Cadmiel

This is basically what I've been considering as well. For me it's come down to the cost - if I had the same funding from both, I'd probably pick Georgetown for the more intimate class sizes and for all of the friends I have in DC already. However, the scholarship makes up for the small downsides (in my perspective) of Fletcher and the graduate student housing is significantly cheaper than finding an apartment in DC, though I'm not looking forward to living in a dorm again. Thanks le_neocon and dan for weighing in!

I've been stressing over this decision for a while, so I figured I'd ask for any advice from the posters here. I've been accepted into MA programs at Fletcher, Georgetown SFS and SAIS. Fletcher is giving me a 1/3rd scholarship, SFS gave me loans and a 5k work-study, and SAIS just gave me loans. I'm pretty sure I'm out of the running for the Pickering Fellowship, so I'm looking at sizable debt for all of these programs. I'm planning on going into the Foreign Service or working for the state department in DC, so previously I was thinking that SAIS or SFS were my best bets - SAIS for the strength of program and solid econ, SFS for the faculty reputation and alumni network. However, I really like Tufts for the academic flexibility - I have a BA in anthropology and I enjoy studying IR from that perspective. It'd be intellectually satisfying to do a self-designed focus on nationalism studies at Fletcher, but I'm worried that that wouldn't make me as competitive for a foreign service job as if I went through the standard MSFS or SAIS MA programs. Any thoughts?

Program for Fall '10: Deciding between SAIS, SFS, Fletcher, and Denver Undergrad: Top 10 public, B.A. in Anthropology, 3.38 GPA GRE: Quant 770 (88%ile) Verbal 730 (99%ile) Professional Experience: 4 years in Peace Corps (TEFL volunteer, lots of secondary projects) LORs: One from a Chinese professor/counterpart, one from PC country director. Demographics: White male, lower middle class background, EFC of $0 Languages: Good Bulgarian, Good spoken Mandarin, Novice Spanish and Japanese Other: I'm really hoping my PC background, GRE scores and strong LORs will get me an interview. It looks like a bunch of other PCVs applied though so it's probably not as unique as I was hoping. Good luck to you all!

Program Applied To: MPP, MA (various) Schools Applied To: HKS, Yale, Fletcher, SAIS, SFS, Korbel Schools Admitted To: Korbel Schools Rejected From: None (yet) Still Waiting: HKS, Yale, Fletcher, SAIS, SFS Undergraduate institution: Large Public Undergraduate GPA: 3.38 Last 60 hours of Undergraduate GPA (if applicable): 3.5ish Undergraduate Major: Anthropology GRE Quantitative Score: 770 GRE Verbal Score: 730 GRE AW Score: 4.5 Years Out of Undergrad (if applicable): 6 Years of Work Experience: 5 Describe Relevant Work Experience: Volunteered with an adult literacy program, then 4 years of Peace Corps in two different countries, teaching English and lots of secondary projects related to youth and community development. I've also done projects relating to women's development and anti-trafficking in persons initiatives. Strength of SOP (be honest, describe the process, etc): Hard to say. Strong in terms of connecting my work experience with my goals for the future, perhaps not so strong in relating them to the specific programs. I'm in a rural area with sporadic internet access so I couldn't spend that much time researching programs or communicating with professors. Strength of LOR's (be honest, describe the process, etc): Strong, but no academic recommendation as I did not keep in touch with any professors after I graduated and the only one I would have felt comfortable in contacting again after so long a period recently passed away. All three recommendations came from people familiar with my work abroad. My eventual goal is to work for the State Department or for a large international NGO, and my recommenders have high-level experience in both. Other: I'm banking on good GRE scores and PC experience to get me into schools. I speak Bulgarian and Mandarin Chinese at intermediate/advanced levels, though my vocabulary and accent is more suited for a village bar than an academic environment.

Got my official offer of admission today! Pretty stoked to know I got in somewhere, now the rest of the waiting won't be so bad.