Economic Policy and Quantitative Methods (EPQM) | Master

The master’s degree program in Economic Policy and Quantitative Methods addresses current economic and socio-political topics related to labor markets, inequality, human behavior, economic growth as well as climate change and the environmental and discusses instruments of economic policy to tackle these issues. Students gain insight into a variety of different fields of economics, including Labor, Health, Education and Gender Economics, Climate, Environmental and Urban Economics, Behavioral and Entrepreneurship Economics, as well as Growth and Distribution. The program offers students the opportunity to develop specialized knowledge and skills in the economic analysis of policy instruments which are essential for evidence-based policy making. Besides a strong theoretical core in economics, the program has a particular focus on methods for quantitative empirical analysis, which can be applied to different economic policy topics at local, regional, national and international levels. A majority of the courses also offer empirical/practical sessions in which students learn to use econometric and statistical software packages (e.g. Stata, R, Matlab, Dynare, Julia) to perform empirical analyses and to implement numerical methods. In doing so, we offer students an introduction to real data sets, such as the Socio-Economic Panel (SOEP), and give them the opportunity to explore the data structure through their own analyses.  A command of these tools enables our students to write Master theses with genuine quantitative research results. Incorporating an internship module, the program offers the possibility to combine theoretical knowledge with practical experience in economic policy analysis and evidence-based policy making.

EPQM students have the possibility to enter the Double Degree Program Master in Public Policies in cooperation with the University of Rennes (France). Starting with the fall semester of 2024/25, the upcoming EPQM intake will be the first cohort applicable to the Double Degree. After spending the first year of the joint master program at the University of Potsdam, participating students will spend their second year at the University of Rennes and obtain their degree from both institutions.

We will provide more information on the Double Degree Program and corresponding application deadlines here and via all EPQM channels soon!

Note that a key requirement for participation is that students are enrolled in the EPQM Master Program at University of Potsdam (current application deadline: 1 June 2024).

Find more information on the lasting cooperation between University of Potsdam and University of Rennes here.

The prerequisite for studying in a Master's program is generally a first professional qualification degree, e.g. a Bachelor's degree. You should have acquired this first degree in Economics or in a related discipline. This degree must fulfill the following prerequisites: standard period of study of at least 6 semesters (comprising at least 180 credit points) at least 60 credit points in economics (including at least 18 credit points in statistics, econometrics and mathematics).

The program additionally requires proof of good proficiency in English corresponding at least to the B2 level of the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages. You can find a list of all documents that prove the B2 level of English language proficiency as a download here or directly on the respective website on Required Language Skills of the University of Potsdam.

You can find the detailed subject-specific admission requirements as a download here or in the respective Admission Regulations of the University of Potsdam.