What our Alumni say about their time at IAMO

Miroslava Bavorová

Associate Professor and Head of the Department of Economics and Development at the Faculty of Tropical AgriSciences at the Czech University of Life Sciences in Prague

After my PhD I joined IAMO for 6 years. IAMO has significantly impacted my professional career. I have gained a deeper understanding of agricultural economics and agricultural policy through various projects. To this day, I build on this knowledge, teaching institutional economics as well as agricultural policy, and conducting research in these areas. Additionally, I was able to learn management procedures at IAMO, which I can use very well in my current position as chair of the department. In addition to attending IAMO Forums regularly, I keep in touch with fellow alumni through IAMO alumni work.

Olaf Heidelbach

Economic and Policy Analyst in the European Commission Directorate General for Agriculture and Rural Development

IAMO has deepened my knowledge and interest in transformation processes in the countries of the former Soviet Union and beyond. Since my doctorate, I have spent almost 15 years accompanying reforms in various fields in quite a few transition and developing countries. I am particularly grateful for the good scientific foundation I received at IAMO. It enabled me to approach new questions methodically and analytically. The position with minimal teaching has allowed me to focus on my dissertation.

Lili Jia

Senior Research Associate and an Economic and Social Research Council Policy Fellow at University of Cambridge

My PhD at IAMO provided me excellent training in conducting high-quality research with rigorous methodologies. During my PhD, I got the opportunity to collaborate with many world-leading researchers in agricultural economics through various IAMO events and IAMO-supported research trips. Following my PhD, I was granted the opportunity to pursue my interdisciplinary research interests at world-renowned universities. As a foreign PhD student, I was grateful that IAMO colleagues put the effort into providing such a wonderful and inspiring environment for all PhD students.

Klodjan Rama

Advisor for Agriculture at GIZ’s Sustainable Rural Development (SRD) Programme, Tirana, Albania

My experience at IAMO during my PhD has opened me immense opportunities in my professional career. I very much appreciate and I am grateful to have been able to professionally benefit not only from the high-level scientific standards on which IAMO operates and stimulates, but also from the encouragement that PhD students receive to participate in high-level international conferences worldwide to be able to share their views with leading scientists in respective fields, as well as establish a wide network with colleagues from different institutions and different context.

Frederike Klümper

Programme Lead - Land Governance at TMG Research. Think Tank for Sustainability in Berlin

My doctoral period at IAMO was a special experience for me, which showed me the many dimensions of research work. Above all, I appreciated the freedom to design my research work, as I had the opportunity to collect my own data in the course of a longer field research in Tajikistan. The fieldwork made the research more tangible and accessible for me. Working in the Central Asian context was new territory for me, so I was very grateful for the regional expertise and support of many colleagues at IAMO.

Martin Petrick

Professor for Agricultural, Food and Environmental Policy, Institute for Agricultural Policy and Market Research, Justus Liebig University Giessen

IAMO offered me a unique opportunity to research the profound processes of change in post-Soviet agriculture. At the same time, IAMO enabled me to tie this research to issues of global importance. The alumni network is a great opportunity to keep in touch with former colleagues on these issues.