I am a political scientist at the Centre for European Integration Research (EIF), Department of Political Science, University of Vienna. Having studied in Tübingen, Perugia and Florence, I obtained my PhD from the European University Institute (EUI).
My research combines Comparative Politics, International Relations, and Political Economy. I have specialized in European Union governance, including economic and monetary policy, Germany's EU policy, the European Parliament, small state strategies, the accountability of Frontex, regional leadership theory and process-tracing methods. This research appeared in leading journals such as International Affairs, the Journal of European Public Policy, West European Politics and the Journal of Common Market Studies as well as in the form of books (Leadership in the Eurozone; European Parliament Ascendant; Governing Finance in Europe).
The various individual and collaborative research projects received third-party funding from institutions such as the Austrian Academy of Sciences (ÖAW APART-GSK), the Austrian National Bank (Anniversary Fund) and the European Parliament (see Research & Funding).
In addition to my research activities, I have taught courses on the EU and European integration, International Relations, qualitative methods, research design and thesis colloquia at the universities of Vienna, Düsseldorf, Innsbruck, and the Central European University (CEU).