ursusinopinatus

There's really no need to be so cocky. Instead of talking down to people on the basis of formal credentials, you might want to focus on substance.
Yes, I stand corrected. Apparently there is an "emerging branch" of psychology called international psychology (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_psychology). I would venture to guess that a vast majority of doctoral students in psychology would not have heard of this subfield, given its total obscurity.

These forums helped me a lot when I was applying, so I'll share my information here in case someone finds it useful in the future.
Previous Schools (Name, type, or tier): Best or second best school in Mexico (depending on who you ask).
Previous Degrees and GPAs: B.A. International Relations; 3.89 Cumulative GPA
GRE Scores (Verbal/Quantitative/Analytical Writing): 167 V/158 Q/5 AW
Previous Work Experience (Years, Type): Over 2 years of corporate consulting in areas related to social risk, corruption and ethics.
Math/Econ Background: Minored in finance, so took a lot of math and econ classes.
Foreign Language Background: Spanish – native; English – advanced; French – intermediate; Russian – beginner 
Intended Field of Study in Grad School: International Relations.
Long Term Professional Goals: First option: diplomacy. Second option: risk consulting.
Schools Applied to & Results: Applied to "only" five schools since those are the only ones that I really felt were a good fit. I really tried to bring myself to apply to more, though other schools never motivated me enough. In order of priority:
Georgetown MSFS – $18.5k per year. Princeton WWS – Rejected. NYU GSAS – Full tuition. American SIS – Tuition + stipend. George Washington Elliott – $14k per year. Ultimate Decision & Why: Georgetown MSFS. It was always my first priority, so it was impossible to turn them down even if they offered me less than NYU and American. Through conversations with faculty and students I realized it would be nearly impossible to find a school that was a better fit for me. It also helps that I'm not sure I'll want to become a diplomatic once I graduate, and I think the Georgetown name would serve me well in the private sector. NYU tempted me for a while (I've always wanted to work in the UN), but current students didn't have many good things to say about the program.
Advice for Future Applicants: I'll present my advice in the form of my thoughts at the end of this process:
I think I maybe should have applied to other schools that weren't necessarily a great fit. I feel like I should have applied to other top schools (SAIS, Columbia, Stanford, maybe even other MPAs and MPPs like Harvard's and Yale's) regardless of fit. I regret applying to both GW and American (my "safeties") since I wasn't going to go to any of those two schools unless they were the only ones that accepted me. One of them, i.e. American, should have been enough. I also regret applying to NYU before talking to current students; I eliminated Columbia from my list early on since it didn't seem a good fit and it has a reputation for providing very little funding, but in light of what I learned after my applications I now know I should have applied to Columbia instead of NYU. My most important piece of advice is therefore to talk to current students before applying. About Princeton WWS: I don't think I've seen anyone with experience exclusively in the private sector get admitted. Despite this, I still applied because I really liked the program. I had subconsciously decided I wanted to go to Georgetown at the very beginning of this process. It was the only university that never moved from my list. Studying for the GRE paid off big time for me (big increase between the first and second time I took it). My LORs came from two not well-known professors that know me very well, and from my direct boss, who also knows me very well. I think this worked to my advantage. Lastly, try not to stress to much about all of this. If you're reading this forum, you're probably an overachiever and way above the average applicant.

These forums helped me a lot when I was applying, so I'll share my information here in case someone finds it useful in the future.
Previous Schools (Name, type, or tier): Best or second best school in Mexico (depending on who you ask).
Previous Degrees and GPAs: B.A. International Relations; 3.89 Cumulative GPA
GRE Scores (Verbal/Quantitative/Analytical Writing): 167 V/158 Q/5 AW
Previous Work Experience (Years, Type): Over 2 years of corporate consulting in areas related to social risk, corruption and ethics.
Math/Econ Background: Minored in finance, so took a lot of math and econ classes.
Foreign Language Background: Spanish – native; English – advanced; French – intermediate; Russian – beginner 
Intended Field of Study in Grad School: International Relations.
Long Term Professional Goals: First option: diplomacy. Second option: risk consulting.
Schools Applied to & Results: Applied to "only" five schools since those are the only ones that I really felt were a good fit. I really tried to bring myself to apply to more, though other schools never motivated me enough. In order of priority:
Georgetown MSFS – $18.5k per year. Princeton WWS – Rejected. NYU GSAS – Full tuition. American SIS – Tuition + stipend. George Washington Elliott – $14k per year. Ultimate Decision & Why: Georgetown MSFS. It was always my first priority, so it was impossible to turn them down even if they offered me less than NYU and American. Through conversations with faculty and students I realized it would be nearly impossible to find a school that was a better fit for me. It also helps that I'm not sure I'll want to become a diplomatic once I graduate, and I think the Georgetown name would serve me well in the private sector. NYU tempted me for a while (I've always wanted to work in the UN), but current students didn't have many good things to say about the program.
Advice for Future Applicants: I'll present my advice in the form of my thoughts at the end of this process:
I think I maybe should have applied to other schools that weren't necessarily a great fit. I feel like I should have applied to other top schools (SAIS, Columbia, Stanford, maybe even other MPAs and MPPs like Harvard's and Yale's) regardless of fit. I regret applying to both GW and American (my "safeties") since I wasn't going to go to any of those two schools unless they were the only ones that accepted me. One of them, i.e. American, should have been enough. I also regret applying to NYU before talking to current students; I eliminated Columbia from my list early on since it didn't seem a good fit and it has a reputation for providing very little funding, but in light of what I learned after my applications I now know I should have applied to Columbia instead of NYU. My most important piece of advice is therefore to talk to current students before applying. About Princeton WWS: I don't think I've seen anyone with experience exclusively in the private sector get admitted. Despite this, I still applied because I really liked the program. I had subconsciously decided I wanted to go to Georgetown at the very beginning of this process. It was the only university that never moved from my list. Studying for the GRE paid off big time for me (big increase between the first and second time I took it). My LORs came from two not well-known professors that know me very well, and from my direct boss, who also knows me very well. I think this worked to my advantage. Lastly, try not to stress to much about all of this. If you're reading this forum, you're probably an overachiever and way above the average applicant.

