TemujinAmbition

I suppose I'm keen on top 10 in particular (HYP, Columbia, Hopkins, Stanford, Tufts, etc.). Of these, I've only witnessed Princeton being generous. However, if you any insights on the top 25 FP schools, that can be helpful too.

Providing a non-US perspective here, but from what I see, prestige plays a major factor in both private and public settings internationally. Less prestigious universities are relatively harder to recognize. Within the US, I would think the networks of a more prestigious university would provide a help in more informal hiring contexts in public sector (I know some sectors are more formal, like US diplomat has the test they must take).

Aside from Woodrow Wilson at Princeton, are there any elite IR/MPA programs in the US that have known for being generous with financial aid? The general impression I get is that most of them are pretty stingy...and even when they do give money, it is rarely enough to avoid taking on substantial amounts of debt to pay for school costs.