yellina122

Judging by the results on Grad Cafe, Wagner seems to send out results pretty much exclusively in March and beyond, except for the handful of folks who are finalists for fellowships/scholarships and are notified a little sooner so they can interview. Though I suppose it's possible some folks hear sooner but don't post on here. But I'm all for hoping for something sooner!

I went with a straight up webcam in a well-lit area, and added a title thingamajig in with iMovie. Not too fancy.

Hey there! As far as your stats, I'd say you are in pretty good shape. SIPA is my #1 and I got 159Q. When I met the Director of Admissions at a recruitment event she basically told me 159Q was within their "unofficial" guidelines for GRE, so you're fine there. If you haven't submitted your apps yet, I'd have a couple very specific conversations with your LOR writers about what you want them to say about you, and why specifically you want to go to each of these schools. The biggest thing, which you luckily can still control, will be your essays. It seems like you have a good idea of why you want to do IR in general, but it'll be important to get very specific about why SIPA, NYU, etc. is the right school for you. Who do you want to do research with? Are there unique courses you couldn't find elsewhere? Is there a project you'd need their resources to launch? That sort of thing. From what I know of some of the programs you mentioned, NYU will be a solid "target" school, CUNY Fordham and New School all "safeties." SIPA may be a slight reach, just because they're a top-tier program and even great candidates sometimes don't make it. Princeton WWS is a reach for all human beings, but it's worth the application!

My best guess is that having more decisions made sooner is beneficial in terms of funding. Money-wise, if you want a merit-based scholarship, fellowship, or assistantship, you need to get in your materials by December 1, and then according to their website decisions will be March 2. It makes sense since many of the fellowships etc. will involve interviews, and they want folks to have a solid chance to assess their NYU offer before they come up against other schools' deadlines. Most of the top--tier schools (especially the Ivy's) want you to enroll by mid-April. I'm betting that the "second round" applicants get very little, if any $$$. But I'm also totally in favor of hearing back ASAP! The suspense kills. Waiting on SIPA right now too after hitting their early deadline and the constant refreshing is making my computer hate me.

I am! I have my essays squared away but still need to do the video. I'm not entirely sure what I'm going to say, and I don't want to re-record so many times that it comes off robotic. So we shall see what happens!

I got the regular confirmation that my app was successfully submitted but nothing about it being forwarded to admissions. So looking at past years, decisions will probably be out right before the office closes for XMas, maybe the 22nd.

CUNY Baruch has a great MPA program. It doesn't have the name recognition of SIPA or NYU, but it's highly ranked, very affordable, and has a lot of interesting policymakers on as faculty. It's a really solid program, from everything I've heard. I also know John Jay is supposed to have a good MPA. What specifically do you want to do with your degree?

Oh God, I have submitted. Now I just need to do this horrible video and I will officially be done!

100% agree! @queenjaneapprox unless you've spent the last 21 years of your life working towards and dreaming of one day getting a Masters in Public Administration, which seems unlikely, you should avoid going straight to graduate school at all costs. The reason virtually all competitive MPA programs, but most govt affairs programs in general, require or prefer several years of professional experience is because they want people who have a very firm and specific idea of what they want to do professionally, and who know that an MPA is the way for them to get there. Jumping into the workforce can be scary. Interning or volunteering at a dream organization or with a professional you admire might not seem ideal. But I guarantee that when you come out the other side, you will have a much better idea of what you want to do with your career, and whether or not you really need a masters to get there.

@trang Girl, I wish I could do that. Still fussing with the "optional" essay and trying to get my SOP to 400 words exactly haha. But my stats are GPA: 3.46, big private uni; Psych major and English minor GRE: 169 V, 159 Q, 5.5 W Work Experience: 2 years of neuroscience research in undergrad, 2 years part-time internships in psychiatric wards/hospital schools working with disabled kids, 1.5 years in data management for cancer research, and 2.5 years in fundraising/advocacy/communications at a nonprofit serving people with psych conditions and other disabilities Lacking a bit with the quant stuff, but I took an economics class at a local college this summer to make up for it, and hopefully, my experience will make up for it!

