Career prospects
The Alumnitool on LinkedIn can help you gain insight into possible careers after you finish your degree. It can also help you get in contact with an alumnus or alumna of your degree programme or other programmes. Nearly all graduates have a LinkedIn profile and can answer questions about your future career. They’re often more than happy to share their experiences with you. The video belows explains how the alumnitool works, and how you can use search criteria to find career information that is relevant to you.
Would you like to know more about how you can use LinkedIn to expand your network and put the new information into practice straight away? Take the LinkedIn workshop from Career Services. The workshop Exploring the job market & networking is also useful if you'd like to improve your networking skills, using LinkedIn and other ways.
Both in the private sector and the public domain, there is a growing need for well-trained economists who understand the interplay between business and economics in an international setting. As a graduate from the MSc in International Economics and Business, you will find that you are well prepared for a range of different careers. Graduates from the programme have gone on to work in a number of different institutions and sectors.
Management trainee/financial analyst
As a management trainee or financial analyst either in a (large) non-financial firm or a financial organization you need a thorough insight in the internal management of the firm and a good understanding how the external environment affects the firm’s opportunities. Your broad training in the economics of management and finance provides a perfect preparation for this. Moreover, your academic and research skills will enable you to quickly analyse any problem you face. Your training in team work and your communication skills will strongly benefit your effectiveness in the firm.
Consultant
As a consultant in the private or public sector, you will be part of a multidisciplinary team that prepares mergers or acquisitions, advices firms on the redesign of their corporate strategy, or draw up proposals for an internal reorganization. All of these activities require strong analytical skills and the ability to see and analyse the overall picture. Your integrated training in economics and business, in combination with your analytical and quantitative skills makes you extremely well-suited for this.
Public sector economist
As a public sector economist, you prepare policy advice on different levels and in different fields. The opportunities range from international organisations like the IMF, to ministries and other public sector institutions on a national level, to the regional and local public sector. Wherever you go, your understanding of the interaction between economic policy and private economic activity, growth and entrepreneurship will be a crucial asset. The same holds for your multidisciplinary training and your strong analytical and communicative skills.
Researcher
As a researcher in the private or public sector, you are expected to analyse economic and societal problems more in-depth. In the private sector, banks and investment funds have great opportunities for graduates of strong research skills and a real world perspective that enables them to apply these skills to practical issues and translate the findings non-researchers. The same holds for the semi-public sector, where applied economic research and policy research is in high demand. The master programme prepares you perfectly for an economic research job.
- multinational firms;
- international banks e.g. World Bank, European Central Bank, Dutch Central Bank;
- corporate banks e.g. ABN AMRO, ING, Rabobank;
- start-ups and venture capital firms;
- consultancy firms e.g. ECORYS, Bluefield, Deloitte;
- research institutes e.g. the Netherlands Bureau for Economic Policy Analysis (CPB), Eurostat;
- government ministries e.g. Ministry of Economic Affairs or Finance;
- NGOs and development agencies.
Are you considering starting your own business? Now is a good time to prepare. Utrecht University can offer you a number of opportunities to explore entrepreneurship.
You could, for instance, take electives from Master's degree programmes that cover entrepreneurship in their curriculums:
- If you’re interested in becoming an expert at creating the prerequisites for running a successful business, take an elective at the Master’s programme Business Development and Entrepreneurship of Utrecht School of Economics.
- If you have a background in Economics and Business, and wish to do a Master’s programme in Entrepreneurship: check out the Master’s programme Business Development and Entrepreneurship.
- If you have a background in Science or Medicine, you can take classes Science and Business Management classes.
- If you're interested in sustainable business practices and sustainable innovation, take an elective at Sustainable Business and Innovation.
The Utrecht Center for Entrepreneurship (CE) also organises Spring schools, Summer schools, Winter schools, Honours classes and short seminars on entrepreneurship for non-Dutch students. All courses are offered in English except when the entire group is Dutch.
StudentsInc
Would you like to run a business while still at university? Do you want to graduate on running your own business? StudentsInc (Dutch language website) is home to a number of student businesses and offers programmes to develop your entrepreneurial skills.
UtrechtInc
Have you (nearly) graduated and do you want to start a business? UtrechtInc is the place to find financing, office space, expertise and coaching. UtrechtInc is there for
- starting entrepreneurs and alumni, doctoral candidates, and researchers (preferably from Utrecht University, Hogeschool Utrecht, UMC Utrecht)
- who are still in the ideas phase OR further along (less than five years) and have
- and have a (IT) start-up focusing on health, environmental sustainability, or education.
Would you like to know more? Visit the UtrechtInc site, register your idea, and drop by for a cup of coffee.
Enactus
Would you like to know whether entrepreneurship is right for you? Are you driven, socially conscious, and ambitious? Are you willing to spend a year working on a business for at least 8 hours a week? Enactus Utrecht (Dutch language website) offers you the opportunity to run a business and provides workshops and professional coaching.
Useful links
- Register at the Chambers of Commerce.
- You can read about all the other things you need to take care of on the Revenue Service (Belastingdienst) website.
- Join relevant groups on LinkedIn to share knowledge online and expand your network.
- Will you run an especially sustainable, innovative, and/or internationally oriented business? The Netherlands Enterprise Agency can support you with subsidies, knowledge, regulation, and more.
Upon completion of your current Master's degree programme, you can follow a one-year (Dutch language) teacher training programme. This will grant you a first degree teaching qualification for secondary education. That means you will be able to work in the upper and lower years of vmbo, havo, and vwo in the Netherlands.
Take a look at UU's Master's degree programme selection site.
When you complete your Master's degree programme, if you enjoy doing research in your area of expertise, perhaps you should pursue a PhD. You will start out as a research assistant or trainee research worker. Check the two-years Master's Programmes of Utrecht University.
The best way to find a research traineeship is to contact the professor in the field you want to specialise in. Another option would be www.academictransfer.nl.
If you'd like to pursue a PhD at Utrecht University, your PhD programme will fall under the auspices of one of the Graduate Schools. For more information, consult the Prout | PhD Network Utrecht website.
Facts and Figures
Utrecht University School of Economics (U.S.E.) has plotted the careers of all U.S.E. alumni in a chart to give an insight into possible careers after your graduation.