akdoehler

I'm coming right out of undergrad and I'm an incoming student for the Elliott School's MA iInternational Affairs program, but i was also accepted at SAIS (GW offered me a fairly generous fellowship and SAIS didnt offer me anything, which was one of a few reasons why I chose GW) over SAIS). My GRE V was 166 and Q was 153. Based off my limited experience, I would say that your verbal is fine, but your lower quant score definitely warrants a retake, especially if SAIS is your first choice since they're significantly more quant-intensive compared to Elliott. I hope that's somewhat helpful and would be happy to talk more about my experiences of applying and being accepted to both those schools.

I did have fun! I liked it but I didn't love it honestly. For me it's between Maxwell, SIS, and Elliott, and honestly I'm leaning towards Elliott. If you want to hear some details about what I thought feel free to shoot me a message!

I'm attending the one tomorrow!

Cool, I'll be at Syracuse on Monday, definitely shoot me a message if you'll be there too!

I can't make the SIS one on the 10th because I already took off work to visit Syracuse on the 3rd. I'm doing a one-on-one visit with the CRS program director at SIS on the 6th and going to GW's accepted students day on the 7th. Are you going to Syracuse on the 3rd?

Honestly the more I think about it the more I'm leaning towards Maxwell. On top of a third of the debt, the fact that it's a 16 month program and knowing I'll wind up in DC within a year (I would also do my last fall semester in DC, and probably spend my summer interning for the European Parliament in Strasbourg) make choosing a non-DC school a lot more palatable and justifiable. Granted, I'm spending pretty much the entire first week of April doing grad school visits (Syracuse, GW, and AU all within that week) so I'll have to see how I vibe with all the schools, because I feel like that's super important. When are you going to visit Syracuse and American?

Hey all, I'm going into my masters for IA/IR straight out of undergrad. I've narrowed it down to 3 choices: The Elliott School at GW, SIS at American, and the Maxwell School at Syracuse. My issue is that I know all of the benefits that being in DC would bring: networking, internships, etc. However, neither GW nor American offered me any funding, and Maxwell offered me enough to make my tuition for the entire program $42k, compared to GW and AU w/o funding being $130k an $120k, respectively. Originally I was leaning towards GW, but can I responsibly go into potentially $80k or so worth of debt? Plus with Syracuse it's only a 16-month program as opposed to a full two years, and while Syracuse itself doesn't provide any real opportunities, I can spend my summer's in DC or abroad and my final semester in DC. If anyone has any insights as to whether the benefits of being DC really outweigh these high costs or if Syracuse does an adequate enough job to justify me going, I'd really appreciate it!

I'm in almost literally the exact same situation. I've been accepted into SAIS, Elliott, and SIS but all without funding, and Maxwell just offered me $18,000 over the 16 month program (bringing it down to $42,000). I'm conflicted, as I have friends who'll be in DC and I've been leaning towards Elliott most of this time because of their amazing alumni networks and reputation. However, can I responsibly potentially take on so much debt when Maxwell is a great school in which I could spend my final semester in DC and take on a third of the debt?

I'm in a similar boat. I've gotten into SAIS, GW, and SIS but no merit funding from any of them. I have an offer from Pitt's GSPIA that would make tuition about $9k/year and I still haven't heard back from Syracuse's Maxwell School about funding. No matter how cheap Pitt might be, I can't help but be convinced that going into DC would be worth the extra cost that I'll have to take on because of all of the benefits it gives (I'm anticipating my grandparents being willing to pay half tuition if I go to DC and I take out loans for the other half). Just my two cents.

@Nasty Woman congrats to you too! Do you mind if I ask how much your offer was for and where it ranks for you amongst your other options at the moment?

I got the informal email but still have yet to receive the official offer when I know that others have. Should I be concerned/is anyone else in the same boat as me?

