--jawn--

@CFBrown, it looks that way! I'm headed to Syracuse, too -- Maxwell, specifically. What are other Maxwell folks doing about starting at the end of June? I think I'm just going to try to find a 7/1 lease and try to fanagle my way in a couple days early. If anyone is looking for a place at that time, PM me! Maybe I'm being a little naive about mid-sized de-industrialized cities, but how bad could Syracuse get?

Previous Schools : Temple University, Honors Program Previous Degrees and GPAs: B.A. Linguistics, 3.63 GRE Scores (Verbal/Quantitative/Analytical Writing): 160/153/4.5 Previous Work Experience (Years, Type): 2 years AmeriCorps VISTA and VISTA Leader for the same project, interned with a low-power radio advocacy group and with a fair trade organization during undergrad. Math/Econ Background: Intro to Micro and Intro to Stat Foreign Language Background (if applicable to your program): Passable Spanish Intended Field of Study in Grad School: MPA, focusing on Urban/Social Policy. I'm interested in economic development, housing policy, labor markets, and how they all (and others) affect education. Long Term Professional Goals: I don't have a preference w/r/t public or private. I only have experience at the non-profit and city level and am interested to see if I'd enjoy working on a state or federal level. Schools Applied to & Results: Cornell CIPA - $16k/yr, Pitt GSPIA - $15k/yr (+ I am in-state), Syracuse Maxwell - $10k, Penn Fels - $8k Ultimate Decision & Why: Syracuse Maxwell. I didn't think I was going to be accepted, so when I got the e-mail, I was thrilled. All of the programs I applied to had their positives -- Fels is in my hometown, Pitt gave me a very generous award, and CIPA... well, you can look on these boards and learn quickly how truly personalized and inclusive their program is. However, I went to a middling undergrad institution and I wanted to do it right for my graduate studies. My fiance is looking to go into IA or International Law, so I was looking for a highly mobile degree. And finally, CIPA has a highly individualized structure which I felt might overwhelm me (the choice in courses is positively staggering), whereas Maxwell's program is rigid. I am glad that I applied to a range of programs and had time to think critically about what would be best for me as a student and for my future career. Advice for Future Applicants: Put the effort in to make your SOP shine. I worked my butt off on my SOPs and I credit them with the acceptances and award packages I received. Write them early and do not be afraid to have a LOT of people look at them. I probably spent upwards of 50 hours on them. Think about your life as professional narrative and how grad school will help to shape that narrative. For me, I wound up studying collective impact in a thesis I wrote in undergrad, and it led me to the VISTA work that I have been doing the past two years. Grad school will allow me the tools to study this in a much more thorough manner. There is always an interesting way to frame your experiences. Finally, tailor your essays!! Each program is different and has a different personality/culture. Play into that. Honestly, getting into the mindset of the school as you write may help you come April when you have to make a decision.

If you are okay with taking the regional rail every day, I would recommend living in one of the northern suburbs (Jenkintown, Abington, etc.). They are easily accessible and Temple has a train station adjacent to campus.

I'm in the process, like many of you, of deciding where I will attend next year. I am interested in how workforce development and planning/housing policy affect education in cities, and would like to work in domestic government, non-profits, and/or think tanks working on policies that affect education. I have narrowed my field down to two: Cornell CIPA and Syracuse Maxwell. Both have offered me pretty equal funding ($16k/yr at CIPA; $20k for the year at Maxwell). From there, things diverge. I have been an AmeriCorps VISTA working within the education sector for two years. Maxwell's condensed schedule is appealing, because I am tired of barely scraping by. I would be able to start my career a year earlier, with a prestigious degree in hand. However, CIPA's staff has been so supportive and communicative throughout the application process; I feel like I would get personalized attention as I get my degree. I know that CIPA is flexible and Maxwell is rigid in their respective course structures, but I honestly don't know what would be best for me. Cornell might be overwhelming. I am interested in a lot and how various sectors interact -- I might get muddled by all the options. Maxwell might go by too quickly for my liking. How does one decide between flexibility and rigidity in program structure? I have other offers from Pitt GSPIA ($17.5k/yr with in-state tuition) and Penn Fels ($8k/year), but am not really considering either for various reasons. I would greatly appreciate any and all insight! Thanks in advance.

I heard about funding on 3/20. I would love to visit, but my work schedule is insane right now. Would anyone care to give a little synopsis of their experience? I know one was written last year, but any further perspectives would help out a friend on the fence!

Try checking applyweb. They never e-mailed or called, but my decision was posted on the website on Friday. To be quite honest, I have been increasingly unimpressed with their composure throughout this application season, so I will be looking elsewhere for my degree. I am local, so this was a big decision for me, especially because Fels opens so many doors in Philly. They gave me some money ($8k/yr), so I hope anyone with no funding will be able to benefit!

Just got an e-mail with the aid letter attached! Looks like they're starting to roll them out. Good luck all!

They haven't made a peep for anyone since alumni interviews, so I called and a student worker said they would have acceptances out by the end of this week. My friend got a phone call last night notifying her of acceptance, so the wait is almost over! Best of luck.

I know little about UMD's program, but on a surface level assessment, Cornell has the name brand that would do well internationally (I see you're from Pakistan). Additionally, the program allows for a lot of flexibility -- this could be a positive or negative depending on what you want to study.

Congrats @serwah! Where else have you applied? And yep, I got a scarf, too

Hi @LYJ I don't think CIPA gives full tuition coverage to anyone. The most they do is usually ~50%, so I would think that $10k is nothing to shake a stick at! My experience & gift aid are already in the thread, so I'll spare you the repetition. Where else have you applied?

