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HISTORY
The Political Economy Society (PES) Maastricht was founded in January 2022 to create a community open to all students, regardless of faculty. We connect students with each other, experts, scholars, and best-in-their-field companies.
OUR (HI)STORY
Our organisation was born out of the idea that students should have a common place to discuss the complex political challenges of our time with each other. An organisation that connected students from all faculties and offered them a common place to develop knowledge and insights on the fundamental topic of Political Economy, as well as a diverse community of motivated students, was missing. That is why PES Maastricht was founded in January 2022.​
In our first semester, we saw over 650 people visit our events and we welcomed 40 students from five faculties and 21 nationalities into our committees. In our second semester, we continued on our strong start as we organized 11 events in 13 weeks for another 650 students, wrote 2 research papers as well as a multitude of articles by the MJPE, and held some guest lectures.
Now, while we get the best out of students - and they get the best out of us - we continue to move forward.​ We continue to push our limits and goals; through presenting new topics for discussions, welcoming influential and knowledgeable speakers and expanding our reach toghether with our actively involved students.
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Willem van der Mee & Tito Quadri, Founders
OUR STORY
The Political Economy Society has been founded at the beginning of 2022 with the aim of providing a cross-faculty student platform for both political and economic discussion, debate, idea sharing and dialogue. A lot has happened since then, but its goal stays the same: to get passionate people together and to facilitate connection and creation on the topics of international and European politics, economic and financial developments or even social and cultural aspects, which bind all these subjects together.
Nowadays, the Political Economy Society accepts registration of students regardless of year of study or faculty and specialisation, with the only criteria to meet being dedication and professionalism in an appropriate area, with sufficient proof of this.
In the past, PES held events such as Academic Guest Lectures (with guests such as Economics Nobel Prize winner Lars Peter Hansen, the director of SBE Bachelor programmes Prof. Kaj Thomsson or UM Rector Pamela Habibovic), Trips such as a Study & Internship one in Warsaw in March 2023 or the Members’ one at the Aachen Christmas Market, Social Events such as parties, political speed dating events, BPS debates or the famous Pub Quiz featuring SBE Lecturer Christian Kerckhoffs. All these are organized by collaboration amongst our 6 committees (Academic Events, Social Events, Research, Marketing, External Relations and the Maastricht Journal of Politics and Economics).
If members are interested in enhancing their curriculum and improving their skills, the Minerva Research Institute or the Maastricht Journal of Politics and Economics (MJPE) are hubs of like-minded students where personal growth is assured through cooperation and collaboration with veteran staff. There, papers, articles and interviews are produced under professional guidance, and afterwards published. In addition, our Thesis Training Workshop Series is there to help you develop the necessary research and academic skills for a well written paper. Soft skills development and networking opportunities are present in the External branch, which secures collaborations and caters to the image of the organisation. The backbone of PES is represented by the two Events committees, where dedicated and creative students plan and organise all of what this organisation has to offer: ranging from academic panel discussions to pub quizzes or political speed dating events. And then, the ones without which nothing you see, hear or feel from PES's side would exist, the Marketing committee, tend to everything beautiful though of and produces by the association.
This coming semester, PES aims and commits itself to accomplish much more, drastically improving the quality and size of events, academic output and of the organisation’s overall standing.
PES In Numbers
56
ACTIVE MEMBERS
20
NATIONALITIES
5
COMMITTEES
2
YEARS OF EXISTENCE