Dr Marina Cino Pagliarello is an experienced researcher, policy analyst, and higher education expert specialising in European governance, transnational diplomacy, and the political economy of education. With 25 years of experience at the intersection of academia, policymaking, and consultancy, she has led high-impact research initiatives that bridge knowledge, innovation, and policy. Her work spans policy evaluation, stakeholder engagement, and strategic research on education governance, skills policy, and institutional reform. Her research agenda focuses on knowledge diplomacy, higher education governance, and the role of non-traditional actors in European policymaking. She is deeply engaged in the study of alternative diplomatic channels and has organised high-level academic and policy events to advance interdisciplinary dialogue in these fields.

Marina is currently Marie Skłodowska-Curie Fellow at the European University Institute’s School of Transnational Governance, where she leads the Higher Education Informal Diplomacy (HEIDI) project, examining how universities function as informal diplomatic actors in global governance. She recently developed the Higher Education Informal Diplomacy Dataset, a pioneering survey of university alliances and their role in transnational cooperation. Prior to joining the EUI, she was an ESRC Post-Doctoral Fellow at the London School of Economics (LSE) and has held academic positions at LSE, University College London (UCL), Queen Mary University of London, and the University of Essex, lecturing on EU politics, public policy, and European political economy. Her monograph, Ideas and European Education Policy: 1975-2020, was published by Palgrave Macmillan in 2022, and her work has appeared in leading political science journals, including the Journal of Public Policy and West European Politics.

Beyond academia, Marina has worked as an education policy researcher and specialist for over 25 years, collaborating with national and international organisations and governments. She has a proven track record in delivering comparative education projects and expanding strategic relationships with academic institutions, policymakers, and consultancies. She has extensive experience in policy analysis and public policy evaluation. Since 2012, she has worked as a Senior Research Associate for LSE Consulting, where she has led multiple education policy projects for clients such as the European Commission, the European Training Foundation, the British Council, and the UK Government.

She is an Honorary Lecturer at the Department of Political Science at University College London (UCL) and a Visiting Fellow at the LSE European Institute. Committed to fostering evidence-based policymaking, interdisciplinary collaboration, and innovative approaches to diplomacy and governance, her work addresses some of the most pressing global challenges in higher education and public policy. Marina holds a PhD in European Studies from LSE, an MSc in Economics of Arts and Culture from SDA Bocconi School of Management, and an MA in Modern History from the University of Pisa.

Click here for Marina's European Institute profile page. 

Click here for Marina's personal website. 

Click here for Marina's LinkedIn profile. 

Expertise: European Political Economy; European politics; public policy; education policy; civic education; social policy; comparative education; teachers and trainers continuous professional training; apprenticeship 

LSE Consulting projects:

• Working in partnership to improve international student integration and experience
  January 2023

  Client: Office for Students
  Authors: Marina Cino Pagliarello, Ignacio Franco Vega, Francisca Torres Cortés and Claudine Provencher

• Opportunity Northern Ireland
  August 2022

  Client: British Council | Northern Ireland
  Authors: Marina Cino Pagliarello, Karise Hutchinson, Francisca Torres and Elisabet Vives

• Final Evaluation Report – Western Balkans: 21st Century Schools Programme
  July 2022

  Client: British Council
  Authors: Will Bartlett, Marina Cino Pagliarello, Vasilis Monastiriotis and Ivana Prica

• Baseline Study - Western Balkans: 21st Century Schools Programme
  December 2020
  
  

  Client: The British Council
  Authors: Will Bartlett, Marina Cino-Pagliarello, Ivana Prica and Vassilis Monastiriotis

• Teachers and Trainers in Work-based Learning/Apprenticeships
  April 2017
  
  Client: Panteia
  End client: European Commission - DG for Employment, Social Affairs and Inclusion
  Authors: Simon Broek, Marino Cino Pagliarello, Roxanne de Vreede - van Noort & Paul Vroonhof

• South Eastern Europe, Israel and Turkey: Trends, Perspectives and Challenges in Strengthening Vocational Education for Social Inclusion and Social Cohesion
  December 2013
  
  Client: European Training Foundation (ETF)
  Authors: Will Bartlett, Marina Cino Pagliarello, Claire Gordon and Simona Milio