Opportunities for Graduate Students

The Jean Monnet Chair brings a wealth of new opportunities specifically designed to enrich the graduate experience at CEES.

Intensive Workshops with Leading European Experts

Each year, four for-credit intensive workshops will be delivered by prominent European academics and practitioners who will visit Toronto for one to two weeks at a time. These workshops go well beyond a standard guest lecture: they offer sustained, seminar-style engagement with scholars and decision-makers who bring first-hand knowledge of EU governance, enlargement, security, and policymaking. Graduate students in the MA program will have the chance to work closely with these visitors, ask questions rooted in their own research, and gain practical insight into how the EU actually operates.

Among the experts confirmed or planned for the duration of the Chair are Ivan Krastev (Chairman of the Centre for Liberal Strategies, Sofia) on Europe's relations with the United States; Peter Kreko (Political Capital, Budapest) on Russia's influence in Central Europe and its implications for EU security; Ilke Toygur (IE University) on policymaking in the EU and Canada; Jakub Kalensky (Hybrid CoE) on disinformation and hybrid threats; Markus Kaim (German Institute for International and Security Affairs) on Europe's security environment; Luiza Bialasiewicz (University of Amsterdam) on EU foreign policy and geopolitics; Tanja Börzel (Freie Universität Berlin) on European integration and policy diffusion; and Frank Schimmelfennig (ETH Zurich) on European enlargement and differentiated integration. These workshops will keep the curriculum current and directly connected to the most pressing issues facing Europe today.

Research Traineeships

Up to three graduate and undergraduate students each year will be selected for funded research traineeships working directly with Professor Austin on EU-focused projects. Trainees will gain hands-on experience in EU research methodologies, policy analysis, and academic writing, developing skills that are directly relevant to careers in academia, international organizations, public policy, and civil society. For graduate students in particular, this is an opportunity to deepen a thesis or major research paper while working under the mentorship of one of Canada's leading scholars of European affairs.

EU Research Training with the Petro Jacyk Resource Centre

The Chair will introduce structured training sessions in partnership with the Petro Jacyk Central and East European Resource Centre at Robarts Library, teaching graduate students how to locate and work with EU-related primary sources, databases, and policy documents. This practical training addresses a real gap: while CEES students already engage with EU topics in their coursework, many have had limited guidance on navigating the EU's extensive institutional and legal documentation. T

Global Classroom with European Partner Universities

Elements of the University of Toronto's innovative Global Classroom model will be introduced into select courses, developed in collaboration with the University of Regensburg and the University of Graz. This gives graduate students a chance to learn alongside peers in Europe, hear from faculty at leading EU institutions, and gain comparative and transnational perspectives that enrich their understanding of European integration, governance, and neighbourhood policy.

International Workshop — Spring 2029

In the final year of the project, CEES will host a major international workshop in Toronto on the state of the rule of law in EU candidate and applicant countries, with a particular focus on reconciliation, education, and transitional justice. Faculty and students from the University of Toronto, the University of Regensburg, and the University of Graz will come together for a joint conference. Graduate students will have the opportunity to present their own research in an international academic setting, build professional networks with European peers and faculty, and engage with leading scholars such as Florian Bieber, Ulf Brunnbauer, and Heike Karge. For many students, this will be a formative experience in their academic careers — an early opportunity to participate in the kind of cross-border scholarly dialogue that defines the field of European studies.