littlelaoshu

I don't really have a horse in the race right now as I'm just starting my career (23, graduated, about to move to DC for an internship), but I also would like to know how those who are getting huge scholarships at SAIS, admission to WWS, etc, are doing it. It seems like I can't expect to make more than maybe 60k out of the gate from one of these programs, so I'd really rather only go to one if I get a huge amount of scholarship money. Otherwise it just doesn't seem worth it. I've been trying to chat with the people on here who get good funding on how they did it, but I'd really love more tips and perspective.

Taking on huge amounts of debt when we're about to enter into a global recession might not be the best idea, in my opinion. It's true that Harvard MPPs statistically place well into the private sector, but they're certainly not immune to economic downturns, and we're about to face a big one. If you are chiefly interested in public jobs or want to pursue further schooling it makes even LESS sense to go into debt.

I probably will do this, thank you. I'm currently looking for work in the meantime. That's a great offer, congrats! Do you think you'll take it? What do you think helped most with the funding offer? GPA, GRE, experience?

Just wondering what the chief determinants of funding offers might be. Do they factor in work experience above other things?

Hello all. I graduated from undergrad in May 2019, did an overseas internship the summer after, and then started a research Fulbright. I did language training for my research at a top program from August to December and arrived at my research site in January and was supposed to continue until November 2020, but at the end of January I was evacuated from my host country and my Fulbright discontinued (I'm sure you can guess where my Fulbright was). I am now re-evaluating my options and what I want to do next. I'm 23, will be 24 this summer. I have already decided to solo travel abroad for the next couple of months, as this is something I've always wanted to do and I figure now is my chance (sure, not the most "professionally" fulfilling option, but I'm young and always wanted to do this). I am considering whether I should proceed with grad applications for the fall. I would likely be applying for IA programs and would need a large amount of funding to be willing to go. Would it be in my best interest to try and find a full time job this summer? I have considered teaching English full-time abroad as a way to keep being abroad for a bit and also gaining some professional experience. Should I hold off on applying to these schools at all this fall, and just plan on applying fall 2021 when I'll likely have more professional experience? My main interest is in getting solid funding. However, if I applied for grad school next year, I'd be starting at age 26, which feels a little late in the game to me. I'm posting a rundown of my "stats"/background below for context. Any advice on what I could or should do next is welcome. Thank you guys for your patience and advice. Programs (Potentially) Applying To: International Affairs/Policy programs--e.g. SAIS (either fully in DC or Hopkins-Nanjing), WWS at Princeton, SIPA at Columbia Undergraduate institution: state school Undergraduate GPA: 4.0 Undergraduate Major: International Economics & Chinese GRE Scores: Not taken yet--planning to take this summer, anticipating high-ish scores? I usually do well on standardized tests. Years Out of Undergrad (if applicable): little over half a year Years of Work Experience: 0 Describe Relevant Work Experience: paid internship in Embassy right out of college for a summer. During college: paid internship at State in DC, undergraduate TA, manager of undergraduate Chinese tutoring program, internship at local World Trade Center and U.S. Commercial Service Quant: undergrad econometrics + intermediate macro/micro, some economic research experience Strengths: lots of international experience and won many competitive State scholarships (Boren Scholarship, Critical Language Scholarship, Fulbright), fairly interesting story, good academic recommendations and likely one good professional recommendation

Hello all. I graduated from undergrad in May 2019, did an overseas internship the summer after, and then started a research Fulbright. I did language training for my research at a top program from August to December and arrived at my research site in January and was supposed to continue until November 2020, but at the end of January I was evacuated from my host country and my Fulbright discontinued (I'm sure you can guess where my Fulbright was). I am now re-evaluating my options and what I want to do next. I have already decided to solo travel abroad for the next couple of months, as this is something I've always wanted to do and I figure now is my chance (sure, not the most "professionally" fulfilling option, but I'm young and always wanted to do this). I am now also considering whether I should proceed with grad applications for the fall. I would need a large amount of funding to be willing to go. Program Applying To: SAIS (either fully in DC or Hopkins-Nanjing), WWS, SIPA Undergraduate institution: state school Undergraduate GPA: 4.0 Undergraduate Major: International Economics & Chinese GRE Quantitative Score: Not taken yet--planning to take this summer, anticipating high-ish scores? I usually do well on standardized tests. GRE Verbal Score: N/A GRE AW Score: N/A Years Out of Undergrad (if applicable): little over half a year Years of Work Experience: 0 Describe Relevant Work Experience: paid internship in Embassy right out of college for a summer. During college: paid internship at State in DC, undergraduate TA, manager of undergraduate Chinese tutoring program, internship at local World Trade Center and U.S. Commercial Service Quant: undergrad econometrics + intermediate macro/micro, some economic research experience Strengths: lots of international experience and won many competitive State scholarships (Boren, Critical Language Scholarship, Fulbright), fairly interesting story, good academic recommendations and likely one good professional recommendation Would it be in my best interest to try and find a full time job this summer? I have considered teaching English full-time abroad as a way to keep being abroad for a bit and also gaining some professional experience. Should I hold off on applying to these schools at all this fall, and just plan on applying fall 2021 when I'll likely have more professional experience? My main interest is in getting solid funding. Thank you guys for your patience and advice.