tough_choices

I was also offered full funding, and my official letter correctly stated one year of non resident tuition and fees and one year of resident tuition and fees. Maybe worth emailing the GPS admission office about it? Sounds like they must have made a mistake in your letter.

It’s true that the debt from SAIS would probably be manageable—I just have avoided taking out any significant loans so far, so it seems like a lot even if it is relatively not that much. I will be attending both admitted student days to get a sense of the schools and communities, but I do think I would like to expand my network and get some experience on the west coast. Anyway, thanks for taking the time to share your thoughts—I really appreciate it.

Coming from: Washington, DC, currently working in the human rights field Deciding between: UCSD GPS: Full tuition + $11k/year stipend (COA ~$10k/year) Johns Hopkins SAIS: 85% tuition scholarship (COA ~$25k/year) Other factors: Cohabiting with the boyfriend for at least a year of GPS and for both years of SAIS so that will help offset cost of living in a big way. How I'm leaning: Is it crazy that I'm leaning towards GPS? Not only will my debt look significantly different, but GPS faculty are almost entirely full time professors while SAIS seems to rely heavily on adjunct lecturers, and it seems like there are quite a few opportunities for student-faculty research collaboration at GPS. Also, GPS' research institutes are a stronger match for my interests (I would like to pursue research opportunities during my program). Both programs offer the quantitative bent that I’m looking for, and I don’t intend to pursue a federal career. I'm just not sure if I should be putting more stock in the SAIS name and location.