RoyaltyA remarkable achievement by our Crown Princess Elisabeth. The 22-year-old princess will soon study at the prestigious American University of Harvard, the royal palace said.
“Her Royal Highness Princess Elisabeth, Duchess of Brabant, will study at Harvard University (Harvard Kennedy School) in Boston in the United States from this summer,” a statement from the royal palace said. “She recently passed the entrance tests for the Master in Public Policy. This two-year master’s degree will complement her university education following her bachelor’s degree in history and politics at the University of Oxford (Lincoln College).”
“The Princess was also selected for an ‘Honorary Award’ from the Fulbright Program, the international educational exchange program of the US Department of State,” they also added.
Abroad again
The crown princess’s training program is entirely dedicated to her future as queen. Initially she went to a Dutch-speaking secondary school, Sint-Jan Berchmans in Brussels, before moving to Oxford in Great Britain to broaden her horizons. In addition, she also followed army training, to prepare her for a career as commander-in-chief of the Belgian army.
It is now the third time that the princess has gone abroad for training. This raises eyebrows among some Belgians, because is there not enough quality education available in their own country? But according to royal family experts, there is a logical explanation behind it.
“There is one general and one typically Belgian explanation,” Jo De Poorter previously stated. “For example, it is customary for the royals to send their children to an environment where they are more anonymous than in their own country. If Elisabeth had to study somewhere in Belgium, she would be recognized, spotted and photographed from day one. Moreover, her guards (Elisabeth is permanently guarded by two bodyguards, ed.) would stand out even more in their own country, while there are other students in a similar situation over there. It is therefore a choice that ensures peace and tranquility in the life of the heir to the throne, so that he can lead a relatively normal student life.”
“The second reason: it is a community issue,” said the royalty expert. “Because if our crown princess studies in Belgium, she will have to choose between a Dutch-speaking or a French-speaking university. And at such a moment you make a decision that also says something. The French-speaking circles were not happy with the fact that Elisabeth had been educated almost entirely in Dutch until now. By sending her abroad, Filip and Mathilde are immediately freed from that problem.”
Not the first
Elisabeth is not the first Belgian royal to seek her diploma in the United States. Prince Joachim of Belgium, Princess Astrid’s son, preceded her and also graduated from Harvard.
Her father, King Philippe, studied at another prestigious American university: Stanford. Elisabeth’s trajectory most resembles that of her royal father: after a term at the University of Oxford and two years of study at Stanford University in America, Filip obtained his master’s degree in political science.
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