As Chair of the Bachelor’s of International Studies at Leiden University, I am most pleased to introduce this Special Edition Newsletter focused on the achievements of our students (and the enthusiasm of participating organisations) during the 3rd iteration of the Practising International Studies (PRINS) consultancy project.

Five years ago Leiden University launched the Bachelor’s of International Studies, which has become the fastest-growing programmes within Leiden’s Faculty of Humanities. Now housed in our light-filled, iconic new city-centre campus on The Hague’s Turfmarkt, we have been able to catch a breath and take a look at the experience of our alumni and current students.

What we are seeing after just three years is real evidence that PRINS is one of the most distinctive and transformational aspects of the BA International Studies programme in terms of preparation for career or further study. Unique to any Humanities Bachelor programme, this culminating consultancy project connects our students not just to the ‘real world’ issues of external organisations, but to their own – sometimes not-yet-glimpsed – strengths, existent or emerging. This kind of self-reflection and professional, personal and academic development in the face of a challenging project sets the bar for their further studies and/or career.  

The opportunity for a Bachelor’s student to see their value to a multinational business or humanitarian organisation has an incalculable positive impact: these students understand that their knowledge and skills count and can have constructive effect. Not infrequently, our PRINS consultancy teams are invited to present their advice to the Board of the commissioning organisations.     

During the PRINS final pitches on 11 and 12 May 2017, at which I acted as an academic jury member just as in 2016, thirty teams competed across 6 exceptionally relevant cases. The fact that multinational organisations have been so involved and so willing to be part of PRINS really struck me last year. This year the engagement of the organisations  stood out for me once again. So did the absolute uniqueness of PRINS in any Humanities programme.

Not only does the academic value of students’ work have to be evident during the final pitches; PRINS is very much about the application of skills and knowledge, to answer a question completely different to any they’ve been asked before. This practical element is very new, and very important; it shows the students how to incorporate what they have learned into the working environment. And PRINS is about teamwork, something they don’t get enough of in university life, in which individual achievement is emphasised. PRINS demonstrates the value of cooperation.

PRINS also demonstrates why the Leiden University Faculty of Humanities has a leading international reputation and excellence in the rankings: our Faculty is willing to innovate in many ways. Not just in carrying out its leading (multi-)disciplinary research but in providing new approaches to teaching that make the Humanities more practically relevant than ever.

I would like to commend each and every one of the 350 students who participated in PRINS 2017 for your achievements and for the depth, breadth, and creativity evidenced by your teams. You are a credit to the BA International Studies programme, and to Leiden University.

However the ultimate thanks must go to Dr. Sarita Koendjbiharie for her tireless focus, apparently endless energy, and clarity of vision in her continuing ownership and unending bettering of PRINS; to our extraordinary tutors for their patience, skill, and extreme hard work on behalf of our students; and to Programme Director Dr. Jaap Kamphuis, and the many members of staff who keep all the moving parts of this great consultancy project working smoothly.

On behalf of Leiden University and the Bachelor’s of International Studies programme, I invite you to read further.

Dr. Joost Augusteijn, Programme Chair

“This year we are really dealing with current, critical issues the world is facing, issues students can see in newspaper headlines today,” said Dr. Sarita Koendjbiharie during the PRINS 2017 kick-off sessions. “As Humanities students you should be working to create solutions for these issues, or at least creating knowledge that will offer solutions.”

This year the presenting organisations included the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs, DAMCO, the World Food Programme, the European Space Agency, Workplace Pride and Xyntéo (which also participated in PRINS 2016). Each organisation asked tough questions around critically important topics – from food security in embattled lands to LGBT rights in a globalised workplace; from the shifting ‘shared’ values of the Netherlands and the Americas to the swift integration of the EU’s refugee population into its working world; from innovations for a venerable supply chain provider to using satellite data to carry out the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals.

Dr. Koendjbiharie emphasises that after just three years, and with ‘repeat presenters’ like  Xyntéo,  “we are in a luxury position” in terms of the calibre of organisations and cases that the PRINS offers to 3^rd year BA International Studies students.  Past organisations have included multinationals like Shell, Unilever, and Samsung and NGOs like Transparency International and OPCW, all of whom have expressed satisfaction with the work of the PRINS consultancy teams.

