limeorange

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.

Sure! I was offered full funding from HKS (MPP),  and I made my decision after comparing the curriculum at both schools. My area of focus in international development is very specific, and even though I love so many things about WWS, HKS offered more electives that are directly related to my future career.
WWS offers all of its students full funding (plus additional funding for networking, internships, and language learning), a stronger core curriculum, and a more intimate and tight knit community/learning environment. Its students come in with years of work experience, and its graduates overwhelmingly go into the public sector. I consider all of these strengths. But because it’s a smaller school, it doesn’t offer as many electives as HKS. IMO, that’s the only downside of WWS. WWS staff are so responsive and have been so transparent during this challenging time. If I wasn’t interested in this narrow area of international development, I would’ve gone to WWS in a heartbeat.
I don’t know much about the MPA/ID program at HKS, but I’ve heard that it’s a very quant heavy program and comparable to the quant skills you would gain at WWS. You probably know this already but HKS is thinking about how classes will proceed in the fall. Because it’s waitlisting students who it initially rejected, I think it is expecting many students—especially students who did not receive funding and international students—to defer. The bigger question is, if classes are online, will HKS still charge full tuition? Would you be okay with taking these classes online?
Before taking out loans to pay for HKS, seriously consider what career you want after graduation. Harvard is a bigger brand abroad, but six figure debt will make it harder for you to take a job at an NGO or in the public sector. What are you specifically looking to gain from your graduate program? For me, it was strengthening my quant skills, studying the specific topics I’m interested in, and leaving with the least amount of debt possible.
Follow the funding, if you can. If you can’t, look at employment statistics, think about your future career, your projected future earnings, and how much debt you would personally be okay with. If you are taking out loans, go into your grad program with a game plan and make the most of your time.
Apologize for rambling but I hope that helped! 

Congrats to everyone who got in!!!

I see there are also plenty of extremely qualified folks here who didn't get into HKS but got into other top notch schools like SIPA, WWS, Fletcher, SAIS etc., and many of you guys have *incredibly* generous funding from those schools - CONGRATULATIONS!!! Take the offer with pride because those are all AMAZING schools. At the end of the day, it's less about WHICH school you got your degree from, but WHAT you plan to do with your degree. I'm sure you are all bright, driven and compassionate people and the world needs more of you ?

Imagine seeing a blogpost saying "we were just testing our systems to make sure they were good to go for the final decision release tomorrow"

Please no HAHAHAHAHAHA 
 
I think about all those who will read this feed next year and see all these drama  

It's not off-topic and so don't be sorry!! Let's face it- at this stage of our lives and career, if we have applied to HKS (and other equally reputed schools) for a course in public policy then it definitely shows our empathy and sensitivity to our societal superstructure. The prevalent rigid issues of our respective countries/communities/societies have motivated us to look for out-of-box and unconventional solutions and that in turn has encouraged us to apply for best institutes with world-class peer group and faculty. For someone, the poor quality of education in the society could be a concern while for others it could be gender discrimination, inequality, poverty, corruption and/or violence. All of us here are looking for solutions and for ways to collaborate with each other to solve the larger issues of society. I firmly believe that in addition to the brand value of HKS, we all acknowledge that the possibility of getting our solutions at HKS is much higher and so we are eager and anxious to get enrolled there. Therefore, occasionally, if not all the time, we should also discuss contemporary issues like CORONA because it impacts us in many ways than we can think of- including our chances of admit (as one of our fellow members pointed out that HKS might be re-assessing rate of acceptance/deferment by candidates) and to be on-campus this fall, if selected. 
 

