quincepessa

I just started at Maxwell, and they take their mission of preparing public servants pretty seriously. They also seem to be quite generous with financial aid (it's also a shorter program, and cost of living is cheaper in the 'cuse. Go Orange! Good luck!

Oh My goodness! That bag is so beautiful, I can't even stand it. WANT WANT WANT.

Where are my Maxwell peeps at? Who's excited for June 30th? Can't wait to meet you all!

plus 1000 @tunaonrice: Peace Corps is the way to go. Loved it, and it will definitely help you get into grad programs. Also, with the Coverdell Fellowships, you can possibly leverage it into some grad funding.

Hi bgabriel! I'll see you at Maxwell! I'm in the dual MPA/MAIR. what up. Me and fam are going to be over on Lodi street, which is not as fun a neighborhood as Wescott, but a lil cheaper...

Do you think my professors would take me less seriously if I got this bag?

I hope you're not! I'm 36 and starting at Maxwell this summer! Honestly, I think the question always applies: "And how old will you be in two years if you don't do the program?"

Thanks Meanyus and Encyclopedia Brown! I really appreciate the advice and encouragement.

If the landlords work with students at all, they will definitely consider loans as a form of income. Good luck!

Some places will check your credit, others will just call former landlords. Places near schools, that are used to renting to students may want to see any financial aid award letters you have. Does your school have an off-campus housing office? They may have recommendations of places students rent.

Because my wife and I have excellent timing and planning skills, I'll be starting grad school (MPA/MAIR) on June 30th, and our son is due on July 31st. I have been able to arrange to take about a month of leave from school, but then will dive back into my program. Any tips on surviving? Being a grad student and a parent to a newborn at the same time? Supporting my saintly wife who will be staying home with the baby for awhile?

Sounds like it's a good option for you! Maplewood did seem nice when we drove by. Good luck!

Here's the housing flyer describing the neighborhoods they gave in our program: https://www.maxwell.syr.edu/uploadedFiles/pa/Housing%20flier.pdf We looked at Maplewood apartments, but felt like they were too far for me as I won't have a car. I found www.orangehousing.com very useful. In the "Apartment Complexes" they have quite a range of styles/prices. From what I saw, the Wescott neighborhood and University Hill neighborhood are very nice and close to campus. We ended up in the Near Eastside and were able to get a slightly cheaper apartment with nice amenities.

Hi there- I'm getting an MPA/MAIR at the Maxwell School. We just visited this weekend and found our apartment and I'll be starting June 30th. So excited!

Attended the admitted students visit day on Monday - it was really nice. The campus is really lovely - it's on a hill, so all the buildings look stately. A few impressions: a) A number of students talked about how fast the 1 year program goes, and how intense it is. It was kind of surprising to think - most of the awesome, interesting students I met are graduating before I arrive. at the end of June. I'm in the dual MA program, so I'll be around for longer, but that's some turnover. I imagine it makes for both opportunities and disadvantages. b ) The professors are very friendly and very accessible. A whole bunch of them came to lunch with us, and were easy to talk to, and excited about teaching. Many of the students talked about how often the profs would put in extra time on weekends or evenings to help them. c) There seem to be a lot of GA/TA positions up for grabs. Almost every student I talked to had one, and many of them got their positions outside of the formal financial aid package. d) The capstone projects for MPA students and the internships for MAIR students seem amazing. People are working on some crazy cool projects all over the US, and around the world. e) I really appreciated how seriously they take the public service mission - Maxwell seems to really be focusing on giving people the skills they need to make the world a better place. Anyway - I am definitely headed to Maxwell (found an apartment on Saturday), and look forward to seeing some of you there on June 30th, or in the fall for MAIRs. P.S. I will say - it SNOWed on Saturday am as a little welcome for us, but the profs assured me that statistically speaking, the weather is bound to be better next year .

Find roommates who like cats? That could cut your costs. My beloved Quince is definitely restricting where my wife and I can live too - hoping we'll find something good this weekend.

I was wondering about lack of funding too - but I'm beginning to suspect it's a matter of a) it's a really small program (like 25 people) and b ) huge numbers of returned peace corps volunteers apply for it because they have a special full ride scholarship just for us. It's one of the few public/government affairs Coverdells that cover the whole shebang. Anyway - good luck to everyone still waiting on funding.

What do you want to do? How much debt are you willing to take on, and how lucrative are the careers you're looking at post-degree? Does anything in particular matter to you in terms of quality of life for the next few years?

Each school has its own policy.

Alot of schools say they'll take your best section scores across different testing dates though - I imagine this system would work just fine in those cases.