Mr. Government

This month marks the first period of eligibility for PSFL and it's looking like a disaster. "October 2017 was supposed to represent the first glimmer of light at the end of this tunnel. This month marks the 10th anniversary of the Public Service Loan Forgiveness program, one of the few avenues for wiping out student debt. The idea, launched by George W. Bush, was pretty simple: Students could pledge to work 10 years for the government or a nonprofit and have their debt forgiven. In order to qualify, borrowers had to make payments for 10 years using a complex formula. This month, then, was to start the first mass wipeouts of debt in the history of American student lending. But more than half of the 700,000 enrollees have already been expunged from the program for, among other things, failing to certify their incomes on time, one of many bureaucratic tricks employed to limit forgiveness eligibility. To date, fewer than 500 participants are scheduled to receive loan forgiveness in this first round." http://www.rollingstone.com/politics/features/taibbi-the-great-college-loan-swindle-w510880

Something to keep an eye on if this was your plan for repayment. Link

.

These obviously won't count for credit for those of you who need to formally enroll in a course to meet your applicantion quant background, but if anyone wants to brush up on their calc and micro skills over the summer before their program starts, these two courses are extremely helpful. Calculus: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLF797E961509B4EB5 This guy is one of the best math teachers I've ever encountered, either online or in person. Made calculus very easy to understand. He has Calc 1, 2, and 3 uploaded as full course playlists. Trust me on this one, this is without a doubt the best series of calculus lectures you will find online. Micro: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL61533C166E8B0028 MIT OpenCourseWare has some introductory courses upload. I thought that this one was very well done.

The newness of Brown's MPA program is a big red flag for me. Not only is the alumni network relatively small, but newer programs are still building up their faculty and specializations, leaving early entrants with an abundance of core classes and not much else. I looked into Brown when I first applied to schools and was turned off by its curriculum only allowing for three electives. I'm currently at SPEA and am going to be taking 10 electives related to my concentration. It's an inherent downside to one year programs. Syracuse has done a great job of condensing it's program into 12-15 months and still providing its students with a strong skill-set that extends beyond the basics. At this point I don't think the same can be said for Brown. The Brown name will open doors for you without a doubt, but if you have specific goals you want to get out of your program for what you want to do with your career, it may be best to go elsewhere at this point.

Quality program and very quant-heavy, but also a cash cow whose administration had been in flux a bit recently. Of the brand name programs, it's also a lot easier to get into than many of the others. If you think it may be a reach, go for it because a number of people were surprise admits last cycle. Just don't expect much funding if your numbers are below median.

Just to stir the conversation a bit, I am currently enrolled in SPEA's MPA program. For starters, none of the students I have talked to, including myself, actually think that SPEA carries more weight than HKS or WWS. The MPA rankings are flawed to a degree because not only are they opinion based, but there is no standardized metric as to what constitutes an MPP/MPA degree. Most programs offer two separate degrees, an MPA (public administration) typically offered to mid-career professionals and an MPP (public policy). However, some programs such as SPEA and LBJ offer only one degree, an MPA, but it is public affairs rather than administration and students choose whether to focus on policy analysis or administration. Likewise, WWS calls their public policy degree an MPA. The confusion is compounded when incorporating IR, which is included in some schools' public affairs programs, whereas other schools like GW and Georgetown have separate public policy and IR schools. Having said that, the rankings do carry a degree of weight in determining the quality of the program. While Indiana is a good but not elite public university, SPEA is without a doubt a top MPA program. The school attracts students from top undergraduates (Northwestern, Cornell, Notre Dame, Berkeley) and the faculty is as good as anywhere, but whether that equates to top 10 or 15, who knows, and to be honest it doesn't really matter. These aren't law schools. I know people here who turned down Chicago and Northwestern's MPP/MPA programs because SPEA fit much more with their goals for a quarter of the debt they would have taken on from the more brand name schools. I personally had looked into the MPA programs at both Brown and UPenn and determined both were pretty crappy and provided zero reason to choose them over Indiana. It really comes down to personal goals, how the program fits into what you want to do, and if you can achieve it at an affordable price. I will give Indiana praise in two specific areas, however. First of all, unlike many of the other policy schools discussed on these boards, SPEA is not a cash-cow program. I'm actually going to graduate with no debt and I didn't even receive a scholarship (I did work for several years before coming back to school though, so I had some money saved up). Second, the program offers a tremendous amount of flexibility to tailor your program to your personal goals. Many policy programs require a ton of core classes and little flexibility for electives, but SPEA lets you personalize almost everything, including independent studies with professors and courses in other departments. So go with what works for you. I would argue that location isn't as big a deal as others are making it out to be. Plenty of SPEA students land internships and jobs in DC (it has the largest public affairs alumni network), and don't have to deal with paying an extra $10k a year in rent while in school. I lived in DC for four years before going back to school, and I can tell you first hand that many non-brand name policy programs place people in DC (ex: Maryland, Texas A&M, Rutgers). Also keep in mind that these are programs designed for public/quasi-public positions, and going $100k+ in debt just to say you went to ___ is going to do more harm than good. Read through the forum here about how people took out massive loans for SAIS or SIPA and it's become a huge burden as they try to get their lives going post-grad, especially in an expensive city like DC. Keep in mind that these are professional schools, and you shouldn't even be applying to programs if you don't know what you want to do with the degree, so finding a program that suits you shouldn't be a hassle (given you have options). There are only a handful of other highly ranked programs that would have provided me the same specific curriculum that I'm tailoring at SPEA, and they all would have left me with some debt. If I could have attended any program debt free that provided me the same specific curriculum, I probably would have gone elsewhere, but for my specific situation (career goals and financing) Indiana just worked. Having said all that, if you want to go into NGO IR or go the PhD route, the brand name schools will give you a noticeable leg up. I'm not, so it doesn't matter for me.

