the most out of my time at PSIA.

PSIA prepared me in many ways – I think – for being a useful part of society afterwards. Two stand out for me. The first key aspect is how practical and applied the degree is. Be it through writing policy briefs, conducting role plays, playing simulation games, or drafting policies – all classes allowed me to work on things which are also going to be part of my reality in any future position. How to better learn something than by doing it? 

Moreover, I tried to select my classes to have mostly practitioners as teachers. How to better learn something than by hearing about it from someone who has worked on it as a foreign minister or a high-level public servant in international organizations. Additionally, the possibility of doing an internship in the third semester enabled me a life-changing time at the German Embassy in Baku, Azerbaijan, during COP29. The second thing that makes me confident to enter the next stage of my career are the people I met. Seeing decision-makers from up close reminded me: we are all just humans, not just faces and names appearing on the news. 

PSIA allowed me to enter a world which did not always seem very accessible or close while growing up in the Bavarian countryside. Exchanging with professors and peers with different passions and expertise, yet united in their urge to take on responsibility for the greater good, made me enter a network of people which inspired me. It embedded me in a community that I will try to nurture and stay in contact with in the future to collectively drive positive change.

My two cents to add would be: Don’t compare yourself. Focus on the intellectual opportunity that lies ahead of you! For me, my time at PSIA was definitely the most intellectually stimulating time in my life so far. It is easy to feel inferior among all the great and impressive students gathered at PSIA. Try to calm down your impostor syndrome, in the end, you’re not there to prove anything to anyone. You’re probably there to learn that you can do without any competition. 

That also brings me to my next point: Don’t focus on grades. That might sound like a hypocrite thing coming from someone with summa cum laude, but for me, changing my perspective on assignments helped me a lot. It took pressure to see assignments as an opportunity to master and learn from rather than a burden in order to get grades. Once I let go of my inner pressure to pursue good grades, they actually came around. Last but not least: Take it seriously – but also not too seriously. Life is so much more than your academic performance. Lie down under a tree in one of Paris’ many beautiful parks on a sunny day with a good book, enjoy a scenic run along the riverbanks, drink a glass or two in a wine bar, and take care of yourself and others. I think the world could profit from a society in which people reconnect more with the world aside from screens. Living more mindfully and gratefully, I think, is especially important for anyone at PSIA, because: Without inner peace, it is hard to think about outer peace.