Faculty Voices
Our professors share their thoughts and opinions on their own experience of teaching at the Institute.
A Great Place to Intellectually Grow
Charles WYPLOSZ
Honorary Professor of International Economics
"I have just retired from the Institute where I have spent more than two happy decades, during which the Institute has reinvented itself. From a small school with some great scholars and a stellar history, it has become an important node in the world of international relations...." Read full testimonial.
“See One, Do One, Teach One”
Vinh-Kim NGUYEN
Professor of Anthropology and Sociology
"I’m a bit atypical at the Graduate Institute in that my background is in medicine. I developed my approach to teaching with small groups of medical students and residents on hospital wards in Canada, where the adage ‘see one, do one, teach one’ summarises the pedagogical style – learn by seeing, by doing, and then by teaching..." Read full testimonial.
Building an Academic Career in Geneva
Stephanie HOFMANN
Professor of International Relations/Political Science
"Interview: You started working at the Institute in 2009, rising through the positions before being nominated as Full Professor. How have you managed such a career?
The transition from PhD student to Assistant Professor definitely had its challenges... " Read full interview.
Adopting a Pedagogy of Active Learning
Elisabeth PRUGL
Professor of International Relations/Political Science
"Students learn best when teachers adopt a pedagogy of active learning. I value the opportunity to do so at the Graduate Institute, where I teach mostly small classes of students who come with excellent preparation from around the world and have chosen Geneva and the Institute because they are interested in international problems. Many students arrive with unique experiences, having lived, studied and travelled in several countries..." Read full testimonial.
Thoughts on Teaching at the Graduate Institute
Carolyn N. BILTOFT
Assistant Professor of International History
"I joined the Graduate Institute after leaving my first academic position at Georgia State, a public university in the heart of downtown Atlanta. In Atlanta, I frequently taught large undergraduate survey courses in world history. Most of my effort as a teacher went into figuring out how to get a diverse range of students..." Read full testimonial.
Entre étudiants et professionnels: deux terrains d’enseignement liés
Cédric DUPONT
Professeur de relations internationales/science politique et directeur de la formation continue
"Enseigner à l’Institut vise in fine à apporter aux individus, étudiants ou professionnels, une meilleure compréhension du monde et à développer leur aspiration à y contribuer de manière positive..." Suite du témoignage.
Un art, un défi, une responsabilité
Isabelle MILBERT
Professeur honoraire d'anthropologie et de sociologie
"Enseigner à l’Institut a toujours été un immense plaisir, car nous nous trouvons face à une extraordinaire diversité d’étudiants, une palette de jeunes intellectuels motivés et attentifs. Des étudiants assez matures, qui souvent connaissent déjà le monde du travail, qui ont beaucoup lu et qui sont passés par un strict processus de sélection..." Suite du témoignage.
Diversity, critical thinking, participation
Joost PAUWELYN
Professor of International Law
"Teaching at the Graduate Institute is both a blessing and a challenge. Teaching law adds to the complexity. New approaches are emerging: multidisciplinary seminars, legal clinics, use of IT. At the Graduate Institute we get the freedom to be at the cutting edge.Teaching small groups of only graduate students (Master or PhD level), who were carefully selected before admission, is a true blessing. I have taught in many institutions, both in Europe and the United States, and the overall quality and depth of a classroom at the Graduate Institute is hard to match..." Read full testimonial.
Close contact, intensive discussions
Shalini RANDERIA
Professor of Anthropology and Sociology and Director of the Institute’s Albert Hirschman Centre on Democracy
"I joined the Graduate Institute relatively recently, in autumn 2012. I have so far primarily taught courses at the doctoral level. In some ways, the contrast with the undergraduate introductory classes and advanced courses that I had been teaching at the University of Zurich for over a decade prior to my relocation to Geneva could not have been greater..." Read full testimonial.
Interdisciplinary focus, open structure
David SYLVAN
Professor of International Relations/Political Science
"I came to the Institute over 20 years ago, after having spent most of my academic career up to then in the United States. Even in those days – before we had become nearly as large, as specialised, and as professionalised as now – the graduate students stood out from their US counterparts both because of their greater geographical diversity and because of their assumption that international organisations were a potentially vital component of international relations..." Read full testimonial.