These two things are concerning. Why aren't you getting any scholarship money? These programs aren't super competitive, so as long as you're not a functional idiot, you should be able to. Take a look at the results pages for the various schools, SAIS, SIPA, HKS, etc. - people are getting 50, 60, 70k. So it's possible. Why aren't you?
Like - and stay with me until the end of the post, because this next part is going to sting - when it comes to hypercompetitive fields, be it academia or IR, if you're failing, so to say, at the first hurdle, the field is probably not for you. IR may seem glamorous, but doing something you're not built for becomes really old really quickly. Career outcomes are path-dependent, which means that, if you're starting at a disadvantage, barring some deus ex machina shit, you're going to stay at a disadvantage - and in a hypercompetitive field, that disadvantage will quickly catch up to you and leave you high and dry. 100k in debt, btw, is one hell of a disadvantage. That'll preclude you from taking most interesting entry-level jobs and will trickle down to seemingly innocuous stuff like not being able to attend networking happy hours because you have to catch the last train to Largo - stuff that cumulatively makes a big difference.
All of this isn't to say that you'll never amount to anything, but rather to say that you should avoid starting at a disadvantage. There's lots of reasons why somebody doesn't get scholarship money, and most of them are fixable. Do you lack work experience? Do you need to retake the GRE? Are you not applying widely enough? Is your application not telling a coherent narrative for what you want to do in the field and why School X is the best place to prepare yourself for it? If you don't know the answer to these questions, find out. Go on LinkedIn and set up some informational interviews with people in the field. Pick something you don't know about and learn about it, ideally by doing it. Immerse yourself in the field as a professional, not a starry-eyed child.
A note on work experience in IR: as someone who got a job in IR out of UG, don't get a job in IR out of UG. The entry-level stuff is all bureaucratic support (so, not the people who get to even touch policy with a 3 foot pole). It's a good way to learn about how the sausage is made, but that's about it. If I were to do it again, I'd get a job in something competitive, like consulting, that will teach you grit and concise analysis while also paying well and looking good on a resume, or I'd move abroad and do something crazy, e.g. start a beach bar in Trinidad, and learn from the ground up. Or work at an NGO that does fieldwork on the actual ground. You can arrive at policy from any background: I know former engineers, MDs, stock traders, artists, activists and so on who have successful careers in IR. It's all about what skills and network you can bring to the table. All this bullshit about what degree you have and where it's from and how much it cost is so fucking secondary.

Hey folks, 
As we anxiously wait for until next week for decisions to roll out, can we talk about the potential recursions of this pandemic in terms of your graduate school plans? More specifically, is anyone seriously considering staying put (if that's an option) at their current job/profession for at least another year because of the Covid-19 scare? I'm a full time teacher and I can easily just come back to my school for another year and continue my work. I understand some of you may not have an alternative plan other than graduate school, but for me, I'm actually already very nervous about this pandemic. If the entire summer ends up getting disrupted I don't know if I will be mentally ready to start grad school in the fall, even if this pendemic subsides considerably by then. If the economy continues to fall at this rapid pace and millions of lives are either temporarily or permanently disrupted, I wonder if our commitments to grad school are going to look silly even before we start in the fall. What are y'all's thoughts on this? 

Hey guys,
By now the entire Harvard system is moving online due to COVID-19 contingency and students are asked to leave dorms by Sunday. For the record HKS is working as a pivot to coordinate and navigate amid all these mess since this kind of pandemic is basically a duty of public healthcare and public administration to fulfill, which falls exactly into HKS’s work expertise. So we can imagine how crazily busy all the HKS offices could be at this point. Remember that Graduate Admission is only a part of their collective routine duty as they have to care for a way bigger picture at this near-catastrophic moment facing all human kind. 
So, please give them some time and allow all parties more cushion to multi-tasking and powering through this difficult era. This is not easy for EVERYBODY, I mean everybody, including the whole admissions committee at HKS and all other personnels and departments co-working with them.
And guys, for the record, what we want to be is future leaders in public administration/policy-making, that’s why we are here, that’s why we are all aiming to HKS. Stay in mental serenity when there is chaos, keep organized and functional when there is mayhem, remain calm and endurable when there is ordeal. We are incredibly powerful HKS applicants with mind of steel and heart of sunshine, we can deal with this ONE MORE WEEK all together. 
We are just gonna have more fun, chat, communications, and joys here. At the same time let’s stay indoor and contribute our part to preventing further spread-out of COVID-19 in the world. Beautiful things happen when you stay positive and open-minded. Like my dad cancelled my spring break flight to L.A. a couple of days ago, yet in ruins of my devastated hope for all amazing cuisines, cultures, sceneries, and entertainments in L.A., instead I found YOU, ALL OF YOU on this awesome forum while staying put in Boston. What a great alternative that totally beats an outdoor spring break! 

