Archie1991

I would also recommend joining the "NPSIA Students & Alumni" group, which is for current and former students. Lots of good information and helpful people there.

Hey sunflower89, sorry that I just saw this now! Yeah, my biggest issue with Munk was the cost as well. I can't speak to much about Munk, but I can say that NPSIA generally takes a practical, policy-based approach, though there certainly are courses that are somewhat more theoretical in nature. I would say that NPSIA is more geared to employment in the federal public service, but I think the skills are applicable to the UN/IO/NGO field as well, plus there are lots of opportunities to intern or volunteer with such organizations in Ottawa. In my experience, Munk is more focused on the private sector, international business, etc., but I don't think it would hurt you, though I give NPSIA the edge I think. I'm not sure how Munk structures their internships, but NPSIA has a co-op program that lasts two terms. It is not mandatory, but in my experience almost all students apply for co-ops (unfortunately, securing a placement is not guaranteed)

Current NPSIA student chiming in, also accepted to Munk last cycle. I think it really depends what your goals are. NPSIA is a very public policy oriented school, and it has a very strong reputation within the Canadian government. DFATD and other departments are filled with NPSIA grads, and co-op opportunities are fairly strong. If government/foreign service is what you want, I think NPSIA is best, at least in the Canadian context. I have yet to meet an alumnus who was not employed. However, as others have said, we're not really strong on anything outside of government of the NGO sector. Munk is definitely superior in terms of international business, management, consulting, etc. At the end of the day, I don't think reputation and prestige matter too much. It's really what you do with your degree. I'm really enjoying NPSIA, but Munk offers an equally excellent program. I think the only thing that really sets them apart is the government/private sector focus.

If you're looking for something with a Garneau-vibe, I'd definitely recommend focusing on the Glebe/Ottawa South, right around Bank Street. Lots of small shops and pubs around there.

Nice, I'm also from Edmonton! I live off-campus in the Billings Bridge area, along Bank Street. There's a big transit centre at Billings Bridge Mall which has good connections. Anywhere along the Transitway is good (the buildings near Smyth station are pretty decent). Old Ottawa South is close to Carleton, as is the Glebe, both of which are good for basement suites. Further out you could look in South Keys (O-Train access at Greensboro station), Mooney's Bay, or Hog's Back, which have a mix of apartments/houses/suites for rent. These are more affordable, but transit can take a little longer. I should note that Carleton is only served by 3 bus routes, the 4, 7, and 111 plus the O-Train.

Congrats future NPSIAns! I'm a current NPSIA student, accepted last year - browsing these forums makes me a little nostalgic haha. I'm happy to answer any questions about NPSIA you might have, on here or via PM. Congrats again!

Yep, I moved from Edmonton to Ottawa at the end of August. I started looking for places as soon as I got accepted, but I didn't actually sign the papers on a place until mid-July when I came out here to view some places. I'm not sure what the timeline was for my classmates, but I think most people didn't secure anything until the summer either. It's definitely do-able! I should note this is for off-campus housing. Carleton does have some graduate spaces in residence (Leeds Building I believe?) available.

I'm definitely enjoying the program. Some of the required courses in first year are a bit dry (but really important, like research methods and statistics), I've found my professors and classmates to be excellent. I'm in the International Organizations and Global Public Policy cluster, and we have about 20 or so people I think. Most clusters seem to average around 20, with Intelligence and National Security being the biggest (we have about 100-110 people in first year in total I think). The co-op process has just started, and there are many opportunities, but there is A LOT of competition for limited positions. There are a good number of DFATD positions, largely in trade policy but also in defence and security, as well as with a variety of other government departments (Transport, Industry, ESDC, etc). NPSIA has a pretty good co-op placement rate (~90%) but it's unfortunately not guaranteed. That said, I'm in the process of interviewing for DFATD right now so the opportunities definitely exist!

I'm a current NPSIA student, accepted last cycle. Thought I'd check the forums and see if I can offer any information to anyone. Feel free to ask anything about NPSIA, I also applied and was accepted at GSPIA and Munk so I can offer a little bit of info about that too. Good luck to everyone!

