CakeTea

@KhalifehA: I wish to add two issues. Career Office support for internationals. This is an important issue for you to address as you may need internship and first job post graduation. This is relevant for you as career changer. Normally, international alumni can give the best and most reliable feedback. Some programs post even first job, position and organisation. Some IR programs send a higher percentage of its class to private sector (SAIS: 41%). With regards to suitable programs, have you spoken to other Fulbright alumni from Lebanon? Where did they apply and can you see a pattern? I remember that for media and foreign policy program, Georgetown is highly regarded. Some successful applicant with a journalism background in foreign affairs was admitted to Georgetown with generous funding. Within IR, Georgetown is regarded as top 5 program (HKS, WWS, SIPA,SAIS, GT). Don't know if Fulbright sees Georgetown as top or Ivy level. A good school outside popular cities: Duke Sanford MA International Development Policy, small program, good balance/flexibility, academic rigour and attracts strong candidates (GPA,GRE and work). The MIDP is specialised.

Congratulations on your Fulbright nomination, you can be proud of your achievement. A masters in the US represents a huge educational and professional development opp. Following Fulbrights guidelines, have you thought about fit? Based on your academic interests and concentrations at various schools, where would you be comfortable with? Any professors you would like to work with? Incidentally you have not elaborated on this matter. As went_away indicated, Fletcher is well regarded for Human Rights in the NGO field. SAIS Int Dev is highly regarded as it incorporates economic analysis and quantitative curriculum along with DC links to gov and IOs. SAIS is a larger program and less personal than smaller programs (Yale). Syracuse is a good school and may be an alternative to Denver (strength: Security) or UCSD.(Asia Pacific and policy analysis). Good luck

For TAMU Bush MIA, your GRE is above the average GRE of class. I have read in some older thread from some posters with low GPA that they manage to get admitted by having good GRE and solid work experience. GPA is one of the metrics, albeit an important one.

Generally adcomms look at academics, professional work experience and relevant extracurriculars/leadership/volunteering roles. Congratulations on your jumbo scores, I think you clear this hurdle clearly and your scores are in the top range for most schools leadership/volunteering roles: You have done a lot during your studies. Policy work is welcome, but you can excel in other areas. Adcomms look at your contribution and impact in an organisation. Work: Imho work is conducive to your government school experience as you can relate various policies and can contribute more in class discussions. I have seen from previous posts that various strong applicants straight out of undergrad with stellar GPA/GRE are accepted at GWU, LBJ, Humphrey, SAIS.

Good list of aforementioned schools for behavioural science modules. I may add Berkeley Goldman and Ford, both econ departments produce relevant research in peer reviewed journals.

The overall admission rate was 30% for all subjects a few years ago. Some (Economics, Development, International Relations) are more competitive than others (history). The key requirements: GPA, relevant work & international experience, LoR and motivation. 3.25 GPA is on the low side of range in the class. Your chances of admission depends on the overall pool of applicants.