Some more discussion on the future of PSLF: https://www.buzzfeed.com/mollyhensleyclancy/failures-by-obama-put-student-debt-forgiveness-in-jeopardy

Agree with hopeful88. I worked for several years outside of DC at a think-tank/research firm as an RA that allowed me to get involved in a number of public policy projects that significantly boosted my application. The position allowed me to work as a client for CMS, the DOJ, and BLS, get involved in ACA policy, and even co-author a study that ended up being presented at a number of policy conferences. If you can get involved in your area of interest right away, you may even be able to get your employer to assist in funding your education if you agree to return after graduating and your degree concentration is relevant to the type of work they do.

With admissions season in full-swing, many here are starting to make final decisions on where to attend this fall. If you have made a final decision on where you will be attending, share the details here. Program: SPEA at Indiana University-Bloomington Degree: Master of Public Affairs Focus: Energy Economics and Policy Career Goals: Analyst within the energy sector, potentially specializing in electricity markets

It's also worth mentioning that a lot of the ambiguity in the rankings and program evaluation is the terminology used by various programs, which is why the rankings are typically called into question due to the lack of a standardized metric. Most programs offer two separate degrees, an MPA (public administration) typically offered to mid-career professionals and an MPP (public policy). However, some programs such as SPEA and LBJ offer only one degree, an MPA, but it is public affairs rather than administration and students choose whether to focus on policy analysis or administration. The confusion is compounded when incorporating IR, which is included in some schools' public affairs programs, whereas other schools like GW have separate public policy and IR schools. It really comes down to if the program is a match for you regarding program specification, career goals, costs, alumni network, and reputation.

Having lived in DC for four years, I've met a few Maryland MPP grads. If you want DC, the school will open up doors into standard policy analysis work and UMD obviously has a large alumni network in the area as well as a very strong regional reputation, but if you're leaning IR and/or want some national/international flexibility in job availability go to SAIS. However, no public policy degree is worth $100k+ in debt, so if that's what you're likely facing then I'd lean towards MD.

Though it wouldn't be for credit, if you want to get a head start on it MIT offers micro for free online: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL61533C166E8B0028&nohtml5=False Website link: http://ocw.mit.edu/courses/economics/14-01sc-principles-of-microeconomics-fall-2011/

I'll have 15 credits under my belt when I transition to a full-time student at IU this fall since I took my core classes online via SPEA Connect, so I have some familiarity with what is expected of incoming students. It's definitely a good idea to brush up on the basics regarding micro, stats (particularly regression analysis), and econometrics before classes begin, especially for those of you gearing towards more quant-heavy programs. For those who do not have a background in these topics, some basic introductory economics books are a must for introducing yourself to the terminology and thought-processes behind the elementary concepts. Outside of the quant stuff, some basics on Dillon's Rule vs. Home Rule, memo writing, federal policy formation, and cost-benefit analysis are some other things it would be beneficial to familiarize yourself with. If you have some time to kill over the summer, MIT offers full course lectures online. There's plenty of stuff there on micro, regression analysis, finance, etc.

GW has some pretty good deals for students regarding tuition remission if you work part-time for them. If you're paying full tuition there you're doing something wrong.

