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Coming From: 3 years of work experience in nonprofit sector Deciding Between: Six programs, four of which are two-year MPPs, two of which are one-year MS in policy. Listed below from least expensive to most expensive. HKS MPP - Full tuition scholarship Duke Sanford MPP Georgetown MPP Penn SP2 MSSP NYU Wagner MSPP Chicago Harris MPP Leaning: I have a sense that the HKS MPP is on a different playing field that the other MPP programs I've been admitted to -- even more so because I've received a full tuition scholarship. However, I'm trying to get a sense of how big the gap in experience/prestige/future opportunities is between HKS and the other programs because I have a complicating personal factor that would make living in Cambridge more difficult than the other cities.

Program Applied To (MPA, MPP, IR, etc.): MPP/MSPP/MSSPSchools Applied To: UChicago Harris, Georgetown McCourt, NYU Wagner (MSPP), Penn SP2 (MSSP), Duke Sanford, Michigan Ford, HKSSchools Admitted To: UChicago Harris ($), Georgetown McCourt ($$), NYU Wagner ($), Penn SP2 ($), Duke Sanford ($$$), Michigan Ford ($)Schools Rejected From: Still Waiting: HKSUndergraduate Institution: Top 10 public universityUndergraduate GPA: 3.93Undergraduate Major: Public policyGRE Quantitative/Verbal/AW Scores: 160/159/5.5Years Out of Undergrad (if applicable): 3.5Years of Work Experience: 3.5Describe Relevant Work Experience: Leadership/policy role with small state-level nonprofit focused on education Strength of SOP (be honest, describe the process, etc): About a 7/10, I grounded it in my experiences in the workforce and the types of social policy issues I now want to take action on, but it was pretty broad -- I spoke of my interest in social policies that impact children and families broadly and the types of skills I hope to gain from a graduate program.Strength of LOR's (be honest, describe the process, etc): 9/10, one was from my current CEO who I directly report to, one was from my senior year capstone advisor, and one was another former professor who I am still in contact with and knows me both personally and academically. I asked them to specifically speak to my leadership skills + previously expressed interest and work on social policy issues.Other: I am torn between the more traditional two-year MPP programs compared to NYU and Penn's newer one-year programs. I like the idea of being in graduate school for two years, but I'm weighing that against the additional costs + loss of another year in the workforce. The range in aid offers that I've received is also giving me pause -- right now, Georgetown and Duke are substantially more affordable than my other options. Any advice is welcome!

Agree with everything you said here. The Wagner MPA alumni network seems a lot stronger relative to the MSPP being so new, and I wonder if the Wagner name on its own would be enough to access that same network. I also think the intensity and pace of the MSPP program is both a benefit and a drawback -- we'd learn so much so quickly, but I worry about not getting to experience other important aspects of graduate school like networking, attending events, getting involved in the community, etc. that it seems like a two-year program would more readily allow for.

I also received this offer for the MSPP program. Wondering what your thoughts are about the cost/benefit of the program with it being one year + relatively new.

Thank you for this feedback! It's incredibly helpful. Some quick responses to your questions: 1. How comfortable are you with Calculus and Calculus based econometrics? Academically? Professionally? Not very comfortable - my last calculus course was AP in high school. How big of a weakness is this? Would it be helpful to take a calculus course at a local community college and if so, should I state plans to do that in the spring? 2. I just want to make sure that you aren't trying to target for a PhD... you border line sound like you might be tracking for that as a possibility... but just want to make sure. I don't think I'm interested in a PhD. 3. Where do you want to take you career? Focused on data analysis + research, or being a policy mover and shaker (basically some level of operations of some sort. I want to be a policy mover/shaker, but I feel that my weak quantitative skills could be a barrier to entry in the first few jobs directly out of graduate school, w hich is why I'm hoping to strengthen them. I recognize they wouldn't be as necessary for my long-term goals of working high up at a nonprofit/think tank/government org. 4. How dedicated are you to K-12 education? I say this because of all the policy areas across grad schools, I saw the highest proportion of policy area pivots from K-12 education to another policy area (including myself) due to how crazy competitive it is + very clique community + oversaturated it is with talent + limited NEW innovation / multidisciplinary aspects with the field which made it rather unattractive. I am not dedicated to only K-12 education -- my experience the last few years has opened my eyes to how much I care about all types of social policy (education, food, transportation, housing, etc.) and the intersection that all of those play. For my interest statement, how much would you recommend I focus in on K-12 since that's where my experience is vs. explaining my interest in other policy areas? 5. How much do you care about scholarships? Of your listed options so far, I would imagine McCourt and Penn to probably most willing to grant you scholarships, but I view those (at this point) as some of the weaker options for you. Scholarships are important but not a deal breaker if they are unavailable. This is super helpful, thank you again!

Applicant: White female Undergraduate institution: UNC-Chapel HillUndergraduate GPA: 3.93Undergraduate Major: Public Policy, minor in Media & JournalismGRE Quantitative Score: 160GRE Verbal Score: 159GRE AW Score: 5.5 Schools applying to: Still deciding for sure, but currently looking at: UPenn MSPP+DA, HKS MPP, McCourt MPP, UChicago MPP, Duke MPPYears Out of Undergrad (if applicable): 3Years of Work Experience: 3Describe Relevant Work Experience: Serve in a leadership/policy research role for a small, statewide nonprofit that provides news, policy research, analysis, and data on K-12 education. Extensive experience researching and writing about K-12 education issues, including a focus on education data systems and child nutrition programs.Strength of SOP (be honest, describe the process, etc): Medium -- strong rec coming from CEO, strong rec coming from one professor, third letter is pending -- possibly coming from a second professor who doesn't know me as well but who supervised my senior policy capstone project in undergraduate that focused on child nutrition programsStrength of LOR's (be honest, describe the process, etc): Still writing, but expected to be strong -- can trace a line between the focus of my undergraduate policy degree on food security/education with the work I'm doing now, will speak to specific aspects of each program that are appealing to me.Other: Studied abroad during a summer of undergraduate, strong community service record, took applied microeconomics + policy statistics and learned STATA in undergrad but am hoping to deepen my quantitative skills in MPP