Public Policy and Good Governance

The Brandt School is part of the Public Policy and Good Governance initiative led by the DAAD and the German Foreign Office. Information on how to apply for a Helmut-Schmidt scholarship to study at the Brandt School may be found here.

The Helmut-Schmidt-Programme aims to train young professionals and public leaders to implement transparent, efficient and democratic governance based on the rule of law and social justice. It offers future leaders from Africa, Latin America, South Asia, Southeast Asia and the Middle East the chance to acquire a Master’s degree in programs of particular relevance for the social, political and economic development of their home countries. For that purpose, the DAAD works together with eight selected universities offering suitable practice-oriented degree programs. Since the program’s start in 2009, the Brandt School has been the largest partner, with a total of 132 DAAD scholarship holders studying in the Master of Public Policy.  

Apart from that, the Helmut-Schmidt-Programme has replaced the Good Governance in Afghanistan Program (GGA) that was hosted by the Brandt School between 2008 and 2011. The GGA had supported a number of Afghan students each year to study the Master in Public Policy with the purpose of equipping these young adults for the challenges they will face in rebuilding the Afghan political systems when they return. They had attended special preparation courses before joining the MPP program. 36 young professionals have completed the program and returned to Afghanistan to support the development of their country. (Since 2016, Afghan applicants can apply directly to the MPP through the regular Helmut-Schmidt-Programme.)