Alex604

It's not an easy choice. I fully sympathize. SAIS is intriguing to say the least and certainly competes. I decided to steer clear largely due to the heavy economic focus. If you haven't yet, I strongly suggest emailing Zelizer to see about additional funding availability. They were fairly receptive to my requests. End of the day, either program is going to be great. Have you decided? Hope to see you in Washington next year.

Hey, great to hear from you. I ended up accepting the offer today after receiving a small additional merit scholarship. It wasn't an easy choice but I am pretty happy to be part of this program and think it will pay for itself as a result of their great career center and the marketability of the Georgetown name. Sounds like you have some very interesting career objectives that are somewhat similar to my own. I'm very interested in transitional justice and post-conflict reconciliation and truth telling initiatives, particularly in Africa (East Africa, even more specifically), though I imagine my interests and regional attachments will evolve while in this program. I have some work experience in the region (Uganda) but look forward to more, hopefully next summer. What did you think of the open house? I wasn't able to make it, though I did visit the campus in December and enjoyed meeting the interim director Craig Zelizer who was quite helpful.

Not sure if there are many (any?) Georgetown CR folks here, but if so, what are your thoughts on the program? With only 5 more days until the decision deadline, I am having a very difficult time deciding if this is the right program for me (primarily due to the enormous price tag, despite being offered a moderate scholarship). If you have decided whether or not to attend, what are the primary factors that contributed to your decision? What are your long-term professional/academic aspirations and interests? Other thoughts/questions???

Thanks for the info, everyone. I cannot fathom the idea of taking out $140,000 in loans to get a Master's degree in a field that is frankly not very lucrative. As much as I would love to accept the offer from Georgetown this just makes it impossible. Pretty incredible to me that the vast majority of the Conflict Resolution students seem to be willing to do this. UGH! I am probably going to head to SOAS (University of London) where the price tag is very manageable and the program is fairly well reputed so far as I can tell.

Hi all, I was accepted to Georgetown's Conflict Resolution MA Program, NYU IR, George Washington Elliott School but received no serious financial aid from any of these. I am wondering if any of you folks who were admitted to these programs received significant scholarship aid, especially from Georgetown? Do you have any specific insights into the funding situation at these schools? Thanks!

Hi there, I also was accepted to GU CR MA Program, NYU, and Elliott. Can I ask how much aid you guys received from Georgetown? I got very little which has made it next to impossible for me to accept the offer, as much as I would love to.

Depending on your stats, look at SAIS, Georgetown, American, Fletcher, and while not American, SOAS (University of London) has an amazing range of regionally specific degrees on conflict and CR in Asia.

Yes, I just got deferred. You guys? Anyone here know the early admission acceptance rate or the deferred applicant acceptance rate? Good luck to all.

Thanks for the votes of confidence. Just to reiterate, though, my cumulative GPA right now is not 3.8. It is 3.3. If only the second half of my BA is considered (years 3 and 4) it is 3.8.

Hi all, I'm facing a somewhat unfortunate situation as I approach applying for a MA. I wonder if any of you can give me any guidance. My cumulative undergraduate GPA is miserable all as a result of a terrible first two years at university (3.3). In my 3rd and 4th year of study my GPA was much higher (3.8), so there is a very obvious upward trend in my grades. Still, my overall GPA, to put it mildly, sucks. That said, I have a very competitive GRE score, three highly personalized and strong letters of recommendation each from well known faculty members, two international internships in the field I want to go in to, a research assistant position, and publications in a couple undergraduate political science journals. My research interests revolve primarily around post-conflict studies and transitional justice, especially in the East African context. I'm passionate about this stuff and would give an arm and a leg to get into a competitive program where I can really pursue this. I am extremely concerned about my very lousy GPA, though. I have this terrible feeling that I may have burned some bridges a long time ago and that I need to come to terms with that and start thinking about other paths. Any thoughts on the viability of a top or upper-middle tier program in a situation like this? Have any of you faced this situation before? What strategies have you used to emphasize your qualifications when your GPA was lacking? Thanks so much everyone!