Doug

My account never showed that my application was complete, so I reached out to admissions last week. I received a response that I'd receive my decision early this week. I also received an email on Friday from GU saying that my FAFSA had been processed, but I tried not to read into it. Sure enough, around 4pm today (5/7/18), I logged into the application portal (which still lists my application as incomplete), and scrolled down to the bottom. There was a small link to the actual admissions decision that hadn't been there previously. Sure enough, I've been offered admission with $7500/year funding. Wishing luck to those of you still waiting to hear back from McCourt!

Program Applied To: (MPA, MPP, IR, etc.) MS-DSPP Schools Applied To: McCourt Schools Admitted To: McCourt ($3750/semester) Schools Rejected From: N/A Still Waiting: N/A Undergraduate institution: Yale Undergraduate GPA: 3.09 Last 60 hours of Undergraduate GPA (if applicable): Not sure, but likely slightly less than 3.09 Undergraduate Major: Mathematics and Philosophy GRE Quantitative Score: 166 GRE Verbal Score: 167 GRE AW Score: 4.0 Years Out of Undergrad (if applicable): 9 Years of Work Experience: 10 Describe Relevant Work Experience: In approximate order, with some overlap: 5 years of acting and tech directing at a non-profit theater, 3 years of directing a tutoring center, 1.5 years of Actuarial exams (passed the first two), 2 years of Admissions Counselor for Berkeley's Data Science program, and 10 years of high school math/science tutoring, which overlapped everything. Strength of SOP (be honest, describe the process, etc): Having worked for Berkeley's Master of Information and Data Science program, which included me reading hundreds of SOPs, I believe my SOP was quite strong. I tied together the disparate work experiences above with an intimate understanding of the myriad ways data science can be applied, all within the context of criminal justice reform. I mentioned a PAC that I'd like to work for as well as the overdose death of my closest friend in January, and how his passing helped bring my aspirations into focus. Strength of LOR's (be honest, describe the process, etc): At least two out of the three were quite strong. Since I've been out of school a while, all three were professional recs. The first was the owner of the tutoring company that promoted me to his position of running the company when he took another job. The second was my boss at Berkeley admissions; he's written tons of letters, so knew how to present me well. The third was the owner of the current tutoring firm I work for. I've only known him about 9 months, but he was a Georgetown Alum, so that likely helped. Overall, all three letters presented me as fiercely intelligent, but with a strong inner drive to do work I find meaningful.