fso2k11

A room in a Dupont rowhouse still costs $1,000/month. I cannot fathom the difference in cost of living by staying in GA. However, if you want to work in DC then I would strongly consider AU even with the cost. They have wonderful access to the federal student career programs, the PMF program (I think they produce the most PMFs of any school, or close to it), and internship access.

Also, it depends on how much a Deloitte consultant working in China makes in USD. I'm not an expert on these things, but I don't think the purchasing power of a Chinese consulting salary is the same when you put it into $, so how much would you really be saving in USD if you deferred?

You really think that studying in Pittsburgh offers more professional opportunities than does studying at Cornell? Look at the job placement rates & locations. I think more CIPA students end up in DC, New York and abroad. At CMU you would lose your funding, I think, but then be re-considered. Don't know about CIPA.

From this and the previous article in The Citizen, I get the feeling that HKS students get very involved in their department's internal politics. Just this quote from a student committee memo: "We are increasingly frustrated when the everyday realities of the school's research, instruction, and administration fail to match the rhetoric of 'diversity,' 'leadership,' and 'excellence." If I get in & go there, I hope that I'll be too busy getting my degree, working on internships or experiencing Boston to participate in stuff like this. Unless the Kennedy School's management is truly abominable, these articles/arguments/student "insurrections" seem like a big distraction and I definitely don't think this is something that peer public affairs schools are dealing with.

What is PPIA? Also,how do you know that they had 2000 applications? More than last year could be 1800

The winner gets into the Kennedy School

Well unless something special happens in the next 15 minutes, I guess I lost the contest....at least the FIRST round.

That would be greater. Last year's was ~1750.

Here's hoping

I want to change my guess to today at 5pm...

Hey Status! Given this post and your other suggestion that letters come out on Fridays, will we hear something today? You seem to have the inside track...

Most of the hard core young politicos shot their wad in 2008, couldn't get jobs because of the economy, worked on campaigns in 2009 or 2010 and now they're burnt out. Not that I would know anything about that... And you made a comment about the deadline being earlier. I think that would help drop the # of applicants, but just like the policy memo I bet it is a wash on competitiveness because the kids who skipped the HKS app because of a policy memo requirement probably weren't serious. The kids who couldn't make the Dec. 3 deadline this year are probably the same cross section of candidates.

I just looked it up, and last year's first board post from an admit was 3/22/2010 at 5:15pm EST, and the emails went out until 7:00pm or after. I think we're on the mark: if we don't get it today then it won't come til next Fri. I also disagree with your assumption that there are less applicants. Re: people who got ousted from the hill - good point (esp. the Democrats, who believe in public service ), but many of the Dems knew they were gonna lose, and there is a lot of hill staff turn-over in the fall anyways. I also heard from someone at the school that this is the largest MPP applicant pool they've ever had, by far. This may be attributed in part to the lack of a policy memo, which I'm sure dissuades some aspiring applicants (but maybe not the serious ones, so the effect on competitiveness might be a wash). But I'm pretty confident in my intelligence that this is a very large applicant pool. I'd love if it went back to 2008 levels and a 20% or higher acceptance rate but.....not getting my hopes up

What is your AW score? Mine is a 4.0. (I actually took it twice and got a 3.5 the second time). I got into Cornell CIPA and Carnegie Mellon's MSPPM both with big fellowships. Accepted to Syracuse MPA/MA-IR as well, funding TBD. So I don't think this sinks anyone's application anywhere they apply. Maybe it will knock me out of consideration at HKS? I hope not.

Is anyone going to tonight's reception at the Greenberg House in Woodley Park?

I hear that your app is given to 2 people on the AdCom who would be in your concentration, and they give an initial review. But I bet it would be fine.

Set up an email filter to text you. I got gmail to forward any emails with the word "harvard" in them to mycellnumber@vtext.com (or something like that. Each cell provider has a different format). Check it out.

I just checked out when applicants have heard back in the past: 2010: March 18 & 19 (Thurs and Fri) 2009: March 22 (Sunday) 2008: March 14 & 16 (Fri and Mon) I would hate to be in the group that has to wait until Monday....I'm so sick of checking SPARKS that I set up an email filter. As soon as I receive an email containing the words Harvard, Kennedy to HKS, gmail will send me a text message. Wow...don't know if I should be proud of that.

I think Kennedy School MPP is 18%-20%.

