aygupta8

Programs: MPA or MPP, depending on the school Schools Applied To: JHU (SAIS-Bologna), Syracuse (Maxwell-MPA), GWU (MPP-0k), American (MPP), Seton Hall (Whitehead - MPP), Cornell (CIPA - MPA, 27k-yr), Harvard (KSG - MPP), Michigan (Ford-MPP), Pardee RAND (PhD - Policy Analysis) Schools Admitted To: JHU Bologna, Syracuse, GWU, American, Cornell, Seton Hall Schools Rejected From: Pardee RAND Waitlisted: Duke, Michigan Still Waiting: Harvard KSG, Also waiting for financial information from mostly all schools Undergraduate institution: Maryland - College Park (Criminology and Criminal Justice) Undergraduate GPA: 3.4 GRE Quantitative Score: 770 GRE Verbal Score: 540 GRE AW Score: 5.5 Years Out of Undergrad (if applicable): 2 Years of Work Experience: 2 Describe Relevant Work Experience: I have spent two years in the Teach for America program teaching Economics, which I am pretty sure has been the key to my acceptances. I also took on some leadership roles within TFA that have helped as well. During college I had strong leadership experience in organizations along with some service-related roles. Strength of SOP (be honest, describe the process, etc): I focused on how I wanted to use my experience and public policy degree to help analyze crime statistics and draft policy to address the issues on a national and/or international scale. I was able to write about the lessons I learned in the classroom, and how that made me see the problems first hand instead of just reading about them. I am a decent writer, but other than that I simply described my work experience and future goals. Strength of LOR's (be honest, describe the process, etc): All of my letters of recommendation were from current employers, as I was a student who sat in the back in most of my classes, but did pretty well. Looking back, this is definitely NOT recommended. The letters that I got were excellent - and from high level managers within my organization. These definitely played a part in schools looking for dedicated and hard-working people. Decision: As of now, I am struggling to decide between the Syracuse Maxwell program and SAIS in Bologna. Money will play a part, as Maxwell's program can be completed in about a year instead of two, and is less expensive either way. It will be hard to turn down a year of Bologna, since I never got to go abroad in college. I will also pay a visit to Cornell due to the generous scholarship opportunity. Looking really for the program that is going to train me in properly using data in a way that transfers to policy jobs in the US and abroad.