In fact the PRINS may be developing a brand amongst forward-thinking organisations who see the advantage in availing themselves of the brightest young international minds from one of Europe’s highest ranking Humanities departments.  “We’re very pleased to be working with ESA and the World Food Programme, which is part of the UN and the largest humanitarian organisation in the world,” says Dr. Koendjbiharie, “and Xyntéo truly appreciated the energy of our students last year and is using parts of all five team reports for a current project in Myanmar. It was really a productive experience for them.”

Growing evidence: PRINS makes a positive career impact

Not only is PRINS beginning to show maturity and impact for organisations; the first reports are coming in from alumni of the BA International Studies about how PRINS helps them fulfil their ambitions – whether that means moving on to a Master’s at Leiden University (or another institution), or leaping directly into the working world via internships or jobs.

Blažka Felicijan (BA International Studies 2016), for example, was a student consultant on the Transparency International case in PRINS 2016, then went on to a Research Internship at the Post-Conflict Research Centre in Sarajevo,  and is currently an Intern at the UNHCR in Slovenia. “During the PRINS I truly learned how to perform research; specifically how to pose correct academic/research questions, how to collect data and how to draw conclusions,” she says, “and I often look back at the framework of my PRINS research when developing new research.”

And Polina Liubomirova, who was team leader for the PRINS 2016 Xyntéo case, says she is “incredibly happy I had the chance to do such and interesting and useful course.” Polina, currently in her MPhil Technology Policy at University of Cambridge, says that “even when I was doing interviews for my Master’s I mentioned the PRINS and people were really interested – sometimes even more than in my academic courses.”

The BA international Studies doesn’t just fulfil the Leiden University promise – that its students can ‘discover the world’: with the unique and innovative final Practising International Studies (PRINS) project;  it ensures that the world can begin its discovery of our 3^rd year students!

And from January kick off to the final pitches in May, PRINS 2017 proved the adage ‘third time’s a charm’.  The cases, connections, and career perspectives offered by participating organisations seemed especially well-tailored to challenge and inspire the 30 teams comprising 350 third-year Bachelor’s International Studies students of Leiden University during PRINS 2017.

 “This PRINS we had a really good match between our students who have a highly multidisciplinary approach, and the cases presented by the participating organisations,” says Dr. Sarita Koendjbiharie, Assistant Professor, who has been the driving force behind PRINS since its launch in 2015.

In PRINS 2017, student teams tackled tough issues for the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs, DAMCO, the World Food Programme, the European Space Agency, Workplace Pride and Xyntéo.

Fast track to marketable skills

What is PRINS? It is a unique and distinctive aspect of the Leiden University BA International Studies: a culminating, 14 week course that ‘bridges Bachelors with business’ by engaging students in real-life cases presented by multinational businesses and Dutch and international governmental and non-governmental organisations.

PRINS gets Humanities students on a fast track to developing such marketable consultancy skills as teamwork, presentation skills, and carrying out client-focused research.

And take note: students are completing their final thesis at the same time they are focused on PRINS. “The project takes students out of their comfort zone, and that is the purpose – but at the same time the tutors and I are there to guide and reassure them when it’s needed,” says Dr. Koendjbiharie.

The topicality and relevance of PRINS 2017 included a case with particular ties to Leiden University: ‘LGBT rights in workplaces around the world’ from Workplace Pride, an Amsterdam-based non-profit focused on increasing the acceptance of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender people in the workplace and in society.  Workplace Pride holds a special place in the Leiden University Faculty of Social and Behavioural Sciences: it is the endowing organisation of the Workplace Pride Chair for international LGBT workplace inclusion.

David Pollard, executive director of Workplace Pride, was contacted by Dr. Sarita Koendjbiharie to see if the organisation would have interest in presenting a case as part of PRINS. “The project hit all of the aspects we focus on: from our standpoint it is interesting to spread the importance of workplace inclusion and this group – young international people who will be working everywhere in the world – really fit our needs and vision. So the PRINS was a perfect opportunity for us.”

