brooklynandbeyond

Just wanted to write a post for all of you people still trying to decide. I just graduated from the Center for Global Affairs at NYU and wanted to let you know that you should not believe all the hype out there about the program somehow being inadequate. Indeed, I also believe that it should be its own school or at least moved to Wagner or GSAS and out of SCPS, but on another note the program essentially has its own building and is truly a center with its own resources and events, computer labs and such, so I often forgot that it was even in SCPS. Secondly, it IS NYU and that in itself is enough to provide the prestige some of you are looking to add to your C.V. As far as the quality of the classes and education - I couldn't be happier with what I learned now 2 years later coming out of this program. They have tons of different fields for you to pursue in the IR field - environmental policy, human rights, international law, peaceubuilding, international security, private sector and it is continuously growing and changing because of the relative newness of the program (less than 10 years). I also had professors who had real world experience in a variety of specialties and organizations - U.S. and foreign governments, think-tanks, the U.N., the ICTJ, and so on which means that they have a lot of knowledge and expertise in their fields (and connections to say the least). Another professor was also an instructor at SIPA and she said the quality of the students (and their work) was the same over there at Columbia. Do I have a job yet? No, but the caveat is that I have not yet applied to a single one since I have prior summer obligations (an internship out of the U.S. with a big NGO and a U.S. gov. sponsored seminar) which limits my immediate availability. Do I think that I will be able to find a job - most definitely when I actually start applying. Does CGA have some negatives - of course it does but every school does! I honestly believe that how you perform, the contacts you make, the networking you do, and what you intend to get out of your graduate degree will be the best indicator of your future career prospects. Hope this helps some of you! Oh and p.s. - I went to Gallatin for my undergraduate degree and I loved it but at the same time you are going to have to independently choose different school classes to take since Gallatin does not offer anything IR related. Hence, you will be taking classes in multiple departments, which is great but at the same time will not provide you with that network other more IR schools do. And, many in my program took classes at Wagner and the Poli Sci too.

Just wanted to write a post for all of you people still trying to decide. I just graduated from the Center for Global Affairs at NYU and wanted to let you know that you should not believe all the hype out there about the program somehow being inadequate. Indeed, I also believe that it should be its own school or at least moved to Wagner or GSAS and out of SCPS, but on another note the program essentially has its own building and is truly a center with its own resources and events, computer labs and such, so I often forgot that it was even in SCPS. Secondly, it IS NYU and that in itself is enough to provide the prestige some of you are looking to add to your C.V. As far as the quality of the classes and education - I couldn't be happier with what I learned now 2 years later coming out of this program. They have tons of different fields for you to pursue in the IR field - environmental policy, human rights, international law, peaceubuilding, international security, private sector and it is continuously growing and changing because of the relative newness of the program (less than 10 years). I also had professors who had real world experience in a variety of specialties and organizations - U.S. and foreign governments, think-tanks, the U.N., the ICTJ, and so on which means that they have a lot of knowledge and expertise in their fields (and connections to say the least). Another professor was also an instructor at SIPA and she said the quality of the students (and their work) was the same over there at Columbia. Do I have a job yet? No, but the caveat is that I have not yet applied to a single one since I have prior summer obligations (an internship out of the U.S. with a big NGO and a U.S. gov. sponsored seminar) which limits my immediate availability. Do I think that I will be able to find a job - most definitely when I actually start applying. Does CGA have some negatives - of course it does but every school does! I honestly believe that how you perform, the contacts you make, the networking you do, and what you intend to get out of your graduate degree will be the best indicator of your future career prospects. Hope this helps some of you!

you said that your going to the greatest city in the world... where did you decide to go to school?

Hi All, I have also been accepted into this program for fall 2009 and am trying to make a decision btwn MS global affairs vs. The New School's GPIA. I currently live in NY and planned on staying here, hence only applying to schools in this area. What appealed to me about both programs vs. the typical IR programs at other schools (SIPA and SAIS) is their interdisciplinary emphasis on the study of international relations, not only focusing on the poli and econ aspects of it... Anyway would love to talk to you all more about this. Either PM me or we can keep this thread going. I actually sat in on a class and attended a symposium.