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Tsetso_BG

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  • Location
    Bulgaria
  • Application Season
    Not Applicable
  • Program
    MPP

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  1. That's really helpful, guys. The more I read about admissions advice and tips, the more confused I get. And especially with HKS, I'm still wondering which will be the thing that I should use to distinguish myself. This is some of my background. Schools I'm interested in so far: Harvard Kennedy School (MPP), Columbia SIPA (MPA), Georgetown PPI (MPP). I had the chance to meet with admissions officers at Columbia and Georgetown. I guess I left a good impression. Undergraduate institution: University of Sofia, Bulgaria. One year (2012-2013) abroad at the American University in Washington, DC. Undergraduate GPA: 6.00/6.00 University of Sofia, 3.83/4.00 American University Undergraduate Majors: B.A. Political Science, Minor in Mathematics; Focus on American government and public policy while at American University GRE Quantitative Score: N/A GRE Verbal Score: N/A GRE AW Score: N/A I plan to take the test twice - this summer and probably in November. I am pretty good at math so I expect to score high on the quant section. However, the verbal section will be a challenge. I guess this is the case with all international students. Years Out of Undergrad (if applicable): I plan to go straight from college. However, I have had five internships so far and I plan to work during my last year at college starting this fall. Years of Work Experience: More than a year if I combine all internships. Describe Relevant Work Experience: The Brookings Institution, Advanced Industries Intern (4 months). Office of the President of the Republic of Bulgaria, Economic Development Intern (2 months). Teach for Bulgaria, Education Policy Intern (8 months). Ministry of Finance of the Republic of Bulgaria, Economic Policy Intern (2 months). National Assembly of the Republic of Bulgaria, International Affairs Intern (3 months). Languages: Bulgarian, English, German (basic) Activities: Starting the first charter in Europe of the Golden Key Honor Society in a few months. President of the Student Club of Political Science at Sofia University. I have participated in numerous other organizations but I will focus on these two, especially my achievements there. I know this will be an important part of the application for Harvard, which is my top preference. Strength of LOR (be honest, describe the process, etc): One from my supervisor at Teach for Bulgaria (He's a Harvard grad, pretty good at writing recs. I also built a very close relationship with him and stayed in touch after I left the organization). One or two from professors in Bulgaria (I have worked with them on different projects/papers and took numerous courses with them). I am not sure if a recommendation from Brookings will be a good idea because I worked with multiple people, not with one single supervisor and I am not sure whether any of them can show that he/she really knows me well. Same with profs at American University (they will be always willing to write a rec for me but what they can say about me after taking only one class with them).
  2. Great topic! I wish I knew the universities who give full tuition waivers to international students. Unfortunately, Georgetown is not among them.
  3. Georgetown is best known for its quantitative focus. I visited one of their best professors' classes on Public Finance and if you are not good in econ or math, you will have troubles there. They even start with Intermediate Macro the first semester. In contrast, the admissions officers at Wagner told me there are no econ/math requirements, you can take a few intro courses there and that's it. I would prefer a program which is more academically rigorous. Wagner, however, focuses on management. The two programs are a little bit different so it depends on what you want to get from them.
  4. I visited both of the schools. Georgetown is definitely better than Wagner. And to me personally, DC is much nicer than NY.
  5. Hi everyone, I have decided to create this topic for all of us who are planning to apply to HKS this fall. I'm particularly interested in the MPP program. We can introduce ourselves here, share experience and advice and of course freak out together when decisions are about to be released. Anyone else?
  6. Schools I'm interested in so far: Harvard Kennedy School (MPP), Columbia SIPA (MPA), Georgetown PPI (MPP). I had the chance to meet with admissions officers at Columbia and Georgetown. I guess I left a good impression. Undergraduate institution: University of Sofia, Bulgaria. One year (2012-2013) abroad at the American University in Washington, DC. Undergraduate GPA: 6.00/6.00 University of Sofia, 3.86/4.00 (expected) American University Undergraduate Majors: B.A. Political Science, Minor in Mathematics; Focus on American government and public policy while at American University GRE Quantitative Score: N/A GRE Verbal Score: N/A GRE AW Score: N/A I plan to take the test twice - this summer and probably in November. I am pretty good at math so I expect to score high on the quant section. However, the verbal section will be a challenge. I guess this is the case with all international students. Years Out of Undergrad (if applicable): I plan to go straight from college. However, I have had five internships so far and I plan to work during my last year at college starting this fall. Years of Work Experience: More than a year if I combine all internships. Describe Relevant Work Experience: The Brookings Institution, Advanced Industries Intern (4 months). Worked in partnership with McKinsey & Company on high-level project to deliver to Tennessee leaders actionable strategies to advance the state automobile industry. Assembled, manipulated, and examined cross-state data on primary, secondary, and higher education and mid-skilled workforce. Performed quantitative and qualitative analysis of state demographic and economic trends using public and private datasets. Prepared Spring Intern newsletter featuring over 10 interns and initiated various events to engage Metro team of over 80 people across 5 programs at Brookings. Office of the President of the Republic of Bulgaria, Economic Development Intern (2 months). Authored memos assessing competitiveness of priority business clusters in Bulgaria, as well as evaluating effectiveness of different cluster promotion strategies. Developed comprehensive database on Bulgaria’s major export and import products compared to other European Union countries. Teach for Bulgaria, Education Policy Intern (8 months). Produced topic-specific reports and memos on education reform and policy, teaching quality, student learning outcomes and educational attainment, workforce demographics and skills. Participated in development of questionnaires for teachers, principals, and students as part of pilot study on mathematics and reading literacy in middle school. Analyzed quantitative and qualitative data on Bulgaria’s performance at international assessments Ministry of Finance of the Republic of Bulgaria, Economic Policy Intern (2 months). Drafted Minister’s positions for European Union Economic and Financial Council (ECOFIN) meetings. Coordinated and optimized mechanism for travel expenses reimbursement. Initiated and created detailed report with recommendations for internship program improvement. Constructed agendas and minutes for series of meetings on elaboration of roadmap for euro adoption in Bulgaria as only of 20 interns invited to attend. National Assembly of the Republic of Bulgaria, International Affairs Intern (3 months). Conducted legal research and prepared Committee’s reports on bills amending and supplementing Diplomatic Service Act and Military Police Act and bills ratifying other agreements and conventions. Produced Chairman’s media statements and news releases for Parliament official website. Wrote editorials and analyzed international press and advised experts on current foreign policy issues. Languages: Bulgarian, English, German (basic) Activities: Starting the first charter in Europe of the Golden Key Honor Society in a few months. President of the Student Club of Political Science at Sofia University. I have participated in numerous other organizations but I will focus on these two, especially my achievements there. I know this will be an important part of the application for Harvard, which is my top preference. Strength of LOR (be honest, describe the process, etc): One from my supervisor at Teach for Bulgaria (He's a Harvard grad, pretty good at writing recs. I also built a very close relationship with him and stayed in touch after I left the organization). One or two from professors in Bulgaria (I have worked with them on different projects/papers and took numerous courses with them). I am not sure if a recommendation from Brookings will be a good idea because I worked with multiple people, not with one single supervisor and I am not sure whether any of them can show that he/she really knows me well. Same with profs at American University (they will be always willing to write a rec for me but what they can say about me after taking only one class with them) Other: To be honest, I really like the east coast and that is why I'm not planning to apply to schools on the other side (Berkeley for example). I would like to work after that in New York or DC and I guess this is a wise decision. My dream is HKS and I am wondering whether I stand a chance with this profile.
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