maham

Just declined my offer. Good luck to those on the waitlist and to those fighting for more funding!

I've also just declined my offer. Good luck everybody!

Just declined my offer. Good luck to those on the waitlist and to those fighting for more funding!

Wow......really?
 

Womp womp

I'm still waiting too! I was worried I was the only one. 
-- MPP, last name H, applied Feb 1

Just my daily complaint post that my application still hasn't been updated. I feel like I'm the very last one lol did we every decipher a rollout strategy? Alphabetical, funding, random? I'm boutta go bald from pulling my hair out over it  

MPA applicant. I have two other friends who were accepted as well. I've heard nothing.

I'm an R. Still waiting. ?

Same mine is in review for MPP. If I have to wait another day my nerves will completely unravel 

No doubt Harvard is a great conversation starters at intros, parties, and online dating (not kidding), but in terms of outcomes there is only exceptional value for a Harvard grad  (of any school) if they do a Harvard (or hyper elite - yes there I seen Harvard, Yale, Princeton only job applications for undergrads) only career path, entrepreneurship, or something completely outside of the norm (which don't get me wrong Harvard grads do better at). However - 80 to 90% of Harvard grads (and this applies to HGSE too) filter onto a standard career pathway where they are with Vandy and Duke grads.
Within HGSE, the ROI is comparatively low across the board (based upon sticker price) because at the end of the day it is Education. That being said, if you want to do Ed Tech or Ed Entrepreneurship, HGSE does set up exceptionally well compared to Vandy for Duke. 

Thanks for the insight. Just wondering what makes you say Heller is more of a cash grab than other grad programs? It does decently in rankings (25 in public policy and 9th for social policy - although the latter may be more of a made-up category). I'm curious how you would compare it to a place like Fels at UPenn or Evans at UWashington or even SUNY Albany in that regard? I also got into some higher ranked programs like UChicago Harris and NYU Wagner, but the costs of those programs are really putting me off plus especially for Chicago the location isn't ideal for me. 
I agree about the MPP vs. Ed issue it's just that in my case HGSE is such a tempting offer compared to my other options. I do mostly want to do ed but I like the idea of having the option to work in other areas at some point in my life... I'm still waiting to hear from the Kennedy school but I don't know if I will get in, plus it's much more expensive to do 2 years at Harvard vs. 1.

So this is my first time looking at grad cafe forums and by chance I saw yours immediately, which seems fortuitous because I'm in a very similar situation! I'm mostly deciding between HGSE (Ed Policy & Analysis) and Brandeis (Heller) MPP and a dual degree at UPenn in both ed policy (Penn GSE) and MPA (Fels). I applied to way too many places so I'm also admitted to NYU Wagner, Columbia TC, UW (Evans and GSE), Chicago MPP, and a few others. It seems like we have a very similar dilemma on deciding between a public policy degree and a specialized education policy degree.
In your case, it sounds like you have no bad options, so no matter what you decide you'll be going somewhere great. Given that you say you're leaning toward duke, I would agree that it would be great to have the general MPP at such a top school that also allows you to specialize in ed (especially since you said it has fantastic ed policy faculty). This is just out of curiosity, but did you get a scholarship at duke? If you didn't, I'm not sure how duke could be a similar price to HGSE, unless you just meant price per year? I have been considering the total price instead of per year. If you're going to pay 50k per year at Duke, I would potentially give a one year program like HGSE more thought because it cuts the price in half, but if you got a scholarship or something feel free to disregard. HGSE is also of course fantastic and super well-respected but it's tricky because an MPP is a broader degree. I don't know as much about Peabody, but I personally didn't apply because I wanted either a 2-year MPP or a 1-year ed policy degree because it didn't seem worth it to me personally to spend two years getting a degree that is more specialized than I preferred, but I know they're a top ed policy school so still a great option.
I'd also love if I could bounce my decision off you. I was thinking I preferred an MPP for having more job options and a generally more respected degree, but then since getting into HGSE I'm tempted because it is ranked the #1 in ed policy and education in general, and I don't want to overlook the benefits of having "Harvard" on my resume - I don't want to make prestige the main deciding factor, but I also want to be a realist about the potential for that to help me get jobs in the future plus I'm sure the faculty and resources are amazing. I actually like the fact that HGSE is one year in some ways because it is less living expenses and one less year spent not making (much) money due to being in grad school, but it is also less time to get the experience and education we came in for.
Penn is a little more expensive but the cool thing is that I would get two full degrees in two years with the dual program. Other than the cost, my main reservation is that the Fels MPA really doesn't have a great reputation at least compared to other ivies/the other schools I'm considering. They also just rearranged their program and then Covid happened so I feel like things won't be well established and organized. Penn GSE seems solid though and it would be cool to have 2 degrees. I'm starting to lean away from this option a bit though.
Brandeis (Heller) is my cheapest option because they gave me a really nice scholarship. It's a two year MPP that seems quite good. They don't have an ed policy concentration but they have "child, youth, and family" and some faculty that focus on education - plus they may have the option to create a custom ed concentration. I've talked to two people who went there and had really positive things to say, one of whom focused on education and told me about profs with interesting research and connections in ed policy. It's also a well-ranked program but not in the same league as HGSE. I'm weighing whether I'd prefer a broader degree at a very good school or a more specialized degree at what is at least in theory the "best" school in that area.
Would love your thoughts and I'd be happy to be a sounding board as you consider your options!

Heller is a cash grab by Brandeis (remember grad programs are usually profit centers for Universities). They don't have any real credibility as National program - some regional strengths sure. If you want to stay in New England, then it makes sense. If you have broader ambitions, you might want to consider better options. 
As for Ed Masters (counting Policy Tracts and Vandy's Ed MPP) vs. MPP bottom line is this. If you have any doubt that you don't want to eat, breath, and sleep ed for the of your life, you should do the standard MPP.  If you want a more data intensive education, you should do the standard MPP. Its very easy to go from MPP to ed. Its rather difficult to go from Ed Masters to Non-Ed (yes, even if you went to HGSE). 

Here's my two cents.  It's Harvard which despite the cost and cost of living will actually render you an incredible return on investment if you choose to go there.  Though Duke and Vanderbilt are also fantastic schools, but if I were in your shoes it'd be a no brainer for me.  I'd go for Harvard.  It'd open more doors for you than you could imagine...more so than Duke and Vanderbilt imho.  

I had a friend apply last year and GW was one of the first schools they heard back from. This has been a weird year though. Hopefully we hear tonight!

I had a friend apply last year and GW was one of the first schools they heard back from. This has been a weird year though. Hopefully we hear tonight!

I had a friend apply last year and GW was one of the first schools they heard back from. This has been a weird year though. Hopefully we hear tonight!

I had a friend apply last year and GW was one of the first schools they heard back from. This has been a weird year though. Hopefully we hear tonight!

It's probably had me do that 3 times over the past 5 months. I don't think it means anything, unfortunately. It also gets really annoying because they won't let you use old passwords.

So response from admissions:  If you submitted your application by the February 1st priority deadline, you should be hearing back soon. 
Very vague - really hoping for today!

Hi All,
Hope you are all doing good? I found some information about the Financial Aid. I read through and it appears they release it , the week after the decisions. A friend Ed.M class of 2021 also told me to expect it this week. So I think we should get some good news within a short time.
Best of luck to each one!

On their website it also said that students would be notified by March 15th...so crossing my fingers for Monday!!!!

No one. But we started a new forum specifically for complaining about Trachtenberg.
https://forum.thegradcafe.com/topic/128459-gw-trachtenberg-mpp-2021/

Same, no funding so won't be attending. Congrats @maham for Duke!