socaljournalist

Glad you got the info you need, RunnINcircles! Stan is really helpful. To answer your earlier question, I will be a GSI for media studies 10, an intro media class that's a good fit for my journalism background. See you in August!

Hi RunnINcircles, Yes, you'll have to go from department to department (checking websites/emailing department coordinators and professors) if you're interested in applying for GSI/reader positions. Unfortunately, there is no central site to search for positions. But a good place to start is to e-mail Kari Hamilton with career services at the Goldman School; she can put you on her list to receive announcements about jobs across the university. You will want to jump on this asap, because most of the hiring happens in April. Reader positions tend to get filled later, I'm told, because they are contingent on specific enrollment numbers. Some departments asked me to check back with them in July for reader positions. It's totally worth it. I got the position I interviewed for, and so will receive the full tuition remission and $1,600/month living stipend for the fall semester. Good luck and I look forward to meeting you in August!

That is terrible! If I were you, I would be of a mind to call the admissions office, use a stern voice and tell them they can't deny you! Not sure if that will work... Hope you were also accepted elsewhere. Best of luck!

Congrats RunnIncircles. Now you can join the GSPP Class of 2012 facebook group I just created! http://www.facebook.com/rashi.kesarwani?ref=profile#!/group.php?gid=119289384754142 (Btw, I also turned down SAIS for Berkeley.)

To give you a bit more info in making your decision (from a biased person who's already committed to GSPP)... You can work as a GSI in your first year! I was recently offered to interview for a position that would cover full tuition and provide $1,600/month for living expenses and I will be a first-year in the fall. Yes, Berkeley's fees will go up by 15 percent, but you will be able to go there for free if you are willing to work 25 hours/week as a GSI. Also, you're mistaken about the flexibility of the program. Your second year at GSPP is basically open to take whatever electives you want across the university - a university that is unparalleled in terms of quantity of highly-ranked graduate schools/departments. This means that you can cultivate an international focus, if you so choose, through electives in the second year.

I'm surprised by those figures for HKS; seems a little low to me. At Berkeley's visit day this week, the assistant dean said they had virtually 100 percent employment for the class of '09. Granted, she did not specify how long after graduation. I was pleasantly blown away by the figure.

Yes, ask more questions about that 50 to 60 percent job figure. How many months after graduation? Where do these graduates end up? The more info you have, the better you will feel about your choice. Similar to you, I am turning down expensive private schools to stay in state at Berkeley's Goldman School. But I don't feel like I'm sacrificing at all, since Berkeley is excellent. You want to pick the right school for you, and sometimes that means being very careful about the debt load you will have afterward.

Yes. You should understand that the only person(s) appropriate to ask to be a co-signer would be a parent or other close relative. You are asking that person to pay off your debt should you default. Your finances have the potential to ruin their credit rating.

Yes, I can see the value of getting an MBA/MPP if you know you want to move to the private sector from public sector (or vice versa). I personally don't see that for myself, and if in the future I do decide to make a switch, I would go for one of those executive MBA programs that you can pursue while continuing to work. I'd rather do that than go into steep debt now for a degree that qualifies me for jobs I don't really want in the near future.

Honestly, I don't think it's worth the time/money. I never understood the rationale behind dual advanced degrees, either. Maybe the people who do it are trying to please their parents or a part of themselves that fears that an MPP alone won't be lucrative, even though they're really attached to the idea of getting one? Not sure...

Thanks for this thread! I too feel like our generation (I'm 27) has been shafted by sky-rocketing tuition and a crumbling job market.

Hey, sypher2k3, I think a full-ride is worth more than going to Georgetown. Couldn't you just write on your resume that you received a full scholarship somewhere beneath your graduate degree info? Nobody's going to question that.

Thanks, Jae B. You're making me really excited to start at GSPP in the fall! Go Bears!!

It all depends on what you plan to pursue upon graduation (i.e., your expected salary upon graduation). If your goal is consulting/finance, then I wouldn't think twice about 100k debt. But, if you're uncertain about those jobs or see yourself at a multilateral org/non-profit/public sector position, then I think it's wiser to at least consider cheaper options or be aware that you will face years of paying off your large debt on a modest salary.

Yeah, I got the same thing. Sucks! I'm going to Berkeley's GSPP instead, because it will save me approx. $80k.