My husband just heard me let out a yip of excitement. He thought maybe I heard back from the last program I am waiting on (HKS) but nope... just reading everyone's great news about Princeton and feeling so excited for you all. Congratulations!!!

Aww come on, give the admissions team a break! The school is going through some pretty mad chaos right now, huh?
 
In the meantime, have a cheeky pint or two and try not to look at this forum too much ?  Right now, I’m just trying to ignore that lurching feeling in my stomach whenever I think about the portal being updated with decisions soon.
I’m coding a new app to pass the time—anybody doing anything that’s keeping their minds off decisions?

The number one thing that I appreciated having during grad school is Google Drive. I'd recommend organizing by classes as well as making folders for topic areas for resources. It's amazing to be at an externship and be able to pull up all of your materials. Also, when a computer died on me during grad school--no problem. I had everything organized and backed up already. 

The waiting is just brutal. I did some digging and found the first posts reporting results in each year's SIPA MPA admissions thread:
2019: 3/11, 6:30 PM EST
2018: 3/9, 3:43 PM EST
2017: 3/10, 11:36 AM EST
2016: 3/7, 5:24 PM EST
In other words, it could be literally any minute. Boy am I glad I spent my time on that, it's helped me calm down exactly none. 

Finishing up my MPP now! Been a crazy experience, but so glad I did it!
Best of luck to ya'll! I sat where you were two years ago. :) 
Based on prior years, those sequential blog posts are pretty indicative of decisions! Please don't take my word for it though...don't need Matt trying to find out who I am. ?
Btw, COVID may shut down classes after Spring Break (which starts next week for us), but I highly doubt it has an impact on the campus functions. The fact that Spring Break starts at the end of this week coupled with the Corona challenge though seems to indicate that ya'll should be hearing by the end of the week for sure. But once again, I'm just a friendly student who doesn't represent admissions in any which way! 

Mine disappeared too.
but bububu but! remember the wisdom from hks admission office? "Changes in the status page prior to the release of decisions has no bearing on the final admission decision" (2020 Application Reading and Decision Process - Post #14)

Hi everyone.
I have applied to WWS, HKS, SIPA and Ford School-UMichigan. Usually, WWS sends informal email to accepted candidates couple of days before their official announcement which coincides with HKS results day. Going by previous trends, HKS is supposedly announcing result on 12th March-> WWS official result also on 12th March-> Informal acceptance email on 10th March. 
See how anxious I am!! 

Visited HKS and WWS this past week - thoughts below!
 
