DevMeg

Hello! I'm hoping to apply this coming application cycle, but I'm also looking for recommendations to improve my profile. If I need to, I'm willing to postpone grad school another year or two for more work experience if it means I might be able to increase my chances of getting funding. Applying to: HKS, WWS, Tufts, Georgetown (probably GHD), maybe JHU, probably American and Korbel for safety (I mostly want feedback if I even stand a chance at the WWS level) Interests: international development - specifically community development and its relationship to improving international security Undergrad Institution: University of Denver  Undergrad GPA: 3.62 (not the strongest, of course)  Undergrad Major: International Studies and Journalism Studies, minors in History and Hebrew  GRE: 168V / 160Q/ 5.5 AWA Quantitative Courses: Calculus I (received a C my freshman year of college); added to my quant background with the following courses from a local community college: statistics, principles of microeconomics, principles of macroeconomics - received As in all of them, I hope I can use this to point to my commitment to doing quantitative work and how serious I am about reentering the academic world. The university in my town didn't have a lot of continuing ed offerings, but I also read on here that many of the programs don't think negatively about taking community college courses to bolster a weak quantitative resume.  Work Experience: During college: Journalism internship in Israel, including a magazine feature piece about Syrian refugees treated in Israeli hospitals; 6-month marketing internship/volunteer opportunity (volunteered to stay past actual internship date) at small, internationally focused nonprofit in Denver Post-college: 3-month temporary position at one of the largest nonprofits in the US in programs/events, turned down the chance for a permanent position to serve in the Peace Corps; 1.5 years in the Peace Corps in Mongolia working in English education and youth development, left because my mom was diagnosed with cancer and facing life-threatening surgery, granted Interrupted Service which is a designation that means I left for reasons out of my control; 2 years in a leadership position at a small nonprofit that is considered an industry leader in sustainable development programs in Africa and Central America, one of 5 US employees, which means I manage a large portion of the nonprofit. In college work experience: probably totals nearly a year with another experience I didn't list here. Post-college work experience (which probably matters more): 3.5 not counting the temp position, nearly 4 if you count it.  Language: Hebrew (high proficiency with 6 years of study), Mongolian (intermediate proficiency), Turkish (basic proficiency) LORs: I hope these are pretty good. One from the Executive Director where I work, one from a professor who can account for my research skills and critical thinking ability, one mostly like from Peace Corps (just deciding who is the best PC person to write this LOR) SOP: Haven't really gotten into this yet. I'll probably start these over the summer. I'll probably talk about my interest in sustainable community development as a tool in international security, why I need an MPA to enter the field I want to enter - something like that. Seriously, I've been mostly getting my quantitative background in order. Thoughts: I'm worried about my weaker GPA. There was also a period of 9-months where I worked in retail and restaurant service because I had trouble finding a job, and then another period of 9-months where I worked in retail and restaurant service because I was waiting to go to the Peace Corps (and felt like accepting a permanent position somewhere would be dishonest). I don't reflect negatively on those experiences, and I did what I had to do to pay the bills. I'm just not sure how some of the really competitive programs are going to feel about that. A lot of the student bios listed on the WWS website are people who have been working incredible policy and/or nonprofit jobs since they graduated college. Going to grad school is a huge priority, but I know that I'm going to be in nonprofit/public service work for the rest of my life. I'm trying to do what I can to avoid more debt. I'm willing to work another year or two (although I need to change jobs because now I do mostly fundraising and I don't like it - it's just an important skill to have no matter where you end up in nonprofit work) if it means that I'll be the strongest candidate I can possibly be. I'm interested in WWS for so many reasons, some related to funding and some related to the strength of the program, size of cohort, emphasis on enter public service/nonprofits after graduation, etc. I know it's a total crapshoot, but if someone has a recommendation for me to make it less of a crapshoot or fill in a hole I have, I'm all ears.