Yass

I also had a 4-page resume (think they wanted some context about each of the employers I worked for) and was accepted to the MIA program this year. 

It's best to reach out to the two organizers that are listed on the Google form. Their email addresses are also listed there. Good luck!

Feel free to sign up for an info session about student's experiences at HKS and the essay buddy review system. 

That 158 on Quants is a bit less than what admissions team would consider impressive, however it should be in their acceptable range. Do ensure that some other parts of your application are able to demonstrate your quantitative abilities. 322 overall is decent with that great 164 Verbal. Any score in the range of 320+ should be fine. My advice would be:
Acceptable scores: Q 157+, V 155+
Impressive scores: Q 162+, V 159+
Disclaimer: Scores perception and emphasis will depend on several factors like how long you have been out of school, educational background, GPA, etc. For someone who has been out of school for more than 8-10 years, this range would be quite different. So the range given above is just indicative. The following post from HKS admissions blog would serve as a good reference:
https://hksadmissionblog.tumblr.com/post/178748574381/fall-2018-news-and-notes-post-2
 

Why not apply for the HKS MPA-ID program if you wanna go into development? The IDEV program at SAIS is also really good and quant heavy. 

I'd second that what GradSchoolGrad said and also recommend to apply to a few more schools. 3-5 is a good number so you have some other options to choose from and can compare scholarship offers.
For HKS it is less common to get in straight from undergrad but it is not impossible. For SIPA and SAIS it is more likely so you should have a better shot there. 
On the other hand, you do have a few things that speak for you such as your very good GRE and TOEFL scores and you also speak several languages and have done internships in the public sector as well as a research institution. 
For the motivation letter it is very important that you know where you want to be in the future and how you want to contribute to the world/society. So you need a clear picture of what you want to get out of the degree and why it is a good idea to pursue an MPP or JD respectively and how it is going to help you achieve your gaol of becoming a lecturer. 
It is a bit unclear to me right now why you need a degree from the US to become a lecturer in your home country? The MPP is a professional degree and not so much theoretical or research focused. It enables you to work on practical policy issues and is not necessarily the best stepping stone for a PhD so if you really want to become a professor/lecturer in the future, a different degree might better suit your future goals. 
Please feel free to ask me anything about the schools I applied to. All the best.

To give you another perspective, I only have a GRE score of V159 and Q157 and still got accepted by SAIS with 40k funding as well as SIPA and HKS. 
I’d recommend to apply to less schools as it takes a lot of time and effort to tailor your application to each of the schools and each one comes at a cost of roughly $100. It’s only useful if you have a well funded offer and want to leverage it against another offer. 
I graduated in 2018 so I only had 1,5 years of experience when I applied. I’m not sure about your quant background as I did economics in my undergrad but I’d just like to encourage you and say that the GRE score isn’t everything and I know that SIPA and SAIS both have students straight from undergrad, SAIS even more than SIPA.
Regarding the recommendation letters, I had 3 recommenders in total and I think it wasn’t a problem to ask them submit 6 letters each. It’s actually just changing the name of the school and uploading the letter but do make sure to give them enough time beforehand and a reminder whenever a deadline is approaching. 
It’s definitely not impossible to get admitted without that much work experience or an amazing GRE score.
All the best for your applications

Huge Congrats Yass and other newly admitted ones!! I just got waitlisted after rejection. May I know when is the ddl for your HKS decision-making and deposit so that I can have a better understanding of when can I hear a confirmed decision from HKS. Thx so much!!!

I committed to the SAIS-Tsinghua program this morning. Super excited for what’s to come!

Nice! I ended up deciding to go to the HNC after all. Here's to hoping they open those borders back up and the 14 day quarantine at travelers' expense becomes unnecessary lol. 