The Whyte Ave area is worth looking at for sure. You might also want to look into the Garneau area (right beside the university). Another option would be to look at neighbourhoods along Edmonton's LRT line, as students are able to use transit for free with the upass. The McKernan/Belgravia area would be a good place to start.

I've rejected my offers from Munk and GSPIA. Both responses were pretty standard, just "We're sorry you won't be joining us, thank you for your interest" kind of thing.

I recently spoke with a friend of mine who goes to Munk (as I was accepted there as well), and she said that the program is very much focused on the non-governmental side of international affairs, namely NGOs, international businesses, etc. She thought that NPSIA would be the stronger choice for those interested in a government career path. Otherwise it sounds like Munk is a great choice for those not as interested in a DFATD job. And as was said before, there's a whole lot more to do in Toronto than Ottawa. She did say she wasn't overly satisfied with the program, as that there wasn't a lot of opportunity to work directly with professors. Also, while many Munk students do land amazing internships at the IMF, World Bank, NATO, etc. it's far from guaranteed. I would say though that if internships at organizations like that interest you, Munk has the advantage over NPSIA. I chose NPSIA because of its reputation and established connections with the federal government, the lower cost, and because the funding package was significantly more than what was offered by Munk or GSPIA. It was also highly recommended to me by all of the professors I asked for references. Overall, I think both are excellent schools, and you couldn't go wrong with either (and GSPIA as well).

For me the steps were "Preliminary Review Required" > "Recommended for Assessment" > "Review in Progress by FGPA" > Decision. It took a few days from when it changed to FGPA review for me to receive the official offer.

Congratulations! You should be able to find the funding breakdown on Carleton Central, under the link that says "Accept/Decline/View Offer of Admission"

Thanks! I had an overall GPA of 3.73/4.00, 3.8 in my third and fourth years and my GPA in my major (Political Science) was a 3.82/4.00. It was an honours degree with a thesis as well.

Ahh I see, thanks! My breakdown is $13,000 first year and $2,000 in second year. I'm guessing there will be other awards/OGS to apply for in second year.

The deadline I was given for Munk is March 25. I'll be declining that offer, so hopefully the waitlist gets moving soon!

I've been accepted to both programs as well, and will be accepting the offer to NPSIA. It's hard to say which is best - both programs are very well-regarded (though NPSIA has been around much longer and has a more prestigious reputation in the field). Both are in Ottawa and have good connections with the government for co-op opportunities, so I'm not really sure which is "best". Honestly, I don't think you can go wrong with either, but NPSIA could offer you some slightly better opportunities given its reputation.

It looks like its only for the first year. The offer letter says "when accepting or declining, you will be able to do so for the first year of the funding only. Your decision will be applied automatically to all subsequent years".

No TAship, it was all admissions scholarships. Yep, received the email this morning around 11am Mountain time!

Just got my official offer from FGPA! $15,000 in funding, I'm a little shocked and thrilled!

I believe that the embassy internship is unpaid, but I'm not sure how it works with the co-op options at NPSIA and GSPIA. I know that NPSIA says that the co-op option places students at the junior officer level in government, I imagine GSPIA would probably be similar.

It might not be alphabetical, I'm an 'A' and haven't received anything from FGPA...I worry that it's funding based as well. So I'm hoping that there's no particular order to it haha

I imagine the opportunities with GSPIA are similar. A friend of mine recently had an internship at the Canadian Embassy in Washington and said that many of the other interns/junior officers had a GSPIA background.

I was also accepted to Munk, and I just received a scholarship offer for $4,000 from them yesterday. I was disappointed, considering how much tuition is there. I'm hoping that Carleton has a better offer. GSPIA at uOttawa has offered $12,000 as well. NPSIA has a really great reputation as marika said, and I did read that it was ranked as the 2nd best international affairs program in North America a few years ago and it has great connections with DFATD. I've heard Munk is more academically-oriented, though they do offer some pretty amazing internships from what I've heard. Either way, they're both amazing schools and probably the best in Canada, so congratulations on your acceptance!