The business case for workplace inclusion

At the PRINS kick-off sessions, Mr. Pollard presented the compelling case for workplace inclusion.  “Even in the openly tolerant Netherlands, LGBT people are practically invisible in management positions,” he said. “If you cannot openly be yourself at work, it’s bad for you and your employer and ultimately bad for the economy.”

“We spend 35% of our total waking hours at work,” he continued. “And there is an estimated 30% loss of creativity and productivity if LGBTI people cannot be themselves at work. That’s 30% less productivity. That’s lost GDP. It’s very simple. There is a business case for inclusivity.”

Amongst the guest lecturers for the case were openly gay management and HR directors of such companies as Accenture, Shell, and ABN AMRO – professionals who could address the dicey differences in gender culture in the many countries in which their multinational organisations operate.

Importantly, the guest speakers included Prof. Kees Waaldijk  specialized in Comparative Sexual Orientation Law and Prof. Dr. Jojanneke van der Toorn who holds the endowed Workplace Pride Chair for international LGBT workplace inclusion.

Leiden University leading thought in LGBT inclusivity

The Endowed Workplace Pride Chair is the only such Chair in the world, which says something extraordinary about Leiden University. As the oldest university in the Netherlands it is also at the very forefront of theory and practice, at the cutting edge of contemporary gender and sexual orientation issues that have deep impact on society.   

“This is a very unique Chair, focused not just on diversity and inclusion which are broad themes, but very specifically focused on a particular group of people in a particular place – namely, the workplace,”  says  Prof. Dr. van der Toorn, who has held the Workplace Pride Chair since 1 January 2017.

With such a specific title, what is the important distinction between diversity and inclusiveness?  “When we talk about diversity we are talking about numbers – how many women, or people with a particular sexual preference or race or other group-based characteristic are in the workplace,” she says. “When we talk about inclusivity, it is whether all those people with diverse backgrounds feel safe, included, and like they belong. You can only get the benefit of diversity – different perspectives and insights – if you have inclusivity. It’s the secret to successful diversity management.”

Adding multidisciplinary breadth

Prof. Dr. Van der Toorn is a member of the Leiden University Faculty of Social and Behavioural Sciences – a new perspective for the student teams (UniQorn, The Bumblebees, NOTA, and The Chameleons) who had taken on the case. “In my guest lecture I came very much from a social psychological standpoint to try to give students the theoretical tools they could use in thinking about how one might practically go about reducing sexual and gender bias in an organisation,” she says. “For International Studies students this was a whole new approach, because they are used to thinking in terms of policy rather than psychology.”

Ultimately the teams’ solutions, presented during final pitches on 12 May 2017, ranged widely:  from apps to assess how progressive companies and regions are in terms of LGBT inclusivity; to creating academic networks valorising the latest research into inclusivity for the benefit of business; to fostering acceptance within organisations via social functions. Ultimately Team Bumblebees’ comprehensive sexual education (CSE) approach, in which through incentives, Workplace Pride’s  international partner organisations pay local NGOs to carry out CSE, was the winning pitch.

“Very good work,” said Mr. Pollard after the final pitches. “The Bumblebees will be invited to give their presentation to the Workplace Pride Board so we can see if we can actually implement this approach – that is how good I thought their advice was.” All the team reports will be shared with the Workplace Pride Board.

PRINS 2017: Connecting to the interest of students

All six consultancy cases in PRINS 2017 were created to challenge, inspire, motivate and ultimate create rapid professional/personal development in BA students; but they were also ‘curated’ in a sense, to match the expressed interests of the 3^rd year International Studies students who put so much energy into creating solutions for organisations such as Workplace Pride. Daring to address what could be considered a sensitive issue in many workplace cultures indicates the relevance and strong connection to real-world issues that characterises PRINS.   

“I have to say that on some level, I am most proud that we have had this workplace inclusion case,” says Dr. Sarita Koendjbiharie. “Our students showed a strong interest in this topic, and simply having this case signifies that as a programme and a faculty, we feel it is important to co-create knowledge and connect the interests of the student to the greater world.”

