"Writing a thesis definitely solidified my interest in academic research"

Each year, between 40 and 60 students choose to write a thesis as part of their fourth semester at the School of Public Affairs (EAP). They embark on a course of study that allows them to deepen their expertise in one or more areas of public policy that are of particular interest to them, while benefiting from pedagogical and methodological support during their second year of the Master's programme. Using research to support their arguments, reasoning and conclusions, and conducting their own studies, the students formulate public policy recommendations in the light of social science research practices (law, economics, history, political science, sociology). Like the EAP as a whole, writing a dissertation at the EAP offers many opportunities for professional success and integration. The success of the students who wrote a thesis and were later admitted to the administrative competitions in 2021 is proof of this: four students at ENA/INSP and one student at the Banque de France. This research experience also allows students to discover a real affinity for the world of research. This was the case for Anne-Pauline de Cler, winner of the Master's thesis award in public policy evaluation from the French Evaluation Society. Here is her experience... 

CAN YOU DESCRIBE YOUR ACADEMIC BACKGROUND AND EXPLAIN WHY YOU DECIDED TO WRITE A THESIS?

After studying Philosophy and Economics in my undergraduate degree, I started the Master in Public Policy, Economics and Public Policy stream, at the School of Public Affairs at Sciences Po. During my gap year, I was able to do an internship in public policy evaluation at the OECD, and then to learn about the history of economic thought, thanks to my exchange in the spring semester of 2020 at New York University. As my last year at Sciences Po was 'online', it was an opportunity to materialise my interest in research and the history and philosophy of economics. As my long-term academic and professional project was to do research, via a PhD, I first had to take a step that was still missing from my career path: writing a thesis. With a subject that I wanted to study in depth and make visible, and the support of a thesis supervisor, the fourth semester of the Master's degree was the moment to enter fully into this writing process.  

CAN YOU TELL US ABOUT YOUR TOPIC OF STUDY AND ITS CONTRIBUTION TO THE FIELD OF PUBLIC POLICY EVALUATION?

Generally speaking, my thesis deals with a method of evaluation, randomised experiments, as a quantification device producing a certain quantified measure of impact and acting within a precise socio-historical framework on a field in which various actors interact. In particular, it analyses the use of this method within the framework of the 'Fonds d'Expérimentation pour la Jeunesse', a public policy laboratory financing social experiments and their evaluation. I studied 19 cases of randomised experimentation, using their evaluation reports as my main research material and using an approach inspired by the field of Science and Technology Studies. This allowed me to demonstrate that this method, despite the attention and promotion it receives, only allows for the measurement of a very limited scope that is not relevant enough in itself to lead to a desirable improvement of public policies. This "field" study by the 'Fonds d'Expérimentation pour la Jeunesse' is therefore intended to serve as proof of the limits of random experimentation. However, it is still merely an opening towards a more serious study of methodological pluralism as well as the social and power relations that exist in the fields of social experimentation and public policy evaluation. Indeed, if it seems to be quite common in the field of public policy evaluation to emphasise the complementarity of different evaluation methods, especially in view of the resources they cost. This is an approach that remains rare in the economic discipline.

FINALLY, TO WHAT EXTENT HAS WRITING YOUR THESIS ENRICHED YOUR ACADEMIC EXPERIENCE AND PROFESSIONAL INTEGRATION?

My academic experience was enriched by writing the thesis, in particular thanks to the regular exchanges organised with my thesis supervisor, Dominique Boullier, sociologist at the Centre for European Studies and Comparative Politics, whose references, criticism and advice helped to give more rigour and meaning to my work. The standardised structure of the School of Public Affairs thesis, which includes elements such as an interdisciplinary literature review or a particular formulation of a problem and recommendations, will remain an example to follow for my future academic writing endeavors. The writing of my thesis was also rewarded by the French Evaluation Society, which organised an award ceremony at the Economic, Social and Environmental Council, during which I was able to present my work in person and meet with actors in the field. Finally, this experience has definitively solidified my interest in academic research and my desire to pursue it at a doctoral level, with the hope that such a project will soon see the light of day and have a positive influence on our ways of seeing and living. 

Learn more

• The Master’s thesis option during semester 4 of the School of Public Affairs
• The Economics and Public Policy stream of the School of Public Affairs