Eight new doctoral students and six new graduate students join the Blavatnik School of Government today to build on their research and practice to work towards a world better led, better served and better governed.   

The students join the School from across the globe, including Germany, the US and Japan, and bring with them a wealth of experience, from international development to behavioural economics.

The students on the three-year DPhil in Public Policy are embarking on a programme of discipline-based, policy-driven research, applying rigorous social science to analysing policy issues with the explicit goal of prescribing solutions for policymakers. 

They will further their research on some of the most pressing questions facing society. Alfred Landecker Scholar Jasmin Baier hopes to examine the drivers and mitigators of wealth inequality, political polarisation, and segregation while Merlin Stein, a Clarendon Scholar, will continue his work on the governance of AI Foundation models.

Meanwhile the MSc in Public Policy Research, which is running for its second year, will equip students with practical research skills to improve policy decisions and tackle policy problems.

Many of the talented MSc students already have direct experience of working with governments. Varsha Sarveshwar worked as an Assistant Deputy Cabinet Secretary at the Office of California Governor Gavin Newsom, while Myriam-Morenike Djossou has worked as a policy advisor to the Canadian Minister for Women and Gender Equality and Youth.

Admissions are open now for 2024 entry – find out how to apply to study here. The deadline for DPhil applications is 5 January 2024. There are two application deadlines for the MSc in Public Policy Research: 5 January 2024 and 1 March 2024. We strongly encourage you to apply using the January deadline to be considered for University Scholarships.