karaya

Hi, Just got an admit from the MSPP but without any financial support. My admit letter does however say that I should "contact the Office of Student Financial Aid directly to learn about need-based financing." Is this only meant for US-citizens or do int'l students also qualify for need-based financing? Asking because I'm the latter. Also, any other avenues open for funding? Can you, say, apply for Grad Assitantships on your own? With no funding, my chances of being able to go look pretty dim. Thanks for the help!

Hello. Need some help between choosing the MPP versus the MPA. While I have 4+ years of word experience, most of the that has been spent in private sector consultancy and only 4 months in actual development (my current job). Keeping that in mind which course is best suited for me?

What sort of aid does this school provide (DC campus)?

Thanks, bdkk185

Thanks for the offer. Have replied back to you via PM.

Wanted some info on how the selection of fields work in the program. I am interested in both Development Studies and IR. Since my profile is more Dev Studies focussed (I work for Technoserve in India) I think that's what I'll be applying to. However, once I get a look in at the MPA, I might change over to IR. What I want to know is that how these change overs are managed. Is it a free-for-all or is there some sort of selection process? And if there is a selection process, how stringent is it? IS there someone here who has done something similar or knows anyone who has?

Hey, Thanks a lot for the great answers. Helped me clear a lot of stuff up. Doing an MA in History in India itself and then applying for a Phd (which either be in the UK or US) is a definite option and one that I will consider. Sadly, my undergrad has no history courses in it (the Indian education system is rather rigid and does not allow us to study outside of our majors). As for the point that a lot of people have made that it's the method and not knowledge that determines success, yep, that makes a lot of sense to me. I will, however, as a sort of let's-do-it-anyway option apply to one grad school for the heck of it. I figure I don't have much to lose.

Aim To do a Phd in history (South Asia focus) so that I can go on to research/teach modern South Asian history. My background I have no formal training in history. I stopped formally reading the subject in the 10th grade (16 years old). I do though have a pretty good undergrad academic background but in engineering. Professionally I have worked for four years in management consultancy and have had one of the biggest names in the field as an employer. Currently working for a US-based developmental consultancy called Technoserve. Coming back to history. The good thing is that I read a lot of it. Jalal, Gyan Prakash, Zamindar, Sugata Bose. I can confidently say that I know more about history both generally as well as Modern South Asian than most undergrads with a history major. I find history insanely addictive and this has bought me to the realization that this is what I should be doing rather than numbing by brain, picking away at some random Excel spreadsheet. Question Does a person like me have a realistic chance of getting into a good programme? No history background but has a passion for it. If so how do I go about persuading schools that I am a good candidate? P.S: Don’t know if it’s important but I'm an Indian citizen/resident.