Harvard Kennedy School
Faculty and Classes: I sat in on three classes and really liked all of them. They were larger than many of the classes I've sat in on at other schools (35-50 students in non-core classes; the cores are closer to 70, though some electives get as low as 15-20) but the professors all seemed to handle it well and make sure there was student involvement. We had a sample lecture on ethics in crisis decision making and it was fantastic.
Curriculum: Most of the first year involves the core, but there's still room for at least one elective a semester (and the second year is way more focused on your field of interest and there's a lot of flexibility). All core classes seem like they would be useful.
Geographic Spread: There are a lot of students from all over the country and a good deal of international students, which seems to add a lot to class discussions on international policy.
Facilities: The building is super nice - it used to be 4 or 5 buildings but they recently completed a renovation that connected all of them, which seems like it would be super helpful in the winter. Access to facilities from all other Harvard grad schools, which is a big plus.
Students: The current students were a lot friendlier and down to earth than I honestly expected them to be. They seem super happy with the program and didn't seem to think that the large class sizes (my main reservation about the program) was a negative, instead pointing out that it leads to interesting class discussions because there's such a broad range of experiences.
Cost: HKS is obviously expensive, and some people get generous scholarships but it's not common. The administration was selling the high cost as an "investment," which I wasn't particularly impressed by since they want their students to go into public service, which isn't known for careers that pay enough to cover six-figure debt.
Diversity & Inclusion: The administration didn't really talk about this much, which was disappointing. When I asked current students what they didn't like about the school, pretty much all of them said that the administration didn't value diversity as much as they should.
Location: I grew up a short drive from Cambridge and love the area. It has the advantages of being in/near a city but is relatively quiet, which I really like.
Career Services: There was a panel on careers after HKS and I honestly don't remember much of it, which probably says a lot...
Extracurriculars: I was impressed by the number of student orgs, and it seems like there a ton of opportunities for students to get involved, either through clubs or research. Almost everyone I talked to belonged to at least one org and had been a research assistant for a professor, which seemed super cool. 
Overall Impressions: I really liked the school overall. The size of the student body was the biggest plus and the biggest minus. You get to learn with a super diverse group of people with experience in a bunch of different areas. However, it can be hard to connect with the administration and professors because there are just so many people competing with you for opportunities.
 
Princeton Woodrow Wilson School
Faculty and Classes: I sat in on two classes and really liked both. The econometrics professor did a great job of answering all the students' complex questions, and the Middle East seminar professor was particularly impressive. He has decades of experience in the region but used that to guide a discussion of current and recent events rather than focusing on lecturing.
Curriculum: The first semester is only core classes, and it was a bit of a bummer to hear that there was no room for electives at first. However, there's some space in the second semester, and the entire second year is completely flexible, which was great to hear. One downside is that because it's such a small program, the class selection is more limited than the selection at some other schools. However, they allow students to take classes at Princeton's other graduate programs (or potentially upper-level undergraduate classes) if there's a topic that's not adequately covered at WWS.
Geographic Spread: I met students from across the US and Canada, and a few international students though not as many as I was hoping for.
Facilities: The campus is beautiful and there are a ton of resources for students on campus, which all seemed great. 
Students: I loved all the current students I spoke to. They were super available to talk to us, and they were super open about the things they liked and didn't like about the program, which I appreciated. I felt like I got a really balanced view of the school, which made me more confident about my decision to go!
Cost: WWS gives full rides to all its students, which is fantastic particularly since it puts everyone on similar levels financially and no one has to worry about racking up debt. 
Diversity & Inclusion: The WWS administration talked pretty openly about how there was still a lot to be done in terms of diversity and equity, and the students said similar things about the school still having a long way to go. But I appreciated that the problem was at least talked about openly!
Location: Princeton is a super cute town, but obviously pretty suburban without a whole lot to do. But it seems like both NYC and Philadelphia are super accessible - it seems like it's common for MPA students to spend a day or two a week interning in New York.
Career Services: I was disappointed that career services wasn't represented/given a panel at new admit weekend, but from everything I've heard it seems like they give a lot of planning and financial support for internships and jobs.
Extracurriculars: Because WWS is a small school, there's a relatively small number of student orgs, but there are interesting ones. Plus there are student orgs that are for all Princeton graduate students, which widens the opportunities quite a bit.
Overall Impressions: I really loved the vibe I got at Princeton. Things obviously aren't perfect, but people were great about telling me the issues with the school while still making it clear that they were loving their experiences there. The cohorts seem super close, and all of my experiences over the weekend made me really excited to attend next year!

Though it wouldn't be for credit, if you want to get a head start on it MIT offers micro for free online: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL61533C166E8B0028&nohtml5=False
Website link: http://ocw.mit.edu/courses/economics/14-01sc-principles-of-microeconomics-fall-2011/