Hey all:
I wasn't sure of where to post this initially, but I supposed that since students in different fields have to take different things into consideration when choosing between grad programs, I should probably stick to my home turf. Much of this, however, likely applies to fields outside of poli-sci.
After going back and forth between two excellent schools offering comparable funding packages, I've settled on a grad program [yay!]. I'm very, very fortunate and grateful to have been admitted to both of them, which is part of what made this decision so difficult. This post is a list of the strategies, exercises, and 'games' that I came up with [I'm sure others have thought of similar things, too!] to help me reach a final decision.
These are, of course, meant as a complement the usual deliberative channels. The most informative thing you can do by far is talk to the faculty and students. A lot. Ask different people the same questions. Annoy yourself with how many people you email, ask to be put in touch with, etc. Ask former advisors. Ask anyone you know in academia; it's a small world. [In fact, asking 'outside sources' about these different programs helped me learn a lot of things that I never would have learned through internal recon!] If you're a spiritual or religious person, it helps to meditate or pray, if only because doing so can remind you of what matters most to you, personally, in choosing a school. And, don't let any one factor overpower all the others.
I'd really love to hear what you all did/are doing to make a decision, too—ideally current and future prospective students will happen upon this, find it useful, and add to it themselves!
 
1. Go over your statement of purpose. If you haven't done so already, print out a copy of each of the statements your wrote for each school you're considering and re-read them. Pay extra attention to how you feel when you get to the POI parts—you know, the ones where you say how excited you are to work with Professor Professorson because of XYZ and can't wait to participate in the Center Institute's programs because of ABC. For which schools do those portions of your statement feel most true, or most exciting, now?
Then pretend you have to create an outline for your dissertation today. Yes, I know your topic will change. Pretend you have to write it out anyway. Using your statement as a reference guide, make that outline [it can be brief and general].
Now, look at that outline and decide what you know the most about researching vs. the least. What areas are you most comfortable with, methodologically? Where do you need help, even in terms of coming up with a basic research design? Look at the list of things that you know the least about and figure out what resources, professors, reading groups, or interdisciplinary colloquia are most suited to help you at each school. What, if anything, do you notice? 
 
2. Pre-empt your regrets. Imagine your lowest period at each of the schools you're considering. This will look different, depending, but imagine those times—we've all had them before and we all will again—where you'll feel behind, unseen, frustrated, stupid, lonely, like you desperately need a haircut but don't have the time or the money, and are you effing kidding me [insert The Last Straw here]. T
These are the moments when a little voice will pop up in the back of your head and say, 'if only I'd gone to _______ instead...' . Complete that thought. What's that second clause? What will you most readily regret about not going to Alternate University?
'If only I'd picked Alternative University, I would have been able to work with that professor who shares my quirky research interests and methods.'
'If only I'd picked Alternative University, I'd be able to afford something nicer than this glorified walk-in closet.'
'If only I'd picked school Alternate University, I'd have more research autonomy and a less rigid curriculum.'
Compare the 'if only's that you come up with for each school. Which internal monologues look easiest to recite? Which ones look the most painful? Which ones seem like the most valid?
 
3. Use numbers! Ranking systems get a bad rap for being overly simplistic. Which they are. So are all of these strategies. That's the point. None of these should be used to change your mind. Rather, each of these is just a new way to help you make up your mind. They're exercises for getting more information from yourself—the sort that's difficult, if not impossible, to come by directly if you just, y'know, think really really hard about your options. [Because you've probably done that already, and now your head probably hurts.]
One thing that I did, after visiting my prospective schools [and taking an aspirin], was to put a note card on my desk and—every day for a week—assign each day a number 1–10 to represent how close I was to choosing a certain school. You can either do this for each school individually, or if you're choosing between your final two, you can make '1' mean 'I am, at this moment, about to press the "accept offer" button for University X' and '10' mean 'I am, at this moment, about to press the "accept offer" button for University Y.'
After however many days seems prudent, look at your note card and see if there's a pattern.
 
