Politics and Governance in the Digital Age

Alumni Insights – Robin Vollmer

I graduated from Politics and Governance in the Digital Age at the University of Tartu in 2024. I had never been to the Baltics before but wanted to get out of my own snail shell in Germany, which I especially established during the Covid pandemic. I heard a lot of great reports from friends who visited before, and I was not left disappointed at all.

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A desire to get out of my own comfort zone ended up in an experience I never want to forget. Studying at Johan Skytte Institute of Political Studies and living in Estonia provided me with a great mixture of academic skills, encouraging lecturers, and an incredibly attractive city. People at the institute are always tangible and whatever you want to do in your free time, be it hiking, serving for a community project, or clubbing, Tartu is a vibrant city which offers something for everyone. Not to mention my personal favorite: Sauna nights with my fellow students.

Talking explicitly about the Master’s in Politics and Governance in the Digital Age, I am grateful for the interdisciplinary focus of the program. It has been highly enriching to study with students from various national and study backgrounds like computer sciences, politics or language studies. Coming from a political science degree in Germany, I touched with some already familiar methods, but also very beneficial new ones like in-depth coding with R. Working with fellow students from other backgrounds than the social sciences on this has been truly valuable. This Master’s is a social science degree, however it encourages you to think outside of traditional schools of thought while also explaining the roots of them.

After graduation, I highly valued these experiences while working in the Public Affairs Department of a media company, focusing on the impact of AI on the publishing business. A topic that was immediately addressed during my studies after the launch of ChatGPT in November 2022. Currently, I serve as chief of staff to a MP in a German state parliament and advise him on all relevant policy matters, giving me the opportunity to bring in my analytical skills from Tartu.

Since my graduation, I chose for a career path out of Estonia for the time being. However, thinking back to the inner warmth that Tartu and the Estonian nature spreads in its very own way in every season still makes me smile. Luckily, I am having the privilege to have a lot of great friends from my studies in Tartu, who continued their careers in Estonia and are always grateful to host. I can guarantee you: by studying at Skytte, you will immerse yourself in a highly supportive environment where your skills will be valued and expanded, while at the same time giving you every opportunity to develop on a personal level.