Seconding this.
I've already accepted Georgetown's offer, but I really want to know what people saw in the open house!

These forums helped me a lot when I was applying, so I'll share my information here in case someone finds it useful in the future.
Previous Schools (Name, type, or tier): Best or second best school in Mexico (depending on who you ask).
Previous Degrees and GPAs: B.A. International Relations; 3.89 Cumulative GPA
GRE Scores (Verbal/Quantitative/Analytical Writing): 167 V/158 Q/5 AW
Previous Work Experience (Years, Type): Over 2 years of corporate consulting in areas related to social risk, corruption and ethics.
Math/Econ Background: Minored in finance, so took a lot of math and econ classes.
Foreign Language Background: Spanish – native; English – advanced; French – intermediate; Russian – beginner 
Intended Field of Study in Grad School: International Relations.
Long Term Professional Goals: First option: diplomacy. Second option: risk consulting.
Schools Applied to & Results: Applied to "only" five schools since those are the only ones that I really felt were a good fit. I really tried to bring myself to apply to more, though other schools never motivated me enough. In order of priority:
Georgetown MSFS – $18.5k per year. Princeton WWS – Rejected. NYU GSAS – Full tuition. American SIS – Tuition + stipend. George Washington Elliott – $14k per year. Ultimate Decision & Why: Georgetown MSFS. It was always my first priority, so it was impossible to turn them down even if they offered me less than NYU and American. Through conversations with faculty and students I realized it would be nearly impossible to find a school that was a better fit for me. It also helps that I'm not sure I'll want to become a diplomatic once I graduate, and I think the Georgetown name would serve me well in the private sector. NYU tempted me for a while (I've always wanted to work in the UN), but current students didn't have many good things to say about the program.
Advice for Future Applicants: I'll present my advice in the form of my thoughts at the end of this process:
I think I maybe should have applied to other schools that weren't necessarily a great fit. I feel like I should have applied to other top schools (SAIS, Columbia, Stanford, maybe even other MPAs and MPPs like Harvard's and Yale's) regardless of fit. I regret applying to both GW and American (my "safeties") since I wasn't going to go to any of those two schools unless they were the only ones that accepted me. One of them, i.e. American, should have been enough. I also regret applying to NYU before talking to current students; I eliminated Columbia from my list early on since it didn't seem a good fit and it has a reputation for providing very little funding, but in light of what I learned after my applications I now know I should have applied to Columbia instead of NYU. My most important piece of advice is therefore to talk to current students before applying. About Princeton WWS: I don't think I've seen anyone with experience exclusively in the private sector get admitted. Despite this, I still applied because I really liked the program. I had subconsciously decided I wanted to go to Georgetown at the very beginning of this process. It was the only university that never moved from my list. Studying for the GRE paid off big time for me (big increase between the first and second time I took it). My LORs came from two not well-known professors that know me very well, and from my direct boss, who also knows me very well. I think this worked to my advantage. Lastly, try not to stress to much about all of this. If you're reading this forum, you're probably an overachiever and way above the average applicant.

Looks like we're in the exact same situation.  
I've been emailing FSOs (my career goal) asking for advice and American alumni (some of which are FSOs) to ask them how they liked the program. Every single AU alum I've talked to has only had good things to say about the program, from their classes to their career prospects. Additionally, all the FSOs I've talked to (who studied at many different universities) have told me that university prestige does not matter in the public sector. They did mention that it can open up doors in the private sector, if that's what you're interested in. Also worth noting is that AU has had more Presidential Management Fellows (fast track to the federal govt) than any other school in the country for the past two years. 