@OldMan77: You are welcome, hope it helps. Apart from the MIA programme, I know MSc Management and Economics students at HSG. They are Swiss and German and have more a local perspective. A friend went to HSG for a semester exchange and enjoyed his experience. Location: Small, safe town in remote Appenzell region, lies close to border with Germany by 1 hr. Not many distractions from studies, clubbers and culture people will be disappointed with local venues. Locals tend to be more conservative than cosmopolitan Geneva. Some student clubs offer various career or sports activities. Poor Housing services: No uni dorms and little support from the uni, only private flat share rentals. Demand > Supply = pricey rent. OK bus shuttle service. Cost of living (CoL): Prohibitive, I saw HSG student budget at Swiss Francs 2,300 a month! Strong Swiss currency makes CoL more expensive for internationals. Some students go to Germany and buy cheaper goods (clothing, food, appliances). Internationals get sticker price shock. Some well paid student jobs are available, but client facing jobs require fluent German. Excellent reputation: HSG is the leading Business School (albeit not Government School) in German speaking region. See rankings in Financial Times, Handelsblatt, Zeit. HSG is the Swiss version of Harvard or Wharton Business School. Employment reports of Business/Econ graduates show employability and high salary. Top firms (banks, consulting, blue chips) come to campus for recruitment and presentations. Careers office helps with support and active alumni network. The dean of Business School is capable and is a good manager. Established programme has produced many alums in senior positions. For rest of Europe, HSG is known to some managers as HSG is member of network of leading Business Schools (CEMS, PIM), US Pim members are Chicago, Northwestern, Cornell, Duke. Most HSG internationals have worked in German speaking region and intend to stay to leverage their HSG experience, otherwise internationals hedge and do double master’s with home uni as a back up. Academic Rigour and personal development: HSG covers theoretical management sciences, experimential learning and general management focus (SG Methods). Close relationship to corporate partners with well funded research centres (governance, innovation, entrepreneurship). Profs are cited in academic journals and HSG has a strong PhD programme. Academic integrity is vital and HSG avoids plagiarism/funding scandals. Faculty exchanges and competitive salary attract international lecturers to HSG and teach. Some Econ profs are appointed to Central Banks as senior policy advisors. International reputation with dual master’s and exchanges with peer schools abroad. Quite heavy workload, my friends sent me photos of busy library on Saturday mornings. Exchange students comment that the HSG workload is serious, but they learn. Some popular Business modules need registration through a bidding system using points (used by Wharton and Chicago). Some modules are taught only in German. My friend received constructive & fair feedback in seminar from his prof. Students are described as driven, selective admission puts off slackers. HSG has a grown up vibe with polished students in suits, game face on who attend presentations. Network: Due to HSG’s excellent reputation, many entrepreneurs and politicians send their children to HSG. The alumni list shows some well known families from business, politics and academia. HSG has student organized symposium with high profile participants from business and politics. The econ student liked treks to banks and Swiss federal departments where HSG alums work. Corporate partners and careers office help with internship and job search. I read somewhere that the admission rate for SAIS is 38%, this is generous for an elite school. 12 students for new MA Global Risk is small intake. Either SAIS is selective and grows course slowly or there were not many takers. SAIS needs to build a critical mass for intake and alumni network. I heard when MIPP was introduced, there was less funding allocated for scholarships.

I think generally it is easier to get admitted to new programmes. So MA Global Risk is less selective than an established course with many applicants such as IntDev. I don't think that MIA at HSG is a prime feeder to Insurance industry. To my knowledge Zurich, Winterthur and Swiss Re still prefer trainees from traditional disciplines: law, business/economics, acturial sciences and computing. Most MIA grads end up in public sector, government departments, risk consultancy and non profits. The MIA is quite selective and attracts mostly strong applicants from German-speaking region and Eastern Europe. The class profile suggests emphasis on GRE score with minimum of 158 Quant/GPA as admission criterion over work/essays. MIA has good international reputation with option to study a semester abroad. There are US students at HSG, but most tend to be in the double master's programme with Fletcher. They told me that the academic rigour of MIA is excellent, but MIA is more on theory and less practical professional development focus offered by US schools. Funding wise, HSG can't compete with well funded US programmes. But MIA tuition is moderate by US standards. FYI, US and EU students pay the same tuition rate as non Swiss nationals. HSG actually provides the Starr scholarship that covers full tuition. I knew an impressive US alum who was awarded. So I would say that it is equal opportunities.

Your GRE score is not low. the V is stellar and the Q is solid. It may reflect your (liberal arts) major fairly and adcomms may factor this in. I have seen a few cases of liberal arts majors who got admitted with 156Q and 162V. I think WWS, HKS and Goldman admits tend to have higher GRE stats. Relatively low acceptance rates at your target schools WWS (8%) and HKS (20%).

