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I've met people this year who weren't accepted to HGSE and were accepted to HKS. It really is all about being a good fit.

I'm sorry to hear that. If it's any consolation, Higher Ed is the most competitive of all HGSE masters to get into, mostly due to them being such a small cohort (as compared to, for example, TIE or IEP which are relatively larger in size). I just wanted to leave a tip for any future forum reader applying to Higher Ed. You might want to consider applying to Special Studies, which is relatively easier to get into, and then you can take all Higher Ed courses.

Fact.

Hi guys! I'm sorry I can't write a longer post but you should know at around 5! Good luck!

Haha, sorry for that guys! I just thought a little humor might help you relax... I don't think calls will go out today, but that really depends on the program. Each program organizes how they reach out to admitted students (after they get the acceptance email) individually. Some programs don't even do phoneathons and the program director calls you instead.

Hi everyone, just to give you an insider tip that all admitted students have already been notified this morning... Just kidding, sorry, I couldn't resist! Ok, so this is for real: I can confirm that admissions decisions will go out today. Each individual program is preparing by asking students to make phone calls, upload videos, etc. depending on the program. Once again, good luck to you all!

Good luck everyone!

They say that every year (last year they didn't even add the "but possibly earlier" part), but as HBDXB pointed out, for the past 6 years they have always sent decisions out between March 6th and 9th. Last year, the emails went out on Friday, March 6th at 4.20pm ET. Just a heads up: you will get an email telling you to check the application page so make sure you know your password!

I agree with Gvh. I know at least one student in this year's cohort (I'm sure there are more) who got in a few years ago, said no, and applied and got in again this year. I also know another one who didn't get in a few years ago and got in this year.

Oh yes, definitely. But to me it was more about the learning experience than the connections or the brand name. Coming to HGSE completely (positively) changed my view on education, and I am surprised at how much I have learned in so little time. I don't think I would have been able to do this anywhere else. HGSE has its flaws, but it's a great education school.

I don't want to sound negative but since you seem to be based in Amsterdam, you should know that when you move here from Europe you will basically be paying much more for much less. We (married couple) live in Harvard Housing. We have a roommate (who we love and get along with great, we were very lucky!) in a 2-bedroom, 55m2 apartment. Rent for the apartment is $2,600, including utilities, our of which we pay $1,600 and our roommate pays $1,000. If we were to rent the whole apartment, we would be paying the same as we would pay to live in a similarly sized apartment in downtown Paris. Except, well, Cambridge is not Paris... Also, groceries are MUCH more expensive than in Europe and the quality is MUCH worse. Even if you shop at the Whole Foods, in general everything has a lot more sugar and a bunch of chemicals. You can find an up-to-date comparison with all the numbers on Numbeo. This is also helpful for anyone who doesn't know Numbeo and wants to compare the cost of living of their current city with that of Boston or the Boston area. Unfortunately, these double standards are ubiquitous at HGSE. They advocate for collaboration versus competition in education, but they make their own students apply (i.e. compete) for spots at courses. Many professors will seem super friendly and supportive but they will not be genuinely interested in what you are doing. A professor once told me she was "super excited" about my project and after talking to her for 2 more minutes I realized that she didn't know what my project was. Again, I am not trying to be negative; no institution is perfect (not even Harvard) and I just think it's important to provide a balanced perspective of the pros and cons, as I have focused more on the pros in my previous posts. I have learned an awful lot at HGSE, my overall experience has been extremely positive and I would do this program again in a heartbeat. But I also wish someone had told me this kind of things before I came here; I would have still come, but I would have been more "mentally prepared"

This is 100% not true. There are no quotas.

You can definitely take a language class for credit by cross-registering at the Faculty of Arts and Sciences. I know at least one IEP student who was doing this last semester. Also, although you are supposed to take 8 courses throughout the year, nothing stops you from taking 10 or 11 at no extra cost. So if you're already taking 4 courses and the language course is your fifth, it's basically a free language course.

I just checked and last year we got an email on January 16, so you should be hearing from the Financial Aid office anytime soon.

Wow, there is an Ed.M. student this year with a profile almost identical as yours (business background, in her 40s, international, no previous experience in education but an amazing mission and great reasons for pursuing this master's). So if you were able to convey all of this in your SoP, I think your chances are pretty good, if not better than more "traditional" candidates'. HGSE tries really hard to have a well-rounded cohort with students from many different backgrounds.

It's the biggest - around 85-90 students this year. But many of them were deferred to that program after not being accepted to the doctoral programs.

I actually took the PowerPrep tests the day before and scored a little higher on the real test, but just one or 2 points.

I would explain it in my statement of purpose and try to make a case that this is somehow related to how you realized you were passionate about education.

Hi everyone! I'm currently an Ed.M. student at HGSE and this forum was very helpful when I was applying last year, so I just wanted to jump in here and contribute. As for the question above, no, your "extra activities" do not need to be education-related. They want to get a better picture of who you are as a person and they have all the other sections in the application to know what you did professionally and academically. Also, note that the application asks for a start and an end date for each activity, meaning you can and maybe should include activities you did in the past if you think they add to your application somehow. My "extra activities" were my history working as a professional ballet dancer before I started college (completely unrelated to my program, I wasn't applying to AIE), volunteering as Social Media Manager for a non-profit independent theatre organization, and volunteering at an anti-bullying organization (this one was the only one somewhat related to education). Think of interesting things that you have done in the past and try to come up with 3. As for the other questions discussed above... - Do GRE scores matter? As the alumni in this thread have said above, they are just a small part of your application. HGSE is very much part of the discussion around standardized testing, and the first thing that they tell you when you get here, at least in TIE, is "exams and grades are bullshit" (one faculty literally said that). That being said, if you get extremely low scores it might raise some eyebrows, but if you are at least close to the average scores of admitted students, I wouldn't sweat it. The most important part of the GRE is the AW section. An admissions officer said last year that they would worry if you got 3.5 or less. But if you get 4.0 or above, I don't think it really makes any difference. Focus on your SoP and LoRs, those are the two most important things. - What's the acceptance rate for Ed.M. program? Again, as some have said above, no one really knows. I've heard people speculate it was 10%, and others say it was 40%. The truth is, no one really knows, as they don't make that information public. The closest thing I ever heard an admissions officer say last year was something like "we are willing to accept as many talented and passionate individuals as we can" (or something like that). In other words, if they think you are a good fit for HGSE, you're in - there's no cap.

I think the group you're looking for is the Harvard Grad Market, although it's not just for apartments: https://www.facebook.com/groups/harvardgradmarket/

I got the $14,000 grant too, and I'm also an international student. I'm a little sad about not getting the Leadership in Education award, but this definitely helps. It's roughly 33% of the cost of the program, so I'm definitely not complaining!

Hi everyone, just created the FB group. Please join for all 2015-2016 admitted students: Facebook.com/groups/hgse.edm2015

Wow, so many fellow TIEers! I've noticed that in previous years people in the thread create a "HGSE TIE" group (do people still use Facebook groups at all?). Shall we create HGSE TIE 2015?

I'm in too! Also an international student in the TIE program!!! I'm sorry, too shocked and I can't even type, will post later!!!

I really don't think so. This is from the website: "The 2015-2016 HGSE Financial Aid Application will be available in January after the Admissions application deadline." It doesn't say "after students are granted admission into the program" or something of the sort.