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TedCruzAteMyKids

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Posts posted by TedCruzAteMyKids

    (Canada 2021) MPP/MPA Applications

    in Government Affairs Forum

    Posted

    1 hour ago, Yellbell said:

    Choosing between York Masters in Political Science and Queens MPA? Any thoughts..?

    MPA is a professional degree, MA Political Science is academic. If you want to be in policy, especially for the Ontario Public Service, Queen's is a no-brainer and has decades of experience. Idk about York so it wouldn't be fair for me to comment but I can't imagine it's stronger than Queen's if public service is your goal.

    Munk School, NPSIA and GPSIA 2021 Admissions

    in Applications

    Posted

    2 hours ago, Kcs421 said:

    I’m also still at Preliminary Review Required :( Lula83 said she emailed Lauren to make sure everything was still on track. Her info is on the NPSIA website under the FAQ MA admissions. 
     

    I’m sure though that as she said, everything’s okay though! Let us know what she replies if you do contact her. :)

    Also on preliminary review. 

    Munk School, NPSIA and GPSIA 2021 Admissions

    in Applications

    Posted

    10 hours ago, Bogdan said:

    Hi All,

    I was recently admitted to Munk-Sciences Po dual degree and SAIS (with substantial financial aid). So I am now choosing between these two options. While I think spending a year in Paris would be an amazing experience, based on what I hear from Munk alumni SAIS would be superior academically. How are US policy schools (think SAIS, SIPA, HKS, etc) in general and SIAS in particular viewed in Canadian public policy circles and the federal government?

    Hey @Bogdan, I actually spent a significant portion of the summer looking at US schools (SAIS, Georgetown MSFS, Fletcher MALD) and spoke to maybe 40 people that were alumni of these schools and a few Canadians. My conclusion overwhelmingly was, its worth it if you can finance it. Aside from the merit of these programs, which are amazing because of their unparalleled opportunities through students and professors (Madeleine Albright teaches adjunct at Georgetown and actually places kids into firms like Albright-Stonebridge), it comes down to money at the end of the day. For me, its a huge risk I overwhelmingly see myself at either DND or NRCAN after grad school and transitioning into the private sector in either a think tank, risk consulting or as a policy advisor after 20-25 years. If you're looking to work in Canada, SAIS/Fletcher/Georgetown don't make financial sense because you're ending up with a job you could've gotten with a NPSIA degree. Because Canadian schools will adequately prep you for public service recruiting here, I can't imagine why anyone would pay the 50k per year tuition for a degree like Georgetown MSFS unless they really have the money.

    Now for the important part - what if you want to work in the US? Well prepare to pull your hair out. I really wanted to work for some notable DC think tanks who have energy research/national security policy centers. Could I get a job there if I went to SAIS? Yes, but not so fast - if you're an international student, the visa that you'd be under prevents you from working more than 20 hours per week throughout the school year off campus. So while your peers are casually interning for the US Senate Foreign Relations committee, your best bet is to conduct research with profs. While that sounds amazing, these are still very competitive within the cohort and a nightmare to get. A few students told me that they ended up doing things like working in the campus book store or retail during the term, which you could be fine with but IMO I'm not paying 100k over two years to work in campus retail. Now, during the summer yes this visa restriction does not apply but you still need to be sponsored and you need to work in your field/industry of study. One thing that repeatedly came up was the amount of international students complaining about how hard it was to find employers that will sponsor visas. Yes, they do end up with internships (i.e. a lot of people worked at the Atlantic Council and similar think tanks), but you'd be frozen out of competitive internships at the State Department or the Pentagon because you're not a US national. So not only are you're opportunities limited, your pay will likely be limited at think tanks or other organizations. The only realistic option is to work for consulting firms like Eurasia, Albright Stonebridge, Scowcroft, Asia Group, Cohen, etc. which pay well, are greater resume boosters but are super competitive. Given the sheer paperwork required to sponsor an international work permit (EVEN IF YOU'RE A CANADIAN WITH A TN VISA), these companies would avoid the hassle and simply hire an American.

    So you might be thinking, what kind of international students attend these programs? I've noticed anecdotally that they were either personally wealthy, sponsored through scholarships either corporate or more commonly government (i.e. the Japanese government pays for their diplomats at Georgetown or major scholarships such as Fulbright) or a few incredibly lucky international students who did their undergrad in the US, worked after and are now considering grad school too. The overwhelming beneficiaries of such programs are those who can take advantage of DC's revolving door culture i.e. intern for a Senator or prominent Rep. during the school term, work at a think tank over the summer, go back to school and work for a famous professor or a more senior Congressman, finish school and work for a consulting firm that hired them because of their previous work experience and requisite connections.

    While I do not deny the amazing value these programs offer, unfortunately for me as a Canadian they do not make professional or financial sense. Don't get me wrong, I might still try to apply to these programs and see if I land decent scholarships in the future, but I emphatically got the sense my experience would not be the same as an American students. While nobody is doubting the credibility of these amazing programs and their powerful alumni here in Toronto/Ottawa or DC/NY, I came to the conclusion that it's not worth it for me.

    I sincerely hope SAIS is giving you at least 30k-40k per year for this degree to be worth it. Feel free to send a PM and I can further share my thoughts. But overall, congratulations for getting in as you're an amazing candidate and are likely to succeed no matter where you go.

    (Canada 2021) MPP/MPA Applications

    in Government Affairs Forum

    Posted

    10 minutes ago, Rj27 said:

    Do you mind sharing your stats?

    Sure np. Senior year undergrad, L2 GPA is 80, CGPA is pretty low - maybe 3.2? Strong focus on ECs. Talked about how I want to work in energy policy and have a background in energy private equity and risk consulting through summer experiences and how it makes me a unique candidate to tackle public sector challenges. One good thing, GPA is not end all be all. Hope that helps and best of luck!

    Munk School, NPSIA and GPSIA 2021 Admissions

    in Applications

    Posted

    2 hours ago, Kcs421 said:

    I’m also at Preliminary Review Required ? does anyone know what they mean by early March, and I guess when the latest we’d hear back by is?

    Glad to hear others are in the same boat as me. Hopefully we'll move forward soon. I don't think they specified early March did they? Their email sent until the end of March

    Munk School, NPSIA and GPSIA 2021 Admissions

    in Applications

    Posted

     

    3 hours ago, lh443424 said:

    Has there been any movement out of "Preliminary Review Required" for those of you in this thread? Just curious about how far along we may be in the review process.

    I've been stuck at Preliminary Review Required too. Nothing to do but wait. Or if you're like me, refresh Carleton's site every 2 hours and feel pity for yourself when others get accepted lol

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