Hi all! Since Columbia SIPA"s early application deadline is right around the corner, I wanted to start a thread for other SIPA hopefuls who- if they are anything like myself- are quietly panicking right about now. Anyone else struggling with the ridiculously short SOP word count? Has anyone actually submitted their app yet?

Bueller?

Hey, guys! I was hoping to find someone interesting in trading their SOP, especially for a public affairs/government related program. Let me know!

Hello, internet people! Any guidance, advice, or other encouragement would be much appreciated. Program Applied To (MPA, MPP, IR, etc.): MPA and one MPP Schools Applying To: Columbia SIPA, NYU Wagner, CUNY Baruch, Princeton WWS, and Harvard HKS Undergraduate institution: Large, private Top-40? research school Undergraduate GPA: 3.46 Undergraduate Majors: Psychology Study Abroad: 9 months in London interning at a Hospital School; 6-week education/immersion program in Israel GRE: 169 V, 159 Q, 5.5 W Years of Work Experience: 4+ if I count full-time summer internships Age: 25 Describe Relevant Work Experience: As an undergrad, I did 2 years of part-time research looking for neurological markers for Autism and other disorders in kids. I interned for one summer in a children's psychiatric ward and spent 9 months at a hospital school in London that supported kids with a wide range of disabilities. Professionally I've had 1.5 years in cancer research management, and now about 2.5 years working in fundraising, communications, and advocacy at a nonprofit that provides services for people with disabilities (mental and developmental). Languages: French (intermediate), Hebrew (beginner) Quant: Statistics II - B; a couple of neuroscience classes- also B's; I took a Macroeconomics course at a community college this summer to bolster my application and got an A. I'm hoping that my professional experience in research and financial management will help make up for the lack of coursework. Strength of SOP: Hopefully pretty strong! I think I framed my reason for going back to school well- essentially that after working in research, direct care, and nonprofit administration for people with mental illness and intellectual disabilities, I realized that even the most groundbreaking research and effective treatments couldn't curtail the fallout of indifferent, inadequate policymaking. My goal is to create policy that better serves people with disabilities, who aside from needing access to affordable and effective healthcare (should be obvious, right?) also need someone pulling for them in talks about transportation, supported employment, and- of great interest to me- political engagement. I launched an initiative at my nonprofit to train people with disabilities and the staff that support them in civic participation/voting, and I really want to expand it citywide by partnering with local government and nonprofits, wherever I end up for school. My experience has been pretty varied, but it has all been in support of the same population, so I hope that counts for something! Strength of LOR (be honest, describe the process, etc): I know that the letter from my direct supervisor, the Director of my department, will be glowing and assert that she thinks I could be elected President tomorrow. My CEO is also writing me a letter and I think it will be strong- I work directly with him frequently and recently pulled off a very large tech conference that got him in a room with state officials who could fund our projects. He's been hugely supportive of my career development. My last letter will be from an old English professor- one of my favorite classes and also the last I took before graduating early. I was most nervous about this one, but luckily, he was enthusiastic when he said he'd write my letter and claimed to remember me and my work well. Other: My top, top, top, TOP choice is Columbia. The director of my intended track at SIPA is actually working on a program that is aimed at increasing voter turnout for New Yorkers, and I see a huge opportunity there to expand her work to support the needs of people with disabilities. (Don't worry- I made sure to mention that in my SOP!). Unless I magically get into Princeton (there would have to be sorcery involved), my second choice is NYU, where they just started an Advocacy and Political Action track, lining up pretty exactly with my career goals.

So I don't know from personal experience (though I'm planning to apply early to SIPA this year!) but SIPA Admissions claims the benefit to early admission is basically just knowing whether you're in much sooner. For SIPA, it's by the first week of January, but I've heard anecdotally they release decisions more like mid-December. It also stands to reason that if you're one of the first applications an admissions rep sees in the season, your chances will be better simply because the applicant pool is still small and the person reading your application doesn't have admissions fatigue yet.

Out of curiosity, what did you decide? I'm just now starting my application process, and planning to try for MPA at Columbia SIPA, NYU, and Baruch.