Can you describe your education journey?
When I was 18 years old, I enrolled in the five-year architectural engineering program at the Polytechnic School of the University of Thessaly in Greece. The main field of focus is space but it is not so much linked with social geography or social sciences. I had five years of education, but I still wanted to learn more about urban space and the impacts of design in the world. I had a need to research more, to do more and to learn more about the city as an ecosystem. I wanted some specialisation in that field, and when I was looking for master's programs, I found this master's very suitable to my needs. As it is interdisciplinary, it felt more like a bridge that could match my previous background but also expand my knowledge without completely moving to a different field of study such as sociology or anthropology. I appreciated the fact that it did not seem to belong solely to an architecture school.
How was your experience of the multidisciplinary aspect of the master?
I wanted to change my field of study a little bit without abandoning my previous education. In that sense, multidisciplinarity was an aspect that I wanted. I was not familiar with multidisciplinarity. Now that some years have passed, I am also realising the complexities that come with having a multidisciplinary education curriculum. I think it has challenges that I was not aware of before I experienced it, but I think the master does it quite well.
"I had a need to research more, to do more, and to learn more about the city as an ecosystem (...). I found this master very suitable to my needs. As it is interdisciplinary, it felt more like a bridge that could match my previous background, but also expand on my knowledge without completely moving to a different field of study such as sociology or anthropology."
Can you describe a bit what your work is like now?
I still live in Brussels; it is my fifth year now. I continued with a PhD after my master, and it is in the same department or research unit as one of the research units that support the master program. My research is about the right to housing and alternative housing initiatives. It is a joint PhD between KU Leuven and VUB. I am learning more about Brussels day by day.
Through the master you get exposure to the reality of Belgium and of Brussels, more than what I would expect for a very international master. The only problem was that it coincided with COVID. So, although I may have some theoretical knowledge of Brussels, in the last three years or so, with my research, I have been learning more about Brussels, and I am more exposed to Brussels life day by day. I think I wasn't ready to leave after the two years.
What are the main tasks you do, and what does an ordinary day look like as a PhD candidate?
It depends. It really changes from week to week, from month to month, and from year to year. In the initial stage, it was more office time to understand and review international literature are get accustomed to concepts and notions. In the second and third year, I would say you spend much more time outside doing fieldwork. For the working schedule, it is not a typical nine-to-five job. Since you often attend events on particular topics, you have to be active when these events happen. It is much more fluid than working as an architect, but that also means more freedom to shape your schedule. The fourth year is going to be more office space and a lot of writing.
"Through the master, you get exposure to the reality of Belgium and Brussels, more than what I would expect for a very international master."
How does your experience in the master relate to the tasks you do now?
I continued being in the same department, so even content-wise, it is very related. The process of the thesis or some other courses like Urban Analysis, which are more linked to having a project and analysing it - they help you gain experience from these kinds of research steps that you also have to do in a PhD. During the PhD, there is not really a black-and-white situation or clear-cut solutions. I do think that research provides avenues for reflections and solutions. It is more explorative, so I think definitely the mentality and the way you use your time are things that I learned during the master, especially because I was previously trained in architecture, which is a discipline that is more applied and solution-focused.
How did you decide that you wanted to continue in research when you started the master?
I think it was the particular PhD that interested me. It was a bit of luck that coincided with the end of my master. I applied when I was writing my thesis, and I was accepted. I continued, I was very interested in the topic and the fact that it combined my different educational backgrounds.
"Cities are complex, issues are complex, and only through kind of joint action, they can be grasped, but only in collaboration."
What does the master represent to you?
I would say good moments with friends. I was pushed to learn new things, I got exposed to concepts that I was not familiar with. There is also the community aspect: in Brussels, I do interact with people who did the same master. It is nice that the master's degree lasts two years; connections are made, and I think the people who graduate and stay in Brussels somehow are a group of friends or acquaintances that you have. You meet them professionally, but also as friends.
What is the main lesson that the master left you with?
Something that has to do with the complexity... Cities are complex, their issues are complex, and only through a kind of joint action can they be grasped, only in collaboration.
Can you describe Urban Studies?
I don't know how critical I should be. It is not easy to describe. It's not very clear, I don't think that people fully agree on whether it is a field on its own or not. Urban studies is everything that has to do with cities, with the urban, this is a kind of definition that comes to my mind. It is also a synthesis of different things. So not only an answer or a response by one particular discipline.
This interview was conducted in April 2024.