linden

younglions: Thanks for your comments. (Oh, and my husband thinks that the best option is for WWS to take me off the wait list! :wink:) Stephen33 and deechi: Thanks for offering your input. Won't we all be glad when this is over?

Rose: Are planning to share housing and other expenses with your SO? That could considerably lower the cost of attending HKS relative to SIPA. I know in my case, since my SO will be in DC, it makes a significant difference in the amount I will have to borrow to attend Georgetown instead of HKS. Also, I believe HKS said that you should not expect to receive funds the second year. But, after 48 hours of reading a variety of documents and disclaimers from different schools, I might be wrong about that.

Deechi: Thanks for your response. I think my perspective is a bit different than yours. I think what you have done with your degree is important, but so is where that degree is from. For example, in the federal government agency where I work, individuals rotate from assignment to assignment every few years. In addition to listing the person's work history at the department, the form that prospective supervisors receive also includes the person's schooling. Interestingly enough, the sheet does not include information about the person's outside work history. So, yes, I will admit: prestige matters tons to me. And, while I realize that Georgetown does not have the weight Harvard has, I am trying to get a sense from other gradcafe posters of how Georgetown is perceived where they have worked and lived.

therunaround: No, no, you're supposed to chime in and say HKS or bust! On a more serious note, what was the difference between the students at the GPPI open house and the HKS students? (I was not able to participate in open houses.) For example, was it the quality of work experience? Level of expression? On what characteristics did they differ?

Scotty: Thanks for your response. I do remember your question, and I remember saying you should attend HKS because the Maxwell name is not well-known internationally. Since I will be DC-based for some time, I am not too concerned about international reputation, although I want to keep my options open. Thanks for weighing in on Georgetown, though! It makes me feel a bit better that someone else feels the school has a good reputation overseas.

I am having a tough time making up my mind, and I would love to hear the opinions of others going through this admissions cycle. I have been admitted to the following MPP programs. * Georgetown (GPPI)

younglions: Hmm. True, you would have qualified both on merit and need-based criteria. I was asking, though, because I read this snippet on one Student Financial Services' web pages earlier today. "The John F Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University's scholarships are based on financial need, as determined by the Student Financial Services Office. Students must complete the application for financial assistance process to determine eligibility." As far as I knew, only one of the fellowships/scholarships for which I applied specifically mentioned need as one of the criteria, besides merit. But, the statement above appears to indicate that scholarships require students to meet merit and need criteria.

I am not even sure why I want to rehash this. But, reading again through HKS' documents, I now have the impression that most merit aid at HKS is also need-based. Is that correct? Or, is need divorced from the process?

In case anyone is interested, I called HKS to find out if this info was final. They had originally announced decisions would be up on April 3, and thus I wanted to make sure no additional information was still forthcoming. HKS confirmed that the information posted is final. Nothing else remains to be added.

Billy1: The awards tab was not there before 11:27 for me. Charleyj: I believe that's the amount of private loans for which you are eligible. Well, this is where the dream dies. GPPI, here I come.

Is anyone else also showing info under the Accept Awards tab?

A co-worker began congratulating me on getting accepted at Harvard and began praising all my accomplishments at the tender age of 24. I then corrected her and informed her that I was not 24; I am actually significantly older. Her praises then stopped. I guess getting into Harvard when you are much older is not as impressive! I've also decided I should go to Harvard because my family, most of which lives overseas, is unable to distinguish between George Washington and Georgetown, and if I attend one or the other now, it will be too confusing for them. On other news, was any one else excited to finally receive the phone-a-thon admit call? I was thrilled. I must admit, I've been looking forward to that call for two years.