In your situation, having that $25k scholarship does change things a bit. How much debt would you actually need to get into? You'll need to decide what the marginal cost worth paying to go into a more prestigious program is for you, consider which program is the best fit in terms of your career goals, and your tolerance for debt. 
For me, unless I get the Pickering, talking to people in the sector I want to work in and talking to AU alumni has convinced me that SIS is the right choice. I think, once I graduate and start working - whether as an FSO or in some other capacity - I'll be so happy to not have to pay off student loans, and start saving.
As far as NYU goes, sorry, no idea!

Yes, the second paragraph of the letter stated that I had received a financial award. More details came in a second letter about financial aid at the end of the letter about admission.

Previous Schools：University of Michigan

Previous Degrees and GPAs: Double major in Political Science and Russian Studies. 3.8 GPA.

GRE Scores: V 800 / Q 770 / AW 4.5

Previous Work Experience: 2 years (by fall 2012, when school starts). 1 year unrelated corporate stuff, 1 year teaching English in China, multiple analytical internships throughout both years. I assume we're not counting undergraduate stuff, because I did a boatload of IR-relevant things then as well.

Math/Econ Background: Stats, Micro, Macro, some data modeling courses

Foreign Language Background: Russian (professionally fluent), Mandarin Chinese (intermediate)

Intended Field of Study in Grad School: Security Studies

Schools Applied to & Results: Princeton WWS MPA (rejected), Yale Jackson MA (rejected), Georgetown MA Security Studies (rejected), Tufts Fletcher MALD (accepted + $), SAIS MA Strategic Studies (accepted + $), Pittsburgh GSPIA MA Security + Intelligence Studies (accepted + $), GW Elliot MA Security Policy Studies (accepted + $)

Ultimate Decision & Why: GW Elliott. Why? I got a full ride + stipend to go there. It has a dedicated Security Policy Studies degree, which is more in line with my interests and goals than a generalist IR degree. It's in DC. Literally the only option that could have competed with GW would have been a fully-funded Georgetown admit, which didn't happen (not even close, haha). Very easy decision.

Advice for Future Applicants: Get started early (like a year ahead of time). The more time you allow yourself to research your schools, get recommenders, polish your SOP, and double-check that all admission materials have been received, the better your chances are.

On that note, double-check EVERYTHING - GRE scores received by university, transcripts received, pre-reqs met, recommenders submitted their stuff, fin-aid deadlines, etc. Then triple-check it. There are horror stories of people on this forum whose stuff got lost, and application thrown out. As much as you care about your application, the people handling it (low-level university functionaries, often recent grads) do not. I highly recommend making a spreadsheet to keep track of all this stuff.

Bust your butt studying for the GRE. There really is no reason not to. It's a highly masterable test - all it measures is your ability to prepare for the questions they ask. Based on an admittedly small sample size of 1, it makes you more competitive for fin-aid. I got significant funding at every school I was admitted to (including several full rides), and I think the GRE was a major part of this.

Get work experience before you apply. Get work experience before you apply. Get work experience before you apply. Ge... okay I'll stop now, but based on what admission representatives have said, and the admission results of people on this forum, WE is a vital part of your package. Don't neglect it. It doesn't have to be 100% relevant (if you were already doing what you wanted to, why would you want to leave the field to go to grad school), but it should improve your skill set in some way. Could be foreign language, could be budgeting + management, whatever.

Spend at least 100 hours on your SOP. Preferably more. Write them, polish them, have others edit them, personalize them to each school. Show your commitment to the field by highlighting relevant experiences, instead of telling them about it.

I personally found it very useful to make every sentence in my SOP belong to one of three baskets.

1) What you have already accomplished and why. My work at Alphacorp directly engaged my interest in international development. Experiences like managing a project to create accessible drinking wells in drought-ridden areas of Mali confirmed my belief that public service, not fame or riches, must be the axis of my career.
2) What you want to do in the future and why. Although my work in the field was invaluable education in the realities of international development, it also left me wanting more. Creating high-level policy would allow me to address more of the issues facing Mali than working in the field. I want to transition from a practitioner to a planner in order to create widespread change.
3) How University X will SPECIFICALLY build upon past experiences (point #1), and prepare you to achieve your future goals (point #2) University X's curriculum closely matches my professional plan. Development-focused classes such as X and Y will give me a more focused and relevant education than a generalist degree. I particularly relish the chance to work with Professor John Doe, whose experience leading the Africa section of USAID is exactly the sort of career I hope to achieve.

No stories about when you were 8 and how thuper thuper passionate you have been about the field since then.
No hokey inspirational quotes ("excellence is a habit, not a virtue...").
No "Webster's Dictionary says 'public service' has this meaning but really I think it's this."

Where you've been, where you want to go, how University X will get you from point A to point B. That's it.