jenna01

If you're debate I would talk to as many alumni from both programs as possible, I didn't talk to any alumni before choosing SIPA and I wish I had. My personal view after two years at the program is most programs at sipa are cash cows with few actual resources for students and the required courses are not very good. I would caution against attending unless you know exactly what you want to do with the degree, especially if you're taking on debt, its not a great place for career exploration. An example of someone I recommend they go to SIPA is someone who knows they want to work at UN Women, specializes in UN studies and gender/policy, networks the whole two years with alumni/professors with UN connections, and then at the end gets their job at the UN.

Hi, I'm a graduating SIPA alumni (MPA-urban and social policy). Wanted to put my two cents in that SIPA is 100% not worth it at sticker price, I had a full scholarship and graduated without any job offers as did most of my classmates. The job market for policy/non profit jobs right now is super rough and SIPA has basically no resources to help graduates except for its 'network of alumni' which can be hit or miss at best. I always recommend people not attend SIPA unless they have significant amounts of aid AND a really good plan of what they're going to do with the degree. You want to know going in how your going to leverage your degree post grad and that's the only way to really take advantage of all the opportunities SIPA has in a way that will make the cost- benefit worth it. I would also note that columbia just created three different 10 month MPA programs which might devalue or take away from the need to attend the traditional 2 year program. Happy to answer any questions

I’m a MPA candidate married to a law student (both at an Ivy league school) and we both agree duel degrees are not worth it unless you have a very specific reason for getting it (for example running a non-profit that does legal work or doing a highly specialized type of legal research that overlaps with a policy field your MPP school specializes in). Otherwise just get a JD, you qualify for the same jobs as an MPA but have more options open to you and the pay is generally higher. Sounds like you don’t know exactly what you want out of your degree though so I would also caution against getting any of these degrees unless you have a basic 5 year plan of what you are going to do with them given that you will probably graduate into a not great economy with a significant amount of debt.

I’m a current sipa student and wanted to put out some points for anyone trying to decide on schools right now. First I would absolutely not count on job statistics from the last couple years and look more at the numbers and experiences of students graduating during the last recession. Most students I know had their summer internships or post grad jobs canceled or delayed and if we’re honest who knows what type of economy you will be graduating into in two years. Second I would not take on debt to attend SIPA (or really any MPA program) next year. One of the major reasons to go to an Ivy League grad school is for the networking opportunities and so many are already canceled or deferred going into the fall (and there’s also the major possibility fall classes would be online). A big plus of sipa is all the opportunities that come along with living in NYC, however many of those are canceled into the fall as well (UN conferences, Columbia networking events, ect) I would seriously consider how upset you’d be if what happened this school year would happen to you next year and how much tuition you would be willing to pay out of pocket if it did, because we might have a second wave next winter too.

As a current MPA student at one of those schools I’d seriously reconsider taking on debt right now, considering the job market you are likely to graduate into in two years. You might want to take employment statistics from the last few years with a grain of salt and focus more on the employment outcomes around the time of the last recession (07-08-09). Many of my classmates have had internships and jobs cancel on them and there is a good chance next year will look the same in terms of the job market. Also ask yourself how you would feel if fall classes are online, would you still be happy with your choice? What if most events/conferences are cancel for next year, would it make a difference in your decision? Also are those debt numbers just cost of tuition or do they include tuition, because cost of living will be much higher in NYC verses around yale.

I'm a current SIPA student, I would really reconsider taking on debt to attend SIPA at this moment. Most people I know are having their internships put on pause or canceled all together and there is talk about fall being online. Who knows if this is going to extend into next year so I would put serious thought into which program you would like to attend if one of your semesters is online. SIPA is a great school and I have loved my classes, but take a hard look at the job market your about to enter, not the job market of the last couple years, when thinking of taking on debt right now.