newpollution

Hey devynlyn, I am more or less in the same dilemma. I am trying to decide between NPSIA with more or less full funding and LSE with no funding. NPSIA is a fantastic program, it really fits my interests and it offers up some exclusive co-ops with the government. That being said its reputation isn't particularly international. If you are looking to have an international career then I'd imagine a degree from SAISs and LSEs of the world are much more valuable. Another thing to consider is the location of each program. It's a bit unfair to stack up Ottawa to cities like London and DC. Living in cities like that would be unbelievable so that is definitely tempting. But that definitely comes with a cost as rents in London are insane while Ottawa is around ~$550 a month. At LSE, I'd likely be in debt of around $50,000 by the time I graduate. While at NPSIA I'd have the opportunity to graduate with little to no debt. I'd be interested in hearing anyone's opinion on this.

Just got my official offer with a 14k funding package. I'm pretty surprised at that! Now it's time to make a really difficult decision...

Congratulations! Out of curiosity, how long ago did your Carleton Central status change to in review by the FGPA?

I've already been unofficially accepted, I'm just impatiently refreshing my email 24/7 for my official offer haha.

Just wondering, did you receive your offer today or yesterday? I'm curious to see if they'll be sending out updates during the weekend

I believe it's accessible for every student

Congratulations! Was a TAship included? And did you just receive it right now? I've been refreshing my email all day haha

I think it's fair to say NPSIA is a stronger and more well known program than GSPIA. NPSIA is the only Canadian member school to the Association of Professional Schools in International Affairs (APSIA). It is ranked very highly by Canadian academics and has historically been treated as a feeder school for DFATD/DND etc. That being said GSPIA offers a pretty similar program with similar co-op opportunities. It is a young and growing school with top quality professors in many fields, especially Canadian foreign policy. I think it boils down to how professors mesh with your own interests and also the amount of funding you receive. GSPIA is likely to be more generous with scholarships so you should take that into consideration! Either way whatever you pick is the right answer. Getting into NPSIA and GSPIA should be considered major accomplishments and you should feel proud about that. Whatever you choose is a good choice! Hope this helps!

Sorry for the double post but I just wanted to respond to icedtea here. Personally I didn't include any specific research proposal because I don't intend on taking the thesis path. This is perfectly fine and I don't think you should be anxious about it. The way I framed my SOP was most likely the same as you. I explained my academic interests and listed professors I'd like to learn from etc.

I've talked to some current NPSIA students about the co-op/internship process. There is an unpaid internship program run by NPSIA and a co-op program (paid) run by the Graduate office. The internship program happens in December/January with dozens of places accepting applications (DFATD, NGOs, lobby groups, think-tanks). Students pick their top 5 choices and more or less everyone who applies gets a position. The co-op program happens the summer after first year and you have the option to extend it into your second year. These jobs are usually policy jobs for the federal government. This process is a lot more competitive and you need to pay some money for the application, something like $400, which will give you access to a bunch of counselling services. I've been told that the rate of pay for Master's students is around $18-22/h but I don't if this is still the case.

No status change yet. The email suggested that it'll be updated when the Faculty officially approves my application.

I was just notified by Tabbatha that I got in. Good luck to everyone

I'm waiting for NPSIA. I contacted their admissions people but still nothing

Are you going to accept GSPIA before March 3rd if you dont hear back from anyone?

I applied to 1) Intelligence and National Security 2) Conflict Analysis and Conflict Resolution and 3) International Organizations and Global Public Policy