I'm really psyched about the chance to participate in the Center on Public Leadership's activities/workshops and research. However, the following are simple generalizations that I may never have a chance to verify, even if I visit: Individual faculty members' research and professional networks are probably the best in the world. Not that I'd have every faculty member's rolodex at my disposal come job time, but if I develop a relationship with a professor and he/she sees something in me....and also happened to know 10 people at my dream NGO who they want to put me in touch with come job time...that would be great. I think you get that at any of the top institutions to a degree (Syracuse for sure) but probably not at every turn. I've been reading The Citizen, HKS's newspaper and I think that they write lots of interesting stuff but also seem very self important, which is NOT something I'm excited about if I get in. I also probably can't identify any functional difference in the quality of education that I'd receive at HKS or Syracuse. I'd like to study under some of the big name professors, I bet they teach amazing classes. But will I come out of Harvard with better program financial analysis skills than I would out of Maxwell? Probably not. The Harvard Kennedy School is a name, but it's really a brand. People who hire Kennedy School grads know they'll get passionate, smart, hard-working graduates. The public service commitment isn't consistent at the Kennedy School, it's often known as "the second best business school at Harvard" (though they're working on admitting more potential public leaders and students committed to public service...hopefully to my advantage. If you're trying to get an MPP at Harvard to go work at Goldman, the admissions committee is going to root you out. A former member of the committee made that very clear to me.) I've also found that some employers (LMI specifically but there are others) find better-fit students at Syracuse and elsewhere. A friend who works at LMI said that they recruit heavily at Syracuse, and Maxwell grads seem to perform better (more creatively, more energetically, more humbly, with a more open mind) than do Kennedy School grads, who they also hire on occasion. I think employers have discovered that Kennedy School grads get there either by working their ASSES off or through privilege and self-importance (A digression on this below*). The best HKS grads give themselves to public service, and the rest are a mixed bag passion-wise but all are talented. That's the brand perception you gain, at least in the eyes of the well-informed. The poorly informed will know even less than that and I can't think of many circumstances where a Harvard MPP wouldn't make you better off for a job than you otherwise would be. It stands out in the crowd, no matter what you're doing. *Digression: I am finding that lots of MPP/MPA employers are interested in attitudes & work ethics in line with people who came from mediocre public high schools and worked hard to get all A's, not those in line with the typical kids who went to Sidwell Friends or somewhere equally expensive/prestigious where success is not a function of work ethic and innate ability in the face of adversity. The MPP/MPA/MA-IR process seems to be leveling the playing field anyways. I didn't go to a "Top 10 private" undergrad, but I'm doing just fine in this cycle because my intentions are honest and I have worked hard.

If I got full funding from Syracuse and don't get in to Harvard, then I would almost certainly go to Syracuse. Partial funding means I'll look more closely at CIPA and CMU (I really like both programs....and both have been very generous.) Of course if I get in at Harvard, that is a very good problem to have but I'm not sure there is much that could keep me from going there. As a friend put it, "There is nothing like having an H-bomb on your resume."

wow thats great! I haven't gotten a physical letter yet, wonder if I'll get a handwritten note! Jealous...

Was this commendation formal? Was it in your results letter? Or elsewhere/some other method? Congrats!

Hi! I thought I would let the world know about my success so far. I am still biting my nails about the Kennedy School....anyone want to comment on my chances? Programs Applied To: CMU Heinz MSPPM (3 semester Pittsburgh track), Cornell CIPA MPA, Syracuse Maxwell joint MPA/MA-IR, HKS MPP Schools Admitted To: CMU (60% tuition), Cornell ($28k/yr, or 71% tuition), Maxwell (no word on funding) Schools Rejected From: None yet. Still Waiting: HKS Undergraduate institution: #2 school in the country for "undergraduate teaching"...ha. Undergraduate GPA: 3.75 Last 60 hours of Undergraduate GPA (if applicable): I can't imagine this ranking matters in our field. In any case, mine would probably be lower than 3.75 Undergraduate Major: International Studies, French Literature GRE Quantitative Score: 760 (660) GRE Verbal Score: 560 (600) GRE AW Score: 3.5 (4.0) (I took the GREs in 2006 and took them again in 2010 so I listed my recent score first, the 2006 score is in parenthesis. Some programs, such as HKS, let you use the best score from each section. Others, such as CIPA, do not. Yes, I know that ESL students typically get better essay scores than I did....idk what happened but it obviously doesn't matter too much if I already got into 3 great schools.) Years Out of Undergrad (if applicable): 4 Years of Work Experience: 4 Describe Relevant Work Experience: I work as a researcher for a public affairs/lobbying firm in DC on technology/innovation, international development, defense and life insurance. Before that I worked on federal and state political campaigns in the mid-Atlantic (Democrat, duh). I was pursuing a Master of Science in Higher Education and running a huge residence hall, but I dropped out to join political campaigns. Relevant Academic Experience: I added this category, because I have a lot. Graduate-level courses in organizational communication theory, strategic planning and systems thinking (I think Syracuse lets you transfer). Undergrad courses in microecon, macroecon, international econ, comparative economic systems. I have a W for a course in developing economics...that's probably a bad thing. Strength of SOP (be honest, describe the process, etc): My HKS SOP is great. I talk about my passion for public service, and I think I articulate the changes that I think can be made in the field of public interest/public sector management very well. For the field, I don't think there is better experience at my age than having been a mid-level manager of staff and offices on a large political campaign. I let them know that. I also expressed my ultimate desire to run for office and how leadership experiences have prepared me for that. For CIPA and Maxwell, I expressed an international focus to my future management work. Strength of LOR (be honest, describe the process, etc): For every one, I used my former grad professor in systems (he says he's never had anyone not get into a program he recommended them for...lets see if that holds true!) and my current supervisor at my public affairs firm. He's a prominent official from the Clinton administration, so I think that carries some weight. For HKS, I pulled out my ace and had the former candidate from one of my campaigns write a rec. We keep in touch, he thinks very highly of me and he also was a visiting scholar at the Kennedy School relatively recently. For the rest of the schools, I didn't use the candidate but my former campaign supervisor who is a genius and now a close friend (and who writes a mean letter of rec, I imagine). Other: I think that leadership experience is important, so I made sure to express all of mine. This is especially true for me because leadership is directly relevant to the field I want to go into (public management and organizational theory in practical application for NGOs and US international agencies). I was recently the political director of a large young democrats chapter, I was VP of the student body in college, I started a student leadership organization in grad school. I even put my Eagle Scout award on my resume. If you're an eagle scout, you should too! So, anyone want to hypthothesize on my chances of getting a) Maxwell funding, or admission to HKS?

Anyone from DC going to the admitted students reception on Thurs? Want to meet up beforehand? Also, if anyone from DC is going to the MPA or MA-IR (or both) visiting weekends...want to carpool?