notarobotratheraguy

Program Applied To (MPA, MPP, IR, etc.): MPP Schools Applied To: University of Chicago - Harris, Carnegie Mellon - Heinz, Georgetown - McCourt Schools Admitted To: Harris ($), Heinz ($$$), McCourt (only 3k per semester) Schools Rejected From: None Still Waiting: None Undergraduate Institution: Liberal Arts College Undergraduate GPA: 3.85 Undergraduate Major: International Relations GRE Quantitative/Verbal/AW Scores: Did not take or submit due to COVID-19. Years Out of Undergrad (if applicable): ~5 years Years of Work Experience: ~5 years Describe Relevant Work Experience: I've worked in a think tank for several years. I held a variety of jobs there including as an analyst and a program manager. I also had a couple of junior roles/internships and experiences elsewhere doing cool defense/nat-sec stuff. Strength of SOP (be honest, describe the process, etc): I thought they were good, but who knows. I asked friends and colleagues for help, including one friend who I am so grateful to. I made a good case for this as the next step in my career and talked a bit about my personal story. Strength of LOR's (be honest, describe the process, etc): I thought they were really strong. Two from my professional life; one from director of undergrad department. I asked them to reinforce aspects of my SOP materials through anecdote and what not. They were all happy to oblige and support. All impressive and wonderful people. Other: I will almost certainly choose Carnegie Mellon. I did not apply to the DC track at Heinz. I felt like I already had a decent network in DC, and really I wanted to focus on more math/econ centric data analysis, cost analysis, etc. I am also from Pittsburgh, so CMU makes obvious sense for me. I wish I would have applied to more schools, e.g. Princeton/HKS, and I wish I would have taken the GRE. However, I feel pretty good about the results considering I decided to apply a little late and haphazardly. I am disappointed Georgetown offered so little scholarship. I applied to Georgetown mainly as a back-up since it is local to me (currently DC based). This website really helped me, and I am thankful that people have been so transparent about the process. Thank you!

I feel like I have frantically read all the posts on this forum from previous cycles for Heinz, and I don't see much of pattern. Its seemingly buck shot admission emails generally trickling in between 04 and 15 MAR. Maybe it is done by last name, alphabetically? Has anyone received a rejection letter yet?

@mpp_2021 I, and I am sure others, would love to know when you submitted your application if you are comfortable disclosing. Thanks!

@woolscarves, thank you so much for doing this! 1. Your insight and previous posts on this form suggest Heinz is more generous with funding that say Harris. Do you have any suggestions for how a candidate might increase their funding offer? What does CMU seem to reward? 2. Similarly, are there any scholarships or fellowships a prospective student should apply to beyond checking the box that we are interested in merit scholarship? 3. I am very interested in the Data Analytics track. Are there electives or professors you think are must takes?

I am also keen to know the answer to this. I did not ask, but I intend to, if admitted. I am nervous about the number of funding opportunities for MSCAPP as most of the merit scholarships and fellowships seem to skew toward MPP: https://harris.uchicago.edu/admissions/financing-your-degree/scholarships-fellowships