What brought you to apply to the Master in Urban Studies?
After high school, I went into the Bachelor in Social Sciences at the VUB and Ghent University. So, this gave me a strong social science background, with a focus on policy research and political sciences. Afterwards, I wanted to explore a degree beyond international politics. That’s when I came across the Master in Urban Studies and saw that they were accepting applications. Honestly, before that, I had no idea that urban studies was a discipline in its own right. I wasn’t really part of the urban bubble at all, but the programme sounded really interesting, and the multidisciplinary approach offered in the courses convinced me to apply.
What were your main interests within urban studies?
The funny thing is that when I started the first lectures, I was in crutches, so I was really into mobility and inclusivity. During the summer of my first year, I did my internship at the urban department of the Flemish government. Within that internship, I met a lot of organisations, and it really opened up a new door for me within urban studies. I did some research on how we can make urban policy more inclusive by looking at the values that people carry within the community. So, for example, people from a religious background, kids, women and the elderly.
From qualitative research on urban policy and inclusivity, I ended up taking a step further into urbanism, but not quite in the direction I expected. What changed for me was taking an elective in urban archaeology. I really, really, really enjoyed this class! When it came time to choose a topic for my master’s thesis, I reached out to my professor from urban archaeology, Prof. Dr Ann Degraeve. Together we decided on the research topic focusing on my hometown of Lier, and how we could develop heritage and well-being strategies by looking at how local cultural heritage influences the people who live there. During this process, I did a lot of interviews and observations with people who live and volunteer in the city, and I realised how much local cultural institutions actually mean to and do for the community in terms of social integration, community building, and keeping memories alive. This really started something for me, and I began to build from my initial focus on mobility and inclusivity towards culture and well-being.
Do you have a favourite memory from the master?
Most times I felt very excited to go to class because I knew that we were going to be working together, not just with my classmates, but also with the professors and the assistants. And honestly, the continuous constructive feedback that I got, it really made me who I am today. That is, I think, the most beautiful memory: just to be able to meet up in a classroom or outside and be able to work with everyone from different disciplines, different backgrounds.
“The continuous constructive feedback that I got, it really made me who I am today”
How was your experience with Brussels and with the cohort?
As someone based in Antwerp, I was in Brussels a lot during my studies, of course, and I just love the city. Brussels is amazing. It is a very big tapestry. And we would also have on-field lectures, which were amazing. We would just go around the city, have a lecture and really see things with our own eyes.
The cohort was like only 40 people; it's a very small group. Even from the beginning, I think everyone was just very nice, open, and flexible. You had people from many different backgrounds and many different countries. It was very nice to learn from different cultures, different disciplines and urban planning systems. I’m really happy for everyone because I feel like, in general, a lot of them did achieve what they wanted.
How did your professional journey continue after the master?
The job market is not the kindest to recent graduates. Let's be honest, they're looking for a lot of experience. But I think the master’s in urban studies gave me a really nice skill set and the knowledge to be able to apply to a diverse range of jobs: in NGOs, but also urban jobs at the national level, as well as social institutions. I was able to do interviews for research in the energy sector, for example. Ultimately, I got a paid internship at the place where I’m working now. It’s an international research and consultancy company, specialised in the cultural and creative industries. They are doing a diverse range of research, whether it’s about museums, heritage, video gaming, all types of culture and creative industries you can think of. I have been working on several projects, some of which were more directly connected to urban planning and cultural heritage than others. I feel like the skill set that I got in the urban studies master’s, alongside my social sciences background, fits very well. So, I decided to stay here, and it’s going well.
How did the Master in Urban Studies influence your career?
At my job, we do a lot of different research projects and are able to experiment with different communication formats. I feel like we had the same type of freedom to be able to experiment with different content in our master’s as well. Whether it was airport cities, energy communities, or heritage and well-being, we were really able to delve into what we found interesting. Everyone was researching a different topic; I really like the freedom and flexibility that we were given. And I think this is something very valuable that I still carry with me, because even if I'm working on topics within sustainability in the streaming industry, for example, I'm still able to bring that knowledge with me. Another thing to mention is that the network that you gradually build within the master’s is something very valuable, at least from my perspective. Whether you are in the urban network in Brussels and/or Antwerp, or the culture and creative industry bubble within the EU, you will start hearing the same names, the same institutions, the same organisations.
“We were really able to delve into what we found interesting. Everyone was researching a different topic; I really like the freedom and flexibility that we were given.”
Are there any lessons from the master’s that you take with you?
What I realised is that, after graduating, all of the urban critical thought only felt natural to me. But then you start interviewing people or working with people in different sectors and you realize that not everyone has these references. So, in this regard, I wish more people in other disciplines would be willing to take things from it, too. If architects, engineers, policymakers, also had a little bit of the urban studies baggage, these disciplines would be stronger. At least, it was very valuable to me to get this interdisciplinary package to carry with me in the working life.
If you were to describe urban studies in a few words, how would you describe it?
Looking back on it now that I’m in a working environment, I feel like urban studies is a very critical discipline. It’s highly relevant to everything involved in building and sustaining society, both at the local and national levels. It touches upon so many important topics: decolonial thought, but also sustainability, the environment, people, quality of life, and health. It really brings all of these different aspects together. And we can learn so much from the amazing people this field brings together, across both past and new generations.
This interview was conducted in May 2026.