Q&A with PRINS case representatives from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and DAMCO on the added value of working with International Studies Students; what are the distinctive qualities of humanities’ students? What are their tips for a successful career

CLIENT PROFILE: MINISTRY OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS

Fennigje: “Why do we need your International Studies students’ expertise?  We need their diverse and dissenting opinions, helping us go against the danger of ‘group-think’ with fresh ideas that sharpen our minds.”

Fennigje Hinse

Q: Why is the Ministry of Foreign Affairs interested in working with Leiden University BA International Studies students?

Niels: Part of that answer lies in the research itself. At the MFA we are really looking into the phenomenon of a valued community and that is something Humanities students can answer – it’s broader than quantitative research. It goes into the history of ideas, culture, and history in general.

Q: What added value do International Studies students bring to your case?

Fennigje: These students know the history of specific regions, and there are also skills that include creativity and delving into research sources with an inquisitive nature. They are really encouraged to think about, and try to really understand, The Other - it’s cultural empathy. They not only look at a case or question in a narrow way, but try to understand the dialogue from the other side.

Niels van Wageningen

Q: Are there distinctive qualities that these Humanities students can bring to your case, and to future employers? Why not go to a business school or management programme to find student consultants?

Niels: One important quality is language sensitivity. In the Ministry we write a lot, our reality is contained in paper – and this is critically examined text, from resolutions about human rights to treaties. Critically reading those and understanding the fine print is one thing; the other side is actively crafting your own text, actively advising the Ministry.

And that relates to thinking – the way you analyse problems. There are no standard responses in the Ministry, so critical thinking is invaluable. With these complex realities, you constantly need a new creative framework to analyse problems, and this is something management students are not always equipped for.

Fennigje: And then the strategic thinking is important. You have so many players in the international field – you have to know your opponents and alliances, read between the lines, truly understand people to be effective in such a multi-polar world.  It’s about building bridges. As a diplomat you reach solutions together, instead of only looking at issues from your own perspective.

Q: Any career advice for these students?

Fennigje: From our organisational perspective, international experience is important. And you need to show in some way you are willing to continue developing yourself and your ideas and increasing your skill sets. Try many things. Think outside of your comfort zone. Go find the ‘unknown unknown.’ Figure out what you’re actually passionate about – that will make you more effective in your career and life.

Niels: When you’re young, experiment – finding a job is one thing, but again, find out what you’re passionate about. You will easily convince a future employer if you show them where your passion is and you make that passion tangible. Extra-curricular activities on your CV can make your passion concrete for potential employers.

CLIENT PROFILE: DAMCO

Anita: “I like working with students. I am amazed with their thinking and I welcome their viewpoint – it’s important. As students you are in an environment where you can work with lots of information to create good solutions for us. And yes, you are also a talent pool: we want to know if Damco can get a new generation interested in supply chain management.”

Anita de Werd

Q: Why is Damco interested in working with Leiden University BA International Studies students?

Because we are a global organisation. Our modus operandi is to look at issues from different angles and diverse cultural perspectives, and it’s good to present a case to students who share that point of view.

Q: What added value do International Studies students bring to your case?

It happens on a couple of levels. First of all they are students, so they have young, fresh, open minds. And then there’s the fact that they are international students - that brings a multicultural perspective to their thinking. As they work together in teams they can get the most out of each case, and come up with solutions that can work for multiple audiences.

Q: Are there distinctive qualities that these Humanities students can bring to your case, and to future employers? Why not go to a business school or management programme to find student consultants?

That is why I think this group is very interesting. We’re living in an age where a lot of automation is happening – in 5 or 10 or even 2 years a lot of the work we do today will be automated. What we cannot automate is the human. Yes, from a technological point of view you can automate – but then how do you get people to interact with the new reality and understand that their role is changing? The human element – which Humanities students study from so many perspectives in International Studies – is becoming more and more important.

Q: Any career advice for these students?

First of all be authentic. Being who you are makes you unique, and it makes you beautiful as a human with all your imperfections and strengths. Second, if there is no match between you as an authentic person and an organisation, fine; if there’s no fit, it won’t do anything for your career. Keep your confidence strong.

When it comes to new skills, empathy is important. It’s the ability to understand from a global perspective how other people see things in the organisation. When you know what they do and how they see the world, you can get them engaged and active in doing what is best for the company.

