My name is Carlos Alberto Cruz Alcántara, and I am a Mexican lawyer currently pursuing a Master in Public Administration and Public Policy at the Center for Economic Research and Teaching in Mexico (CIDE). As part of my graduate training, I spent a semester as an exchange student at the Willy Brandt School of Public Policy at the University of Erfurt. This experience allowed me to deepen my academic formation while engaging with an international academic community in an environment characterized by analytical rigor, comparative perspectives, and a strong commitment to public policy excellence.

Choosing the Brandt School

I chose the Brandt School for both academic and personal reasons. Academically, I was seeking a program that combined methodological rigor with a strong emphasis on real-world policy challenges. The school’s focus on public administration, political economy, and empirical policy analysis made it particularly attractive for my academic interests.

On a personal level, Erfurt offered an environment conducive to reflection and concentration. Its calm and walkable character provided an ideal setting for focused academic work. An additional motivation was the city’s proximity to Weimar, historically associated with Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, whose intellectual legacy has long influenced my interest in philosophy, literature, and political thought.

Arrival and Institutional Support

From the beginning, my transition to life in Erfurt was smooth thanks to the support provided by the University of Erfurt’s International Office. The guidance offered by Sandra Schmidt was instrumental in helping me navigate administrative procedures such as securing student housing and completing the mandatory registration (Anmeldung). This allowed me to focus early on academic life and integration into the university community.

The University’s Buddy Program also played an important role during my first weeks. My Buddy, Nele Grabner, an undergraduate student, provided valuable assistance with practical matters, including navigating the campus, activating my student card (Thoska), and managing everyday logistics. Her support exemplified the welcoming culture extended to international students at the University of Erfurt.

Academic Life

Academically, my experience at the Brandt School was the central pillar of my exchange. The student body is genuinely international, and classroom discussions benefit from the diversity of professional backgrounds, national contexts, and intellectual traditions, all of which enrich academic debate. The pedagogical approach at the Brandt School places strong emphasis on analytical clarity, empirical reasoning, and methodological transparency. Courses are designed not only to convey substantive knowledge, but also to train students to formulate precise research questions, design coherent analytical strategies, and critically assess empirical evidence in the study of public policy.

Courses such as Public Administration and Finance and Advanced Methods, taught by Professor Dr. Achim Kemmerling, were particularly formative. They strengthened my ability to structure research questions, design empirical approaches, and reflect critically on methodological choices. Classroom discussions frequently extended beyond formal instruction into substantive debates on bureaucracy, governance, merit, corruption, and public budgeting, often approached from comparative perspectives.

In addition, Data Analytics with R and Python, taught by Dr. Hasnain Bokhari, significantly enhanced my computational skills. The course emphasized the input–process–output (“Algorithmic Thinking”) logic of data analysis and its application to concrete public policy problems, reinforcing the importance of evidence-based policymaking.

Together, these academic experiences were closely aligned with my research interests—particularly my focus on the fiscal implications of population aging—and provided analytical tools that will remain central to my future academic and professional work.

Community and International Exchange

Beyond the classroom, the international environment at the University of Erfurt fostered meaningful personal connections. Through shared academic experiences and everyday life in Erfurt, I developed close friendships with fellow international students. This sense of community complements the academic rigor of the Brandt School and represents one of the University’s greatest strengths.

Concluding Reflections

Taken together, my semester at the Brandt School was both academically enriching and personally transformative. The combination of rigorous coursework, an intellectually demanding environment, and a diverse and supportive international community created ideal conditions for learning and reflection.

For students seeking an internationally oriented education in public policy—grounded in analytical rigor and strengthened by comparative perspectives—the Willy Brandt School of Public Policy offers an exceptional academic environment.