4. Make a list of all the stupid reasons. You're smart. So you've probably already thought about what the smart reasons are to choose any given school. You know the sensible things to take into account. Maybe one university has a better cost of living, a better stipend, better study abroad opportunities, or a better placement record. Maybe another has a more engaged student body, more compatible faculty, more intellectual diversity, or a uniquely kick-ass comprehensive exam format that would just help so much when it comes to publishing.
Assuming that each of these 'good' reasons cancels out the others... what about the 'bad' reasons? The ones that aren't supposed to matter, but do? When you think 'this really shouldn't make a difference, but...' what are the siren songs that draw you toward each school? Better weather? Nicer architecture? [Personally, this UChicago kid has a thing for bad weather and ugly libraries, so those 'bad reasons' were flipped.] More TA office space? Is there a department dog? Do you want there to be a department dog?
Assume you're in a ceteris paribus scenario. I mean, if you're reading this, you probably are. All else is equal... so what are those final non-equalizers? Do any of them offset the others?
 
5. Hit "record." I was fortunate enough to have audio evidence of my absolute shock and delight immediately after receiving each acceptance letter. I use Voice Memos on my phone for... well, everything, so when I saw an acceptance email [within the hour] I would do a voice memo 'journal entry'/freeform gabble-fest about how excited I was to have been admitted. When I was deliberating between my final two schools, I went back and replayed those two voice memos. Yes, there was a clear difference between how I sounded in each one. And no, it wasn't one of audio quality.
You can do this retroactively, too. Take some time to really tap in and be completely present with your excitement over getting into one school. [At a time, that is.] Then start recording [or writing], stream-of-consciousness, about that excitement. Then read or play back each session. Again, observe what differences you notice without judging any of them or jumping to conclusions.
 
6. Plot your research trajectory. If you've done this right [and you have], you already have a pretty good sense of what your research trajectory would look like at each of the schools you're considering. You know what your core classes are, you know what 'normal progress' looks like, and so on. Now put that knowledge to use, and add to it.
Go to each university's website and make a 'mock schedule.' Don't limit yourself to core courses or options within the poli-sci department. Obviously, course offerings are going to change, so are your interests, and it makes no sense to 'decide' when you'll take different non-essential courses. But you can list courses, seminars, TA opportunities, reading groups, conferences, projects, and professors that look cool. Sketch out the trajectory of classes that you know you're going to need to take [field seminars, dissertation workshops, mandatory TA practicums, etc.]. Then get familiar enough with your other options to have some idea of what the rest of your time could look like.
Again, this is about familiarizing yourself with the possibilities, not making a plan. The idea is to use these exercises to move past any implicit rigidity you may be experiencing—not create more.
 
7. Practice saying "yes." In front of a mirror, without trying to manage your reaction, practice saying that you've decided to go to School X. Then do it for School Y. And so on. Imagine you're telling your friends, your family, your former professors, etc. How did you feel each time? Physically, emotionally? Was there a knot in your stomach when you said it? Did you feel like a weight was lifted off of your shoulders? Did you tense up? Relax? Where? Did you smile? Laugh? Make a mental note of it.
Then, actually tell someone—before you hit "accept." You should only do this when you feel like you're ready to make that final call. Once you do, give yourself some time [a day is ideal] to see if any last dissenting thoughts come up. They probably will, if you're a commitment-phobe. The point isn't that you shouldn't have any doubts. You should, because ideally, you chose to apply to these schools for a reason, and they chose to admit you for a reason. You both saw an extreme level of compatibility between yourselves. The fact that this is a difficult decision is a sign that you did this absolutely, perfectly right. Go you! Honor that.
 
Again, I'd really dig hearing the unique strategies that others used to come to their own decisions!
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

HI fshopeful!
Your decision-making insights were very useful! I'm currently deciding between SAIS (20k per year) and SIPA (no aid) and debating whether I should still apply to Harris. As an international applicant from Europe, the international reputation of the program/uni is quite important to me so reading your points definitely made SIPA's strength clearer to me. I'll PM you

As far as I know, waitlisted candidates aren’t not eligible for funding or a deferral at HKS. But even lots of candidates that were accepted right away don’t have any funding so probably not.

Am I the only one secretly hoping that my application ends up getting reviewed on the HKS blog? I wouldn't mind being put on blast for some free feedback ?