And having skills in the new world of social media and digital reality is key – what does it mean to be human? Using these tools, how do we connect more and not less with others? The world of social media is where Damco and other organisations will need a lot of help in future, from people with a background like Leiden’s International Studies students.

We caught up with three PRINS participants in that lovely limbo between final pitch and the jury’s determination. With just moments until the winners are announced, we asked how they were feeling about their team’s pitch, and – importantly – the PRINS course.

“The pitches are over! How do you feel?”

Between delivering their final pitches and discovering if their team is the winner,  PRINS participants have an exciting, stressful, and often giddy 5-10 minutes in which to bite their nails (or a sandwich), joke with their tutors (who can be more competitive than the teams themselves) and contemplate their fate. Or dance to loud electronic music to dial down the stress, in at least one PRINS case!

We caught up with three PRINS participants in that lovely limbo between final pitch and the jury’s determination. With just moments until the winners are announced, we asked how they were feeling about their team’s pitch, and – importantly – the PRINS course.

Leonie Schirmbeck (Case: Ministry of Foreign Affairs)

Q: The pitches are over! How do you feel?
A: Very relieved! It’s exciting because we don’t yet know who won, but at this point you feel very accomplished – and there is the overwhelming happiness of having done the pitch.

Q: How do you think your team – Team Triumphant - did? 
A: I would say we did quite well – and we did 10 case studies, which gave us quite a good basis for our advice, which deals with climate change. Also I really liked the design of our presentation, I think it looked great.

Q: Whether your team officially won or lost, how has the PRINS project affected you during this final BA trimester? Did you learn anything about yourself, or have an unexpected role to play in your team?
A: Well I would say that normally I am quite decisive and dominant, but with PRINS I intentionally decided not to be team leader. That taught me that I can actually act in a softer way - and that brings in a kind of soft power.  I realised how important it is to throw in a joke sometimes, and learned I can be the one who brings that humour!

Q: What about the work of a consultant? What have you learned from working with an organisation? Has it helped you clarify (or has it reinforced) your ambitions for the future in terms of work or further study?
A: I enjoyed it quite a lot. Because the Ministry of Foreign Affair’s questions were quite open, it’s nice to have this feeling you are able to interpret them as you will – it was a very free project, and for such an important organisation too.

It’s great for Bachelor’s students to be in this position. It’s especially important for students with no work experience: the PRINS is their moment, it’s the primary source of their professional development. I’ve done several internships, but this professional development is what I saw in my fellow students without that experience.

Aleksandra Jovanovic (Case: World Food Programme)

Q: The pitches are over! How do you feel?
A: Well first of all I think the teams had really creative and unique solutions to the case – we all had the same questions to address, but we tackled them from very different perspectives. And  yes, our project is over and we’ve presented our pitch: that’s a relief, but also a pity because we all enjoyed the PRINS. I am really happy with my team, there was really smooth communication, we complimented each other when appropriate, and that helped everything move more easily.

Q: How do you think your team – Seeds of Progress - did? 
A: I am really proud of my team, and our presenters have great voices and real charisma – they were born to speak publically! – and the PowerPoint was well visualised and caught the essence of our project. Plus I am happy and proud of the team in general, because we really achieved the goals we had set.

Q: Whether your team officially won or lost, how has the PRINS project affected you during this final BA trimester? Did you learn anything about yourself, or have an unexpected role to play in your team?
A: I am so happy we had a consultancy project because we aren’t really experienced – we haven’t worked in a big group like this before, with 12 students. It’s great because each person has their own creative input, and that really enriches the result. Personally, in the beginning it was a bit difficult to combine the PRINS with work on my thesis but I managed to find my way, and get settled into the weekly PRINS deadlines.

Q: What about the work of a consultant? What have you learned from working with an organisation? Has it helped you clarify (or has it reinforced) your ambitions for the future in terms of work or further study?
A: I really liked working as a consultant.  I love to give advice to people – and I think it’s nice to do this work for an organisation. You have to be really careful about conducting research before any consulting; and you have to learn the norms and values of an organisation. The PRINS course really helped me understand how to approach consulting in an ethical, consistent and responsible way.

