Michael Baum

Michael Baum is a Full Professor at Universidade Católica Portuguesa (School of Humanities and Social Sciences) and Director of the Global Education Office. He holds a PhD in Political Science from the University of Connecticut, USA. His roles include Senior Fellow at UC Berkeley’s Institute of European Studies, co-chair of Harvard’s Iberian Study Group (2002–2014), and FLAD Executive Board member (2014–2019). He created programs like UMass in Lisbon and Study in Portugal Network (SiPN). At UMass Dartmouth, he chaired the Political Science Department for 9 years and served three terms as Faculty Senate President. He is a two-time Fulbright grantee in Portugal.

Research Focus: Portuguese politics, European integration, gender representation, comparative politics, and democracy studies. His work analyzes Portugal’s political evolution, electoral behavior, and legislative reforms.

Publications: Over 15 key works including analyses of Portugal’s quota-parity law, Europeanization impacts, and referendum dynamics. Recent focus areas include modernity debates and Portuguese national identity.

Institutional Contributions: Leadership in international education initiatives and academic governance roles. Active in program development and policy advising across Europe and the Americas.