I am a graduate of Brandeis' Heller School for Social policy. Although i didn't pursue my MA in SID (sustainable international development), i was classmate with several students from the program and took several elective courses from that particular department. My assessment is as follows: the SID is a good program for those who have a previous development experience and who are interested to develop their theoretical foundation through formal classwork. The professors are expert in their respective fields, and they enjoy more or less a good reputation in whatever research tehy pursue.
Heller as a school is characterized by a high number of international students, which makes it one of the highly diversified schools across campus. I liked the friendly atmosphere and the good bond among the students, which makes it much easy to whether otherwise a busy course load. Depending on your expectations, some courses are good, some are average, but overall, Heller provides a safe space for student participation which enriches the learning environment even further. I heard some of my classmates complain about the highly interactive method used in the classroom and the high load of papers due each semester. But overall, i liked the class environment and the setting of Heller. The school is well equipped with all facilities that the student need (cafeteria, prayer room, auditorium, computer lab, a cosy lounge, terasse, and many classrooms, in addition to a school library).
For the curriculum, you could choose your concentration early on, or focus on taking classes that meet your needs, but overall, there are both core and elective courses, and you could choose from a high range of them depending on availabiliy (now this is what you need to check with the school because to my knowledge several professors take semester sabaticals to focus on research or book writing; it would be good to plan your course work in advance if you can). When you enroll you have the right to sit in the classes during the 'trial period', so you get a feel of what the course is, and the expectations. In fact, it's not always helpful, but it's still worthy to talk to the professor before you decide to take the course.
Generally, you spend the first year in residence, taking classes, while you spend the second one doing your practicum (or field research). Guidelines for that are provided by the school early on, but it is the total responsibility of the student to fetch for the organization where they need to do their practicum. Professors are generally responsive and are good with mentoring, although some of them might not be.
As far as other sides of Brandeis, it's small campus, but an active one. Yes, it's true that Heller can be a liberal school but i am not sure about the others. It would be hard to make that kind of judgement. I personally liked the diversity of this campus. It's by the way situated in Waltham, and there are plenty of transportation available to take you from school to waltham (they run free shuttles from 7 am till 2 am) and from brandeis to boston (via the 553 bus, 70/70A bus, and the commuter rail to boston north station).
That was just to comment about the person who said that Brandeis was located in the middle of nowhere - actually that's not the case! it's very accessible). There are alos plenty of shopping centers around it (the closest and most accessible of which is the Arsenal-Watertown mall).