Emma Franke van der Steen (Case: DAMCO)

Q: The pitches are over! How do you feel?
A: I am feeling good! Proud of how our team managed to work together - and a little bit relieved.

Q: How do you think your team – Team Kinetic - did? 
A: I think we did very well. I was afraid we wouldn’t fully convey our research because it was quite complex, but it was good -  in the end we really summarised it very well.

Q: Whether your team officially won or lost, how has the PRINS project affected you during this final BA trimester? Did you learn anything about yourself, or have an unexpected role to play in your team?
A:  For me it was an opportunity to put theory into practice, and I discovered I actually really like the practice – it’s tangible, it’s concrete. I’m really happy to discover I could do that. The other thing is that throughout my BA International Studies programme I’ve been very interested in sustainability, so I was really happy we could integrate theories of societal and environmental costs into our report in a practical manner.

Q: What about the work of a consultant? What have you learned from working with an organisation? Has it helped you clarify (or has it reinforced) your ambitions for the future in terms of work or further study?
A: It think it is fascinating to look at a real question in an abstract manner – for example, I don’t know anything about supply chain management, so it was great to look at DAMCO, see its strengths and vulnerabilities. It helps to have a bit of distance between yourself and the industry, when consulting. That’s the scientific part. On the other hand, there is the practical aspect of applied sciences.

I want to be a farmer, and through the PRINS course I realised that I am more of a leader than I thought. During PRINS I experienced that taking the lead, without disrespecting our team leaders, was actually something I enjoy and am good at. I discovered I can motivate others and bring structure to chaos. So – I’ve always known I wanted to be a farmer, but thanks to these personal insights from PRINS I have applied to be a  Farm Team Manager in New Zealand – I think it’s a fitting job for me!

One thing I’d like to say is that Dr. Sarita Koendjbiharie really gets us to understand how important this course is. We can say, Oh we’re just Bachelor’s students, what kind of impact will this team project have? But Sarita makes it so important, and in addition she makes us feel important. That is really key to our motivation and success.

PRINS 2017 proved once again that for each and every BA International Studies student, as well as each of the commissioning organisations, this consultancy project is a ‘win-win’ proposition. However, as jury member and former Chair Professor André Gerrits said: 

“There may be no losers. But there’s only one winner!”

In the end six of the 30 participating student teams took top honours in this competition, selected by juries comprising Leiden academics, and key members of the participating organisations.

We would like to congratulate all the teams who worked so diligently to find novel solutions to the world’s wicked problems, and celebrate the winners:

Ministry of Foreign Affairs - Western Hemisphere Department (DWH) “Transatlantic ties and embracing the shared ideologies, history and culture with the Americas”

With this PRINS Case, MFA asked student consultancies to determine to what extent can we speak of a community of shared values between the Netherlands and the Americas; define what that community consists of; and determine how the Netherlands can preserve, foster and maintain this community of shared values.

Teams: The Americas First, Globalista, TTIP (Transatlantic Ties in Progress), Values Beyond Borders, Triumphant, The Transatlantic Avengers

AND THE WINNER IS: GLOBALISTA with their examination of the shared threat of flooding and other water management issues within the Americas. The team determined that water management – in which the Netherlands is a forerunner – is the area in which the greatest potential for shared values can rise. “We chose this as the winning pitch because it has a very clear set-up when it comes to our initial question, and we can therefore translate it into very concrete policy advice,” said Fennigje Hinse, Senior Policy Officer at MFA. “We want to thank you for the idea of starting with a community of shared threat, moving to a community of shared values, and then moving on to a security community. This approach went to the base of our questions, and offered something very concrete that the Netherlands prides itself on – water management.”

World Food Programme - Fighting Hunger Worldwide “Using broadband for food security in vulnerable areas”

With this PRINS case, WFP asked student consultancies to help them in determining how the organisation can best use broadband to estimate food needs in hunger prone groups/communities in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Nepal and Honduras. The complexities to be taken into account included not just the dangerous destabilisation in which these populations live, but such factors as privacy and data security, culture, gender, literacy, internet and cell phone coverage, access to electricity, and the regulatory environment.

