wigi25

Program Applied To: MPP, MPA Schools Applied: AU SPA, GWU Trachtenberg, Cornell CIPA, Duke Sanford, Berkeley GSPP, UW-Madison La Folette, UT-Austin LBJ, UW Evans, Michigan Ford Schools Admitted To: AU SPA, GWU Trachtenberg, Cornell CIPA, Duke Sanford, UW-Madison La Folette, UT-Austin LBJ, Michigan Ford Schools Rejected From: Berkeley GSPP Still Waiting: UW Evans Undergraduate institution: Top ten liberal arts college Undergraduate GPA: 3.68 Last 60 hours of Undergraduate GPA (if applicable): 3.7 Undergraduate Major: Political Science/International Relations GRE Quantitative Score: 670 GRE Verbal Score: 700 GRE AW Score: 5.5 Years Out of Undergrad (if applicable): 4 Years of Work Experience: 4 Describe Relevant Work Experience: 4 years at a government agency, two of which I spent as a paralegal and two as a program assistant. Strength of SOP (be honest, describe the process, etc): I have always been a strong writer, so certainly above average. I think I did a good job weaving together my undergraduate training, study abroad experience, and current work experiences into a pretty cohesive narrative that explained why I felt the degree was right for me. Strength of LOR's (be honest, describe the process, etc): One from my thesis advisor in undergrad. I did not see the letter but assume it was strong since I recieved honors for my thesis. Two from work supervisors -- one was very good, the other was fairly generic. If I had to do this all again, I would have saved myself some time and money by applying to fewer schools. However, I was worried about the economy and afraid my quant background would be too weak. Actually, it's probably fine (I took intro micro/macro, stats, and used SPSS and regression analysis in my thesis), but I just didn't know what to expect, so I cast a wide net. Now I am trying to figure out how to narrow things down and plan visits. Money is also a factor, of course, and I am still waiting to hear about funding from several schools.

I have 3+ years in the public sector (government/legal).