@dudeinspace that is a real pain. From what I've heard, CIPA staff have been pretty receptive to difficult situations such as that. Hopefully it all works out! Is anyone planning on attending the admitted students day on 3/20?

Hi everyone! I got the e-mail yesterday. Congrats on all who have been admitted, and best of luck to those waiting. The end of March can't come soon enough!

@freeverse, it still just says 'submitted'. Hope that helps!

@serwah sure. I posted in the stickies thread, but I'm on my phone so I'll paraphrase here. I graduated cum laude in 2012 from Temple University's Honors Program. I am proficient in Spanish - having extensive experience in Nicaragua from working in a non-profit and studying abroad there. Scored a 160 verbal, 153 quant, and 4.5 writing on my GRE. Last year, I served as a VISTA in a high school in Philly, where I worked as a resource coordinator (to put it simply). This year, I stayed on as VISTA leader through the sponsoring org which is housed by UPenn. In a nutshell, I want to focus on the Community Schools model of education and how we can better bridge our k-12 education to labor and industry while also addressing socio-emotional needs. How about you?

I could only see getting an e-mail from a professor as a good sign. What are your areas of interest? Also, the video interview was way more stressful than I thought it was going to be! Congrats all on finishing your apps.

Thanks! I think it took about a month for them to get back to me with the unofficial e-mail. I submitted right before winter break, so I didn't expect anyone to look at my application until January. Their response time was roughly within CIPA's given time frame. Hope that helps!

Hi Everyone! I heard a few weeks back about my acceptance and received the official letter last week. I'm very excited -- I received a $16k fellowship from the program, so they are definitely making this decision tougher. Has anyone else heard from them? About funding? Cheers!

Hi Everyone, I received notification last week as well, and just got an e-mail from a current student reaching out to see if I had any questions about the program. I am definitely excited, but I will continue to hold my breath until funding decisions are made! Best of luck to all!

I have been searching around on this forum for information on schools that have good Ed Policy specializations. I would like to gain the general management education/experience that an MPA offers while also delving deeper into how education systems play into the larger political arena of a city/region. I will have been working for ~2 years on very similar work, implementing a pilot program that supports public schools in a large urban school district. Specifically, it works towards bringing more resources into schools. I would like to add that I am interested in the Community Schools Model of structuring public education. My interests lie in strengthening this support structure, but I am also interested in the bigger picture of city management, budgeting, economic growth, etc. In the future, I would like to work on a city- or statewide level to address these topics, either within government or at an advocacy organization. What programs in the past few years have been best for a specialization in education policy while also attending to the more traditional MPA themes? Would I even need to worry about having access to a strong Ed Policy school with where my interests lie? Thanks in advance!

Pavlik, thank you for your quick response! It is good to have another opinion on what I can improve before the fall. I felt the same about my GRE scores, so I will definitely re-take them. It's a pain, but definitely worth it with regard to acceptance & funding. As for taking macro/micro, I just started looking up courses I can take over the summer. I am glad I still have the time to get them out of the way before applications are due! Regarding the personal statement: my thoughts exactly. I'll be spending countless hours on it in the coming months, but youth development and coordination across sectors are definitely what drive me. And finally, the organization that I am contracted under as a VISTA is very small, so I work with the Director regularly. This is advice I will heed, though, by not asking the director of the Honors Program. The others on the list have directly seen the work I do and would be more thorough in their LoRs. Again, many thanks & best of luck at Georgetown!

Hi all, I am just starting out with this process and have spent the past couple weeks lurking. I am really curious as to how my stats stack up to various MPA programs. Any advice would be helpful at this point! Applying For: MPA/MPP Schools Considering Applying To: Penn Fels, Johns Hopkins, CMU Heinz, Georgetown, NYU Wagner, UPitt GSPIA, Duke, suggestions?? Undergraduate Institution: Temple University Honors Program Undergraduate Major: Linguistics, minor in Latin American Studies Undergraduate GPA: 3.63, cum laude GRE score: V: 160 Q: 153 W: 4.5 Years out of undergrad: 2 (will be 3) Years of Relevant Work Experience: 3. During college, I worked as an intern with the start-up of an international non-profit and helped to lead service learning excursions over 2 years. My internship brought me to Nicaragua on multiple occasions for a total of ~4 months during my undergrad career. I chose to study abroad for a semester in Nicaragua as well. My thesis focused on how youth organizations collaborate to strengthen civil society. I am CELTA-certified but I have no teaching experience beyond the month of certification & some volunteering. I am a current AmeriCorps VISTA working on cross-sector collaboration in Philly schools. I coordinate school-based programming, assist in long-term planning, and write grant proposals. I am going to spend the coming year working at a non-profit after my term of service, possibly at the same organization (which is housed under UPenn). Language skills: Proficient Spanish; Negligible French & Italian; 1+ years study of Yucatec Maya Quantitative requirements: Tested out of Statistics with AP Exam scores (does this count?). No calculus or micro/macro. I like math and do not mind taking a course or two to help out my applications. Statement of Purpose: I am just writing my rough drafts now! I have sufficient time and I have confidence in my writing ability. Strength of LOR: My options: Academic Director in Nicaragua, Director of my sponsor organization for VISTA, Co-Founder of the international non-profit, Director of Temple Honors Program. Who should I ask? What can I do to make my application as strong as possible before applying? Thank you for your help!