Teams:  CAF (Creating Access to Food), Food Fighters, Connect2Provide, FoodNet, Seeds of Progress

AND THE WINNER IS: FOOD FIGHTERS for their context-specific approach to assessing food security in the DRC, Nepal and Honduras through broadband.  The team created a food systems approach to estimate food needs in hunger-prone groups and communities. “What I liked is the very practical approach in your work. You had very specific suggestions and a very clear framework,” said Jean-Martin Bauer, Senior Analyst WFP. “ We are a very practical agency and we look for problems we can resolve, and you took us in exactly the right direction.”

DAMCO - “Managing supply chains and logistics around the world “

With this PRINS case, DAMCO  asked student consultants to identify key trends that are impacting the supply chain solutions and logistics services of the organisation (from the perspective of four different industries), and to come up with concrete proposals for DAMCO’s communications/social media strategies and approach that help the company capitalise on those trends.

Teams: Young Digital Consultants, Supply Chain Smokers, End-to-End Consultancy, Kinetic

AND THE WINNER IS: SUPPLY CHAIN SMOKERS for their integrated approach that linked sustainable logistics, data management and security in the cloud, and a streamlined social media strategy to boost DAMCO’s efficiency but more importantly its brand. Because of its key position in global supply chains, a social media presence in China was one of this consultancy’s innovative ideas. “What I really like about your solution is the very implementable part of it – it’s very quick and easy to translate our blogs and put them on LinkedIn’s Chinese platform,” said Anita de Werd, Global Head of Strategic Marketing and Corporate Communications for DAMCO, who also praised the group’s engaging and clear presentation.

Xyntéo - “Unlocking the human potential of refugees in Europe”

With this PRINS case, Xyntéo asked student consultancies to come up with implementation strategies for its ‘LevelUP marketplace’, a platform (in conjunction with Xyntéo’ s Vanguard Partners) that aims to get Europe’s increasing number of refugees integrated and working at a level reflective of their talent, quickly. This will address the massive waste of human potential resulting from ineffective refugee integration – for example, if a physician from Syria can find only unskilled work in Germany.

Teams: The Way In, Teleia, OPUS, The Dolphins, InteGreat

AND THE WINNER IS: THE WAY IN for their approach to labour market integration for refugees, which included the determination of 6 factors crucial for labour market integration; identifying Vienna as a city in which their ‘inclusion, connection, direction’ model could be deployed amongst refugees to create a meaningful future; and designing an innovative labour supply/demand algorithm that could match jobs to talent via an online platform. “I want to say it’s a real privilege to be here, I feel very humbled by the fact that you produced this high quality of work,” said Hugo le Breton, Senior Analyst for Xyntéo in announcing the winner. “I would like to share the report with our Vanguard leadership, and then see if we can bring your ideas into the next phase of the LevelUP marketplace.”

European Space Agency (ESA) - “Space for earth and the sustainable development goals”

With this PRINS case, ESA asked student consultancies to look at its programmes related to Space for Earth and the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) which are focused on shared human needs – food, power, healthy oceans, and remediating climate change amongst the 17 goals, then asked them:  in what area do you see the greatest potential for positive impact from the ESA, and why? How can space technologies and applications offer solutions to global issues identified by the SDGs?  To effectively deploy the SDGs, what roles are there for governments, NGO’s and firms?  What policies and regulations are necessary at national and at international level? What does an action plan entail?

Teams: Space Vision; Spacing Out; MEW (Meaningful Environmental Work), Space Oddity, TerraX, Cosmic Dancers

AND THE WINNER IS:SPACING OUT for their pitch ‘Bringing underdevelopment to light: Earth observation and renewable sources of energy’ in which they described how to use data collected from ESA’s space observation to achieve sustainable energy for all of the earth’s people. (Currently 15% of the earth’s population lives without any access to energy, approximately 1.2 billion people, 80% of whom live in rural areas of the developing world.)  As energy is a pre-condition for the eradication of poverty, the Spacing Out team felt that providing energy would facilitate the achievement of many of the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals.  “This is a very good report which is practically relevant and academically sound, and I really liked this particular presentation both on paper and live,” said jury member (and former programme Chair)  Professor André Gerrits as he announced the winner. “It was an absolutely convincing combination of case study and general conclusion, in perfect order.”

