Public policy in practice 2100-SPP-L-D6PPIP

Course scope and goal

This course bridges academic approaches to public policy with day-to-day policy work in regional, European, and international organisations. Students learn core concepts and frameworks used to analyse policy problems (problem definition, instruments, governance levels, stakeholders, evidence, implementation, evaluation), and then apply them in practice through structured collaboration with practitioners invited to class (live or online). The course develops professional competencies essential for policy careers: stakeholder mapping, professional outreach and networking, briefing and agenda design, meeting facilitation, concise presentations for external audiences, and synthesis of practitioner insights into policy-relevant outputs.

Learning outcomes

After completing the course, the student will be able to:

Knowledge

Explain major approaches to analysing public/social policy in practice (policy cycle as a heuristic; governance and institutions; stakeholder dynamics; evidence and evaluation).

Distinguish policy instruments and implementation mechanisms (regulation, spending, services, information/behavioural tools; delivery chains and accountability).

Describe how regional, European, and international contexts shape policy work (multi-level governance, coordination, compliance, funding, partnerships).

Skills

Identify relevant policy actors and organisations for a given policy domain and map their roles, interests, and influence.

Prepare professional stakeholder outreach and invitations, coordinate meetings, and maintain professional follow-up communication.

Produce meeting preparation materials: organisation dossier, policy-context note, agenda, question bank, and role allocation.

Facilitate or co-facilitate practitioner meetings, ensuring clarity, time management, productive Q&A, and documentation of insights.

Deliver short, targeted presentations for visiting practitioners (clear purpose, audience fit, structured message).

Convert meeting insights into policy outputs (briefing note, stakeholder map, short policy memo) using appropriate frameworks.

Social competence / attitudes

Demonstrate professional conduct and ethical awareness when interacting with external stakeholders (reliability, respect, confidentiality where relevant).

Collaborate effectively in teams, share responsibility, and provide constructive peer feedback.

Reflect on personal career interests and plan next steps based on exposure to real policy roles.

Course content
Lecture programme (30 hours) — indicative thematic modules

Policy practice overview: what policy work is (and is not); typical roles; organisational types; policy vs social policy.

Problem definition & framing: how issues become “policy problems”; narratives, values, and measurement.

Stakeholders and power: mapping actors, interests, incentives; consultation and participation; conflict and trade-offs.

Policy instruments: typologies; choosing tools; unintended consequences; feasibility and legitimacy.

Evidence in policy: data sources; research-to-policy translation; evidence limits; communicating uncertainty.

Implementation and delivery: street-level bureaucracy; delivery chains; coordination; capacity; accountability.

Evaluation & learning: indicators, logic models, theory of change; monitoring vs evaluation; learning loops.

Multi-level governance: regional–national–EU–international interaction; coordination mechanisms; funding logics.

Ethics & professionalism: transparency, equity, inclusion, conflicts of interest, confidentiality and consent.

Policy communication: policy briefs, memos, stakeholder updates; speaking to non-academic audiences.

Career pathways in policy: competencies, portfolios, recruitment processes, and networking strategy.

Integration session: linking practice encounters to frameworks; preparing capstone outputs.

Workshop programme (30 hours) — practice cycle around practitioner engagement

A) Scouting & outreach

Identify domains and organisations (regional/EU/international)

Assign roles in student teams

Draft outreach messages and invitations (with facilitator feedback)

B) Meeting preparation

Organisation dossier + policy context one-pager

Agenda and time plan

Tailored question bank (linked to lecture frameworks)

Student micro-presentation design for the guest (3–7 minutes)

C) Conducting meetings

Student-led moderation and hosting

Q&A management and documentation (rapporteur notes)

D) Debrief & synthesis

Map insights to frameworks (problem framing, instruments, implementation constraints)

Produce a post-meeting output (briefing note / stakeholder map update / reflection)

E) Professional follow-up

Thank-you note and (optional) short summary shared with guest

Contact log and networking reflection (what to do next)

Teaching and learning methods

Lectures with guided discussion and applied mini-cases

Workshops with simulations (facilitation drills, outreach role-play, memo writing)

Practitioner meetings (live/online) with structured student roles

Team-based deliverables and peer feedback