There is no GRE Quant score cutoff, adcomms look at GPA, work and leadership roles too. I think the average WWS/HKS GRE Q is in the low 160s. But I have seen some people admitted with high 150s. Other good programs such as SIPA, Georgetown, SAIS and Fletcher are happy to accept applicants with mid 150s score. If you are a total poet, you can take some online extension courses. UCLA extension was mentioned by a few other posters who needed to beef up Q on their application. Popular courses for beginners are microeconomics, calculus and statistics. Great job on 170 V and 6 AWA. Good luck

Rule of thumb: Maximum debt < or = post graduation salary. But some people may be more debt averse when they have lot of undergrad student debt. I think you are on the right track.

Have you checked out the NYC/D.C alumni chapters for your aforementioned schools? I am pretty sure that LSE and Oxford have active alumni chapters as indicated in their alumni magazines. Alumni chapters are normally a good source and you get an idea of main employers of alumni in various regions. I was in the same boat and needed first hand info on an international program. Fortunately I reached out and was invited to a mixer. I went and met many alums. To my knowledge, there are not many Oxford MPPs from the US (Source: Ox MPP's class profile). Reasons: It is a very young program, small class and US students make only a small percentage. MPhil International Relations is more established, highly popular with bright US students and many scholars take this course. Ox's ranking in FP is attributed to IR, not MPP. Chelsea Clinton did MPhil IR too and interned at WHO Geneva.

I think you have a healthy attitude and are not too swayed by rankings and prestige, how refreshing. Some people on GC forum are obsessed by scores and rankings. I agree that the academic fit with course work and teaching quality are incidental to choice. I want to develop qualitative and quant research methods for a broad base, this was the advice from my supervisor. Another useful clue: I go through syllabus and build my classes based on core and electives. Then I check about reading list of textbooks to get an idea of content.

Hi Elle, Congratulations on your admissions. I guess each programme has its strength and weakness. it is up to you to look at each and find your fit. Birmingham as a parent uni is well known: Russell Group aka top 20 uni, founded in 19th century by local business leaders, the Brits call it a redbrick after its Victorian architecture and era, located in a large city. I am certain there are a group of Indian students in Birmingham. You can check the alumni chapter of each uni in india on various Facebook groups. They are normally a good source of information about housing, course work, living and finding jobs in India. I know a few international students from India in Birmingham who are in medical school. Putting emphasis on research methodology makes sense to me, is it quantitative such as policy analysis or more qualitative? You seem to have a clear game plan and this will help you to gain the max potential from your course. If you have concerns, I am sure the programme manager at each uni will answer your emails. I have some interests in research design and can empathise. Good luck

Your unis are known for certain areas within IR: ST Andrews: Security Studies, Terrorism, Russian Studies and Middle East. Excellent inter disciplinary IR department. Fair tuition for home students Sussex: Development see IDS, Critical Theory, Peace/Conflict. Attracts many international students and lecturers, good student satisfaction in surveys, active student engagement. Nice seaside town location Essex: Mostly known for Quantitative methods and policy analysis. Specialised and small department, mixed reviews about the parent uni Glasgow: EU Relations, Eastern Europe, Governance and some other areas. Fair tuition for home students No idea about the rest

I think the OP's perception is magnified by his alma mater TU Darmstadt. It is a Technical Uni with strong STEM concentrations and I can understand that STEM profs and students rule on his campus. Non STEM are just an add on at Techs. This is certainly reflected in third party research grants raised by state and industry. The situation may be different at other German unis with a stronger PolScie department and less STEM dominance (see Frankfurt, FU Berlin and Bonn). German PolScie may not have the strong research design and methods of US unis. I notice that most German PolScie profs are trained mostly in Germany, particularly the older generation. Some younger profs are trained at US and British unis. There is some petty interdepartmental bickering about rigorous scholarship, quality of research and innovation. Sciences can always brag with Nobel laureates. STEM subjects have more peer reviewed publications in academic journals = impact factor, raise more grants and publicity. This happened at my alma mater when the sciences landed a huge EU grant. This is translated in higher rankings in various surveys due to methodology. It is understood that PolScie is part of Social Sciences, not Humanities department.

