bestfootforward

nonprofit orgs aren't on the same H1-B quota like for profit orgs are, and if you're willing to pay for the costs (around 5k, i believe), then you could swing sponsorship. a friend of mine did it...

op, what did you finally decide? i'm curious.

how about looking at the loan forgiveness programs, if any, at your top choice schools? maybe front end financial aid is not how they operate, but such schools can in fact be good deals for people interested in the public sector.

could you say more about the opening doors aspect of hks that you've heard? is this in a particular field, or?

good points, but what about the extra year's worth of debt?

I was not planning to weigh in again since I am only a prospective applicant, but as a layperson, but I disagree with the notion that columbia has only a slightly better reputation than jhu. fairly or not, US schools are judged on the basis of their undergrad reputation, and in that field, JHU is not considered in the same tier as ivy league schools. this is not to say it is not an awesome, awesome school, but only to say that the "brand" difference between jhu and columbia is more than marginal. to the lay person. as for "people in [his] field" -- it doesn't sound like he is planning to go into anything in the international relations field, and, having worked in the idev field abroad, no name except for harvard turns heads. (as a side note, this is annoying because misinformed people assume they know the US and its schools becuase it is a country they have a lot of exposure to even if they haven't been there...) that being said, i have no idea how the private sector would view an IR MA vs. an MBA or an econ degree...or the fact that salaries in germany, tend to be lower than those in the US (reflecting the lower cost of living there) -- so that 60k may or may not be important to the OP depending on other personal financial factors. interesting point about better jobs -- without the prerequisite work experience for a given job, though, will an MA just get you into high-powered jobs? would be curious...

realize you have already made your decision, but just wanted to weigh in just in case prospectives use the 'search' function -- i've known (well and in passing) four people associated with hertie (profs, students) and i can say that they are all terrifically smart and motivated. the school has come tremendously far in the short time it's been around, but the question is at what point it will start to plateau (if at all). the only, huge, downside is the fact that berlin's job market sucks and getting a work permit in germany/europe can be tricky. that way, the location seems like a disadvantage (other than a fun place to spend two years) than a plus point.

just curious since your post says you are from/in germany, you will presumably be going back there, and i might want eventually want to end up there: are either jhu or columbia well known in germany? i used to work for an igo (similar to GTZ but not that one specifically) and my impression was from talking to people was that they didn't really (it was sort of like harvard, mit, and berkeley that were known there). --will the name open so many doors for you that the 60k is worth the long term investment? --what is your focus? is either school better for it? --why not go to sais and tack on a columbia mba?