Workplace Pride - “LGBT rights in workplaces around the world”

With this PRINS case, Workplace Pride asked student consultancies to assess the state of LGBT rights in the world regions where WPP’s business partners have significant presence and potential influence; to examine the state of these rights from a legal, political, economic and cultural-historic perspective, and to determine actions these business partners can take to promote LGBT rights in their workplaces for these regions and countries.  

Teams: UniQorn, The Bumblebees, NOTA, The Chameleons

AND THE WINNER IS: THE BUMBLEBEES for their approach to generating LGBT acceptance through comprehensive sexuality education (CSE), in which WP would incentivise its partners to pay local NGOs with experience to teach CSE.  “Thank you for a very creative proposal,” said David Pollard, Executive Director of Workplace Pride. “Very good work, and you will be invited to give your presentation to the Workplace Pride board in Amsterdam so we can see how we can implement your solutions – that is how good I thought you were. And we’ll be sharing all the groups’ reports with the board.”

A hearty thanks to the jury members

On behalf of the PRINS Consultancy Course, which in tandem with the final Bachelor’s thesis enables our International Studies students to learn and demonstrate their knowledge and skills at a high level, we would like to thank all the jury members who did the hard work of determining the winning student teams:

Prof. Mark Rutgers, Dr. Irene Hadiprayitno, Dr. Johannes Magliano-Tromp, Dr. Joost Augusteijn, Dr. Jaap Kamphuis, Professor André Gerrits, Dr. Katharina Cousijn and Dr. Kamila Krakowska-Rodrigues.

Jean-Martin Bauer (WFP); Fennigje Hinse, Niels van Wageningen, Natascha Soons, Matthijs Schröeder (MFA);  Anita de Werd, Andrejs Kuharukovs, Bob de Graaf, Gabrielle Daniels-Gombert (DAMCO); Hugo le Breton (Xyntéo); Graham Sparks of Shell,  Sjoerd van den Reek of Accenture, and Executive Director David Pollard (Workplace Pride);  Dirk Schuettemeyer and Ninja Menning (ESA).

We asked Dr. Jaap Kamphuis, Programme Manager of the Bachelor’s International Studies programme, about the significance of Practising International Studies (PRINS). Dr. Kamphuis, who is an alumnus of Leiden University as well as a lecturer in International Studies, was a member of the academic jury for PRINS 2016 and PRINS 2017.

“PRINS is even more significant than we had thought. We’ve been looking at the structure of the International Studies programme, and our expectations in terms of what our students take away from it, and we’ve discovered that PRINS as a course actually incorporates many of the elements we want students to get from the International Studies programme. That includes skills we know Humanities students need to be viable in the job market or in top Master’s programmes. Group and individual presentation skills? Both in PRINS. Formulating research questions? In PRINS. Applied writing, group work, discussion? We see all of this in PRINS.

“Two elements of key importance to the programme are regional knowledge and, especially, a multidisciplinary approach. We have always identified as a multidisciplinary programme – but the question is where do we see it? In the thesis?

“Again it is in the PRINS final reports and pitches where you see that students in teams learn from each other and bring together the knowledge of culture, history, politics and economics of particular regions. The depth and breadth of knowledge I saw during the PRINS pitches affirmed that our programme is indeed multidisciplinary, a place for ‘specialised generalists’.

“So very quickly we’ve discovered: PRINS is even more important than we could have imagined. What started out as a very innovative idea - of how we could connect a Bachelor’s programme to the labour market – has grown into something very special with the exceptional vision, focus, and network of the coordinator of the course, Dr. Sarita Koendjbiharie. The intensive work that the tutors take on, cannot be minimised in its importance in moving students towards their goals – and the goals of programme.

“PRINS is the capstone project of International Studies, and an indispensable addition to the other major project in the third year: the final thesis. I want to congratulate all the students who participated in this year’s PRINS and thank you for reflecting back to staff and management, and to the commissioning organisations, the strength of this BA.”