Congrats!!! Me too yay!!! I was also mentally prepared to go to SIPA and this game in as a total surprise ? I’m so excited!!!

I just heard back from HKS today, and I am admitted! But no scholarship though. I was already mentally prepared to go to Harris (they raised my scholarship to $30k per year).
I am super excited, but don't know what to choose. I am from China, so the Harvard brand is worth way too much than everything. Any thoughts?
Good luck to everyone! Look forward to hearing some good news.

Congratulations!! I too was admitted today. Very happy to receive the news.

Hi everyone,
I've received some good news from schools, and I think I've narrowed it down to the Harvard Kennedy School Master of Public Policy and Columbia School of International and Public Affairs Master of International Affairs. No funding from HKS, $30K/year from SIPA. My interests are international human rights and development, 5 years work experience & hoping to stay in progressive INGO spaces after graduating.
Since admit days are cancelled due to COVID, would appreciate advice!
I'm drawn to SIPA's many courses and opportunities specific to human rights and development. And I'm drawn to HKS' sense of community: campus, core first year curriculum structure, and extracurricular engagement. Does one have a significantly better reputation within the sector? (Harvard certainly has a stronger household name.)
Fwiw I've also been admitted to Berkeley GSPP (no funding), SAIS ($26K/year), Fletcher ($18K/year), MSFS (no funding), AU SIS ($11K/year). Funding is a consideration and it's hard to turn down programs that would be less expensive, but feels like it might be worth it for the career advancement particularly with a recession coming.
Thank you!

Thanks, appreciate your perspective! 

Thank you so much! I am currently in the finishing stages of my masters and looking into PhD programs.

I am not saying that Chinese students will all of sudden disappear. I'm just highlighting that the already well established trend of slowly diminished Chinese international student interest in US grad programs will sharpen. Chinese international students have been a reliable revenue source in the past 7 years or so for many programs, and even a partial displacement of that student population will have financial impacts on many US programs (some much more than others). The grad program I went to, Georgetown McCourt was interestingly 40% or so Chinese international students for my start class. I know they have diversified the international student population since then, but it is population that could determine a lot about the grad school experience. 

@Karam2022 and @tacos95, I think you're looking at the wrong financial metrics. Instead of looking at the % of tuition covered, you should be looking at the total expense for the two years vs average salary earned in the first three years post-degree from that school. 
For each school, if the difference between these two numbers is just $20k to $30k or so, then the schools are comparable, and you have to consider other factors. But if there is a massive difference, then your choice is much easier. 
All this assumes that you will continue in the same city (or at least, within the US), for three years after graduation. If not, then you have to consider (a) whether the school has a brand and network in your target industry, and your target country, and (b) whether it will give you the kind of life you want to experience for two years. 
For example, financial considerations aside, two years are Yale (academic-professional focus, smaller class size) are going to be wildly different from two years at SIPA (active city life, massive classes). Where do you think you will thrive most? 
 
 

I'm not sure if it would really discourage Chinese students to enroll in the program. Even though there might be increased hostility against foreigners in China and China has temporarily ban foreigners from entering the country, this is all short-term and a degree from a top US institution is still worth a lot in China. Therefore, I don't think that just because of COVID-19, Chinese students will now all give up their admission or defer their offers... In the end these are all speculations and we can only wait and see how the situation develops. 

As far as I know, you can get EU tuition fees for the Netherlands (2k per year instead of 15k or so). My friend has EU citizenship but didn't live in the EU and could get the cheaper tuition fees in the Netherlands. There are lots of Master programs in English and the education is solid! I did my undergrad there. 
In Schweden/Norway tuition should be almost free for EU students, but not sure if you have to be an EU resident.
In Germany there are 13 Begabtenförderungswerke where you can apply for monthly stipend scholarship (up to 700 Euros per month). Maybe that is something you can consider but not sure if you have to speak German for that. You can just google it. Are you planning to do a PhD after your Masters? 

Nice, congrats on your offers! I'm debating between SAIS (20k per year) or SIPA (nothing) and also whether I should still apply to Harris... Have you asked them to reconsider your financial aid decision?