Talbs

That's good to know. I live in Charlotte and am currently applying to MPA programs, but I hadn't really decided if I would be submitting an application to UNCC or not.

Since you mentioned UNCC, do you have any thoughts on their MPA program?

I took mine on January 30th and the scores showed up in 8 days.

You know honestly, UNC-CH is essentially a "dream school" to me, but I had convinced myself there was no chance in hell at getting accepted, so there was no need to waste my cash. On the off chance I was accepted, I didn't know if 55k for the program there would be worth the premium, compared to an MPA from somewhere like Clemson that would cost half as much. I will give these schools some thought. If I enter an MPA program, I will do a specialization/concentration in either Town/City/County Management, or Public Finance. All of my work experience has been with departments within county government. I just didn't know if I should completely sell out and only apply to schools that are begging for applicants, or if maybe schools within the Top 100 should be on my list.

I mentioned them primarily because those are the ones I feel that "elite" prospects will be applying to, not myself. All the programs I have looked at have Summer deadlines for the most part, but again, these programs are probably mediocre at best by the forum's standards.

I am just seeking some input from other people to make sure I am going about this the right way. I am about to start applying to some MPA programs, and I honestly believe the schools I am applying to are the bottom of the barrel. I see people posting about Top 10-25 programs every day, or see people posting whether or not they got accepted/denied to all of these premiere programs, but the ones I am considering attending, I never see anything from. I just want to make sure the caliber of programs I am applying to fits my profile. I did poor in undergrad, so I assumed I was limited to lower tier programs. Based on my "profile" provided below, am I shooting for the right places? To what tier schools should I really be applying to? Graduated from a state school in the Fall of 2011 with a 2.7 GPA with a 2.85 in the major. Major: Political Science Minor: Business I am currently employed full time, four years relevant work experience and counting. GRE: 156V, 158Q, and 5.5 AWA. Assuming my LoR and SoP are decent to great, does anyone have an idea/ballpark as to what programs are long shots? Programs that I may be competitive? Programs that I would be a sure thing, assuming those exist? Part of me thinks I have the worst profile ever and can't get into anywhere, and then part of me sees "decent" schools and thinks, "maybe I can get in there afterall." I'm not talking Columbia, Harvard, USC, Syracuse, Duke, etc. but am I really doomed to unaccredited institutions, and the like?