Previous Schools (Name, type, or tier): top 10 UK university
Previous Degrees and GPAs: Econ undergrad, first class honours (4.0?) GRE Scores (Verbal/Quantitative/Analytical Writing): V169 Q165 AW 4.5 Previous Work Experience (Years, Type): 1.5 yrs banking, 2 yrs research africa, 0.5 government africa Math/Econ Background: math grades not excellent but intro, intermediate and advanced micro/macro/metrics. grad level courses in sub fields (Labor econ, behavioural econ, economics of information etc. Foreign Language Background (if applicable to your program): english + french fluent, german good, mandarin poor (semester abroad) Intended Field of Study in Grad School: development + econ & public policy Long Term Professional Goals: International development. IFIs, NGOs etc focus on africa Schools Applied to & Results: Accepted in all schools I applied to: Columbia SIPA MPA EPD ($$), John Hopkins SAIS MA IDEV ($$), Harvard Kennedy MPA/ID ($$), Princeton WWS MPA Econ track iv ($$$$), Oxford MSc Economics for Development (no funding - may have received college funding ? but declined), LSE MSc Economics (no funding)
Ultimate Decision & Why: HKS MPA/ID. It was a big hesitation with WWS but im really interested in dev econ and the MPA/ID is more focused on that. Princeton WWS was incredible though: their admissions team is exceptional, the classes are tiny (5-20 students with a professor), the level of attention given to student is unparalled, obviously the full tuition + living stipend is incredible. But in the end I made my decision on program content and the more international aspect of MPA/ID: 80% students from developing & transition countries vs. 80% Americans on WWS MPA.
I think my order of preference (without taking funding into account) was 1) MPA/ID and WWS tied, 2) SAIS, 3) LSE Econ, 4) Oxford, 5) SIPA. But the english programs are hard to compare with the american ones.
Advice for Future Applicants:
GO VISIT THE SCHOOLS. The price of a ticket is a drop in the ocean compared to the funding you receive and/or loans you're going to take.
Study hard for your GRE because it'll pay back in terms of funding later on.
Send your essays to a few key people (no more than 5) that will really take the time to edit and give feedback.
BELIEVE IN YOUR CHANCES During the application period, I felt so unsure about my chance of getting admitted that I didn't apply to all fellowships and scholarship (e.g. at HKS). Mostly, I was reluctant to ask my recommenders for additional letters (I felt that I had troubled them enough already). Also, I was really tired of writing essays and felt discouraged. I regret this now. Perhaps I could have received more from HKS for example.
Also, I wouldnt worry too much about foreign languages (I think only SAIS has a foreign language requirement). Focus on the quant stuff (econ and maths) and the GRE.
For international students, remember that Fulbright comes with a 2-year home residency requirement. That's something to take into consideration as it will limit your job options when you graduate. I wasn't really aware of this (or thought through this thoroughly) until after I sent out my Fulbright app - which took forever). I think I shouldn't have bothered and used that time for other funding opportunities.
Oh and obviously GET WORK EXPERIENCE. it's really not such a good idea to apply to these schools right out of undergrad. I actually did that and I'm glad I decided to go for the job offer I had instead. I'll take advantage of the courses more and I got into better schools with more funding.