Hey everyone, I'm applying straight out of undergrad for a masters in IR/IA. I'm applying to several programs, but my goal is to wind up in DC and my top three choices are JHU's SAIS, GW's Elliott School, and AU's SIS. My field of focus would be European/Eurasian studies, and while SAIS has the biggest name it's econ focus scares me a bit which is why I think GW and AU might be better fits (specifically AU because I could do a concentration in identity, ideology, and nationalism, which is what I'm writing a thesis on). I'm going to post some of my stats and if any of you could give your two cents as to my chances of getting accepted I'd really appreciate it! School: Gordon College (no name liberal arts school north of Boston, but surprisingly well known and connected in DC) Majors: International Affairs and Political Science GRE: V: 166 Q: 151 AWA: 5.5 GPA: 3.89 Languages: French (intermediate level) Internships: four internships in political science or community development, plus a job leading a tutoring program Abroad experience: taught English in Hong Kong and Cambodia summer after freshman year, studied abroad in Croatia fall of junior year (included an internship) Extracurriculars: Model UN head delegate, president of MUN club, president of Democrats Club, campaign volunteer for Seth Moulton, mock trial, commencement committee Awards/Honors: Newman Civic Fellows Award, Alpha Mu Gamma Honors Language Society, MUN Outstanding Delegate, Presidential Honors List every semester of college (step above dean's list, means 3.75+ GPA) Also writing an honors thesis on the intersection of Croatian nationalism and EU membership, which I"ll be presenting at at least one conference in the Spring Thanks for any and all input!

UCSD also has a strong program in the Asia-Pacific, I'd suggest exploring there (although it's highly selective, but you might as well try)

Hey everyone, I'm applying straight out of undergrad for a masters in IR/IA. I'm applying to several programs, but my goal is to wind up in DC and my top three choices are JHU's SAIS, GW's Elliott School, and AU's SIS. My field of focus would be European/Eurasian studies, and while SAIS has the biggest name it's econ focus scares me a bit which is why I think GW and AU might be better fits (specifically AU because I could do a concentration in identity, ideology, and nationalism, which is what I'm writing a thesis on). I'm going to post some of my stats and if any of you could give your two cents as to my chances of getting accepted I'd really appreciate it! School: Gordon College (no name liberal arts school north of Boston, but surprisingly well known and connected in DC) Majors: International Affairs and Political Science GRE: V: 166 Q: 151 AWA: 5.5 GPA: 3.89 Languages: French (intermediate level) Internships: four internships in political science or community development, plus a job leading a tutoring program Abroad experience: taught English in Hong Kong and Cambodia summer after freshman year, studied abroad in Croatia fall of junior year (included an internship) Extracurriculars: Model UN head delegate, president of MUN club, president of Democrats Club, campaign volunteer for Seth Moulton, mock trial, commencement committee Awards/Honors: Newman Civic Fellows Award, Alpha Mu Gamma Honors Language Society, MUN Outstanding Delegate, Presidential Honors List every semester of college (step above dean's list, means 3.75+ GPA) Also writing an honors thesis on the intersection of Croatian nationalism and EU membership, which I"ll be presenting at at least one conference in the Spring Thanks for any and all input!

Hey everyone, I'm applying straight out of undergrad for a masters in IR/IA. I'm applying to several programs, but my goal is to wind up in DC and my top three choices are JHU's SAIS, GW's Elliott School, and AU's SIS. My field of focus would be European/Eurasian studies, and while SAIS has the biggest name it's econ focus scares me a bit which is why I think GW and AU might be better fits (specifically AU because I could do a concentration in identity, ideology, and nationalism, which is what I'm writing a thesis on). I'm going to post some of my stats and if any of you could give your two cents as to my chances of getting accepted I'd really appreciate it! School: Gordon College (no name liberal arts school north of Boston, but surprisingly well known and connected in DC) Majors: International Affairs and Political Science GRE: V: 166 Q: 151 AWA: 5.5 GPA: 3.89 Languages: French (intermediate level) Internships: four internships in political science or community development, plus a job leading a tutoring program Abroad experience: taught English in Hong Kong and Cambodia summer after freshman year, studied abroad in Croatia fall of junior year Extracurriculars: Model UN head delegate, president of MUN club, president of Democrats Club, campaign volunteer for Seth Moulton, mock trial, commencement committee Awards/Honors: Newman Civic Fellows Award, Alpha Mu Gamma Honors Language Society, MUN Outstanding Delegate, Presidential Honors List every semester of college (step above dean's list, means 3.75+ GPA) Also writing an honors thesis on the intersection of Croatian nationalism and EU membership, which I"ll be presenting at at least one conference in the Spring Thanks for any and all input!