This is a surprising step by USC given your strong academics and solid work history. I concur that I have seen people with lower scores/less work who got full tuition waiver. I would expect USC to increase the scholarship for you. I would love to see USC's rationale behind its obaque decision. Funding wise, even with 50% scholarship, USC remains unattainable for most people given its high tuition and LA's prohibitive cost of living. One needs to come up with $40,000 tuition over 2 years plus another $40,000 for living costs. I hope you have other good programs recognize your potential and provide more funding. It is USC's loss. Good luck.

Congratulations on your admission to 2 great programs. I concur with you that Fels has quality, good student to teacher ratio, is surprisingly low profile and one wonder why. I think this may be due to its narrow concentrations, local government & implementation focus, small class size, regional appeal as it recruits in state/New England. To my knowledge, most grads end up working in Pennsylvania. I don't know about funding opportunities at Fels. SIPA is different as it covers many courses and some have a glamorous element (IR, development, security), is in NYC, many US and international applicants and has large classes. SIPA has some star professors, Fels doesn't.

WWS: 7% HKS: 20% ( a few yrs ago it was 25% according to Student Magazine) SIPA: 35% You can get the numbers for other programs from Peterson website. The interesting number would be yield rates. WWS: very high. SIPA: lowish

The dual degree student told me that he got asked the question 'why CEU'? He is not from Hungary, the standard and correct answer: "Specific fit with interests and funding." I cannot comment on how CEU may work for you in the US.

I am not a CEU student, but i got my CEU information from a CEU dual degree student and two exchange students from Budapest and Corvinus Uni. History: Founded with huge endowment from G Soros to promote democracy, citizenship and governance. Strong concentrations include EU relations, regional studies, transparency, international comparative politics and policy studies. the organisation is modelled after US schools with accreditation, board of trustees and English taught grad courses. CEU has an international vibe compared to Eastern European unis. naturally, Ceu has a neoliberal twang in its policy and economics approach. it serves as political change agent and academic beacon. Dual student recalled that some profs would refer to the neoliberal theory and its implication in practice on policy analysis. one would hear less about critical theory. some classes tend to be on the theoretical side. To be fair, CEU has some practical classes with professionals from the field. In the beginning, CEU stood out from other unis in Eastern Europe. In recent yrs, CEU has hired younger associate profs from other European countries, broadened its research base outside Eastern Europe, raised grants from the EU and attracted international students. It is very proud of its wide ranging research groups and institutes. CEU gets credits for its scholarship and research in some department rankings (QS World, European Research Council). The library is small compared to larger MPP programmes. CEU is not a professional policy school in a US tradition as CEU offers various degrees and it does not produce policy makers as its core mission. With regards to academics and professional development, CEU is not in the top tier in Europe (Ox, LSE, Geneva, SciencesPo, Hertie). interestingly, the Budapest students noticed that CEU does not cooperate with other Budapest unis in teaching/events, more stand alone. Some of CEU's work may not be the current Hungarian government's cup of tea according to my Budapest friends.

Congratulations on admissions to two excellent programmes. It depends on your profile, goals and academic interests. Would D.C. location and proximity to fed gov, think tanks and IOs absolutely essential to yr professional development? Can you afford paying $40K extra over 2 yrs for GWU? Which syllabus/concentration appeal to you more? I notice that Humphrey Career Office's internships stats list mostly Minnesota organisations (state & local gov, non profits in Twin Cities) but very few in D.C. Given the class profile and percentage of in-state students, Humphrey's stat is understandable.