Interesting page I came across. Doesn't have public administration scores all of the brand name schools, but does have some listed. Are Columbia's and UPenn's qaunt scores really that low? Link

Some programs offer MPAs (public administration) and MPPs (public policy). SPEA offers one MPA degree (public affairs) that allows students to focus in policy analysis, essentially making it an MPP if you choose to go that route. Browsing CakeTea's posts, it looks like he(?) is aiming for international affairs at Elliot, which isn't even an MPA/MPP program at GW, but it is at Bush. CakeTea's goals rightly do not align with what SPEA offers, but your goals similarly do not align with CakeTea's. Bad fit =/= bad program. Since you're asking about other students, I'm transitioning into SPEA's MPA program full-time from a part-time SPEA Connect student to do a focus in energy. I'll have gotten the core classes out of the way and will be focusing entirely on energy when I get there. I've spoken with people in the energy consulting field and ran SPEA's energy focus curriculum past them, and they said it checks out very well. So in my case, an international affairs program is completely useless for my goals.

Most of these programs offer merit-based aid, credit for work experience, financial-based and credit-based research positions, university employment, etc. If you're paying full tuition for the maximum required credits at any school you're doing something wrong.

I don't think OOS tuition is as big a factor as the lack of an international relations program anywhere near the strength of other top MPA/MPP programs. There are plenty of SPEA grads in DC though, as it has the largest alumni network of any public affairs program. Beyond the IR angle, SPEA (along with Georgia) can come across as a fish out of water when listed next to the likes of HKS, WWS, SIPA, Ford, Maxwell, etc. The program will always be fighting an uphill battle against the programs it is peer-ranked against, and it is typically easier to get into than most of the other top ranked programs as it favors demonstrated public sector work experience over hard admission numbers, but the quality of the program itself from a domestic angle is very strong and prepares students just as well as these other schools. And just as importantly, the faculty is top rate. Beyond the program itself, IU has the Ostrom Workshop in Political Theory and Policy Analysis, founded by Nobel Laureate Elinor Ostrom, and SPEA's graduate program just received a hefty donation from graduate and former treasury secretary Paul O'Neill. MPA/MPP rankings are a bit hard to quantify due to the lack of IR consideration (by US News), and how some programs like IU do not offer an MPP, but instead offer a more quant-heavy MPA. Every school tackles their government affairs programs differently, so what a person may be looking for may be found in one school's MPA program, at another school like GWU (which has Elliot and Trachtenberg) it can be split up fairly differently. I wouldn't get too caught up in the rankings, as I think just about everyone would objectively put WWS first due to the overall strength of its student body, brand name, COA, and admissions criteria, but you also have to keep in mind that there are non-brand name schools with programs that can compete with the top schools in the country in a given area. SPEA fits into this category, and regardless of where it truly fits in a ranking, the program has more than done enough to warrant itself as a top public affairs program. More importantly than the brand name of the school is how the specifics of the program align with your individual goals and how the COA factors in. .

You really can't go wrong with either program. Maxwell is the oldest MPA program in the country and is a 12 month program. SPEA is a two year program with an internship during the summer. Both have strong alumni networks, as Maxwell has a ton of loyal alumni throughout the US and SPEA has the most alumni. I've run into a lot of grads from both schools in DC and the skill-sets they carry rival those of other brand name policy programs. Both programs carry less weight internationally than WWS, SIPA, SAIS, or HKS, particularly SPEA, but it really depends on what you want to focus on. If it is environmental/energy related, I'd recommend SPEA as it is arguably the best there is in environmental policy and their energy/environmental programs overlap heavily with classes from their geology department. Maxwell is stronger in security policy and international relations. Both are pretty even in basic policy analysis, public finance, and public administration. Both tend to be more holistic degrees as well, as they are MPA's but cover MPP theory and skills, whereas other programs may offer separate MPA and MPP degrees. The thing I like about SPEA over Maxwell is they have less core requirements (18 credits out of 48 required, 5 classes and a capstone) than Maxwell (25 credits out of 40 required), which gives you a little more flexibility and time in focusing on your policy concentration. The downside is the program is longer. Here are the concentrations of Maxwell (https://www.maxwell.syr.edu/paia/degrees/MPA_Program_of_Study/) and here are the concentrations for SPEA (https://spea.indiana.edu/masters/degrees-certificates/public-affairs/concentrations/). Since you are looking to return to your home country, after choosing a concentration I'd try to contact both programs and see how much of the curriculum is relevant to the public sector of your native country. SPEA in particularly has a very domestic based curriculum, so I am not sure how relevant their classes on public finance and the law are to what you need to know to succeed after graduation, since you will likely be dealing with different tax systems and government structures in another country.