FSIA: Thanks for the ideas. And, to think that back in October I thought that the scary part was waiting for an admission decision...

younglions: I thought they also offer a handful of fellowships to reward academic accomplishment. I cannot believe most people would be able to beat your GRE-GPA combination, even if your essays for the other fellowships don't impress the socks off the award committee. In any case, this is almost over. Just a few more days.

fes_alum: It sounds positive to me. (I am not sure if others had something similar show up, but I did not.) I am sure that HKS only realized this morning their were giving you information ahead of schedule. I wouldn't pop open the champagne yet, but I would certainly start chilling the bottle if I were you. Good luck!

younglions, if you (and sisepuede) don't receive a decent aid package, I am not sure who will. And, I know that HKS issued the April 3 date; I just don't want to get my hopes up that I will hear something that day.

Ha, ha, loved your question, fes_alum. As if though you had to ask... I must admit I have been checking, just in case... Regarding the public service fellowship letters, is this is a hunch? Or this is inside info?

So, has the time come to start placing bets on when we will hear about financial aid decisions on April 3? I say 12:03 a.m. EST on April 3. My SO keeps reminding me about the heartbreak of March 13 and continues to hint that I should not expect to hear on April 3. I'm just ignoring that logical advice. Actually, does anyone know if we will hear by email? Or will decisions only be available on the MYFAID portal?

Snowden12: The comments of many of my professional contacts and friends working in government and non-profit in DC is that GWU is a better name than American. Nevertheless, they have all said that GWU is not worth getting into debt for if you have generous funding from American.

The question of whether Harvard is worth loan payments of 500 or 800 more than another option cannot be answered simply by looking at the starting salary surveys that schools publish. The most recent surveys that are available from the three programs I am considering--GWU, GPPI, and HKS--show that HKS has slightly higher starting salary ranges than GPPI, which in turn leaves GWU (both Elliott and MPP) a bit behind. (And, remember, the DC-school surveys include the salaries of part-time students who are already on a career track and are obtaining a master's degree to secure better salaries or promotion potential. I wonder how much lower starting salaries for GWU and GPPI would be if part-time students were taken out of the equation...) But, these surveys do not show what graduates are earning five or ten years after graduation. And, while these long-term salaries are in part dependent on the student's efforts and skills, I think certain names, such as HKS, will always open doors. I would like to have longer-term salary data to compare my schools. Does anyone know if this information is available? I realize that it is difficult for schools to get a good response rate from graduates ten or even five years down the road, and thus the data might not be available. Nevertheless, I have the nagging feeling that HKS graduates will leave their GWU, GPPI, SAIS, Elliott, and UMD peers behind after a few years.

therunaround and skz: Thanks for your additional comments. And, yikes! I am not so sure about GPPI anymore. Again, thanks for the info.

therunaround and skz: I just read your comments about the GPPI open house, which I was not able to attend. Thanks for sharing your impressions. therunaround, you mentioned that tuition will increase by 4.5 percent for the 2009-2010 year and that the new tuition figure is $36K. Did you obtain this info at the open house? Did they raise it from the 2007-2008 level, which was 33,408? Or was the 2008-2009 tuition higher? If they raised it from 33,408 to 36K, it appears that the increase would be even higher than 4.5 percent. In addition, it just appears that if the tuition increase was indeed a 4.5 percent increase, the 2008-2009 tuition level would have been higher than what appears on GPPI's website. Also, did they explain why no one received a full scholarship? I cannot believe some of their applicants would not merit this award, and I am just concerned about what this reveals about the school's administration. Indeed, according to their website, they do give give scholarships for the full value of tuition. I am just curious why no students received a full-tuition scholarship this year.

traveler06: Thanks! I look forward to reading your comments.

Did anyone attend GWU's Accepted Student Day? Any impressions?

bbq555: From the comments I have read on this post, it does not appear impossible to gain admission to a public policy/administration program with little work experience. Your stats are certainly competitive for many programs that are discussed here. Nevertheless, it is probably true that you would be at a disadvantage for top programs such as WWS, HKS, etc... On the other hand, if you work for a few years you might be able to gain admission--and funding--into those programs. Why settle for a degree from a less-known institution and less-rigorous program when holding off for a few years might help gain admission into more competitive programs? Nevertheless, if you have spare cash and time, you can always apply and see what happens. Good luck.