@ unagi: Congratulations on your admissions to three great programmes. Here is my take on LSE and IHEID LSE pros/cons: Pros: 1 year program: Short course, you need to know your interests and dissertation. The TA tells students to think about dissertation themes in welcome session in September Great guest speaker series: Academics, politicians, journalists and activists. I attended an IR event with panel: an ambassador, a MP in foreign affairs committee, IR prof and editor. For research interests, you can attend presentation of academics and can ask questions. On average, you can choose btw 5-8 events each week. Some good profs teach in Econ, Government and Politics departments LSE MSc Political Econ is one of the best of its kind in Europe, graduates move on as researchers or join good PhD programmes. Plenty opps for part time research jobs with profs or London based think tanks, NGOs and firms. Engaging students: A current student told me that she will join a national election campaign in her home country and contribute her expertise in social policy. Cons: job market with this degree? I think it is easier for UK and EU students to find job post graduation as they don’t require visa. Political Economy is a section of IR, relatively less analytical than Econ or focuses less on policy analysis/management than practical MPP. Hence this course is less marketable than Econ/MPP. Summary: If you know precise strategy and can execute, this degree is good for you. If you are uncertain and needs to explore, less so. Less structured (policy analysis requirements) than JHU SAIS IDEV or IHEID. Patchy careers office support: The LSE careers office is just overwhelmed, you will share the resources with undergrads. It is challenging to get a one on one with advisers to discuss yr goals. Mostly you are directed to files (say Development jobs). There are career fairs and you can attend specialised fairs at other London colleges. SOAS has a good NGO fair. Most LSE career events tend to be for corporate jobs in Finance & Consulting. Some IOs come to campus for interviews, but may be subject specific. Example: IMF Young Economist programme for PhDs Econ. Some students can develop an elbow mentality Prohibitive cost of living in one of Europe’s most expensive cities. See sparerooms.co.uk for housing, LSE has just a few dorms and mostly for undergrads. Butler’s Wharf is a good dorm. Facilities at LSE are stretched, seats in library are full and no space to do group project. You need to be a self starter and take initiatives. The LSE cafeteria sucks IHEID pros/cons Pros: IHEID has the reputation for striking the balance btw academic and professional/practical programme. Good public sector ethos Geneva is more doable than mega London. Clean, safe and international. Many expats and locals speak English career/internship prospects: Smaller programme, resources are less stretched. Some core recruiters from nearby IOs, private firms and good Connexa job fairs. Most IHEID students find internships or even part time gigs in second year. Many alumni work in Geneva IOs and the careers office post regularly available positions. Relatively small classes and active student assembly. Good student quality with prior employment and solid academics. Opp to learn French Excellent guest speakers from IOs and the field (NGO) Interesting field trips in Europe organised by departments Cons May not be famous uni, but well known within field Prohibitive cost of living in one of Europe’s most expensive cities. Price tag shock, even McD is expensive Demand for IHEID dorm > Supply. Difficult of find affordable rooms There are gaps for some niche electives. Main modules are well covered. student assembly identifies careers office as weak link Administration is relatively bureaucratic Some students did not get into their preferred exchange programme in the US in third semester. The endowment and funding are stretched, hence recent tuition hike and less scholarship $$ Very strong CHF against other major currencies, unfavourable exchange rate Patchy sports facilities

@ eretsicd: Can you send me a private message PM please? I prefer to send you my UCL,LSE,KCL,Warwick review, it is too long. I cannot post the full text and my screen freezes. Congratulations on your admissions. It is a bit challenging to provide value added advice without precise interests and goals. Otherwise I can say yr concentration is strong at LSE/UCL. As monocle correctly indicated, MPP programmes at professional schools benefit strongly from prior employment. Work gives you experience, develop interests, have productive class participation (confirmed by a prof) and makes you more employable after graduation. Employers place importance on experience. I also notice that you need to raise ££ for tuition. Working 1-2 yrs would enhance yr profile, add experience and solve funding. It is a European thing, but students tend to be straight out of undergrad at most UK MPPs, exceptions of more seasoning are Ox MPP and LSE MPA. I visited all London colleges and spoke to profs, students and alumni. The best MPP in the UK: Ox, LSE, UCL

I assume that you straight from undergrad or have you worked a few yrs? Any chance to learn more about your academic areas of interest and goals? I am familiar with the London colleges and there are some fine differences in terms of concentrations, strengths, teaching and students.