Maximilian Thomas

Maximilian Thomas is a researcher and PhD candidate at the Chair for Social Policy & Public Economics at Ruhr-University Bochum, supervised by Prof. Zohal Hessami since October 2021. He holds a MSc in Political Economy from the University of Konstanz (2021) and a BA in Philosophy, Politics, and Economics from the University of Witten/Herdecke (2018). His research focuses on fiscal policy, political economy, and public choice theory with a particular emphasis on subnational fiscal governance and institutional behavior.

• Teaching: He has taught courses on public finance, fiscal policy in federations, and public choice theory at the undergraduate level since 2021.
• Awards: Recipient of the Verein für Socialpolitik Lecture Premium (2023) and VEUK Award (2021).

His work explores topics such as fiscal rule circumvention via state-owned enterprises, bailout strategies during crises, and the political dimensions of public administration. Recent presentations include the European Public Choice Society conferences in 2022-2024 and the International Institute of Public Finance Annual Congress in Prague (2023).

Professional Experience:

• Research Assistant, Chair for Public Economics, University of Konstanz (2020-2021)
• Internships: ifo Institute (2020), German Bundestag (2016), and IMP3ROVE Academy (2016-2018)