jellyana

i wonder if theres any way to search for people... hopefully the program heads will send out an email soon-ish organizing a meeting for us to chat with one another, or at least know each others' contact information.

In the end, and after receiving additional financial info, I did decide on attending MASIA! I am excited to meet you and the rest of our cohort come fall~

This is definitely giving me pause about my own decision. I'm debating between attending SIPA or Georgetown's MASIA, and I am probably leaning towards the latter because Columbia alum I run into seem very negative about the program. The program looks very bloated to me. A lot of requirements and coursework, but not a lot of post grad resources. Whereas GU's program is small and very eager to provide 1-1 resources to students, who boast a 100% employment rate post graduation. With no scholarship at SIPA and not a clear enough vision for what I want to do post-grad, I don't think it'll be worth it.

Thanks so much for your comment! Appreciate it. This has definitely given me a lot to think about >< I would like to sit in on some classes and speak with alumni directly before making my final decision.

I can see that there are plenty of these types of posts in this forum, but I think that my situation is a little different from others because I plan on making a career in Japan after graduation, not in the U.S. (or, I would at least like to keep my options open for employment in either country). As a footnote, the reason why I did not directly apply to university in Japan is because 1) I prefer American style education which is more hands on/ based in discussions + fieldwork, 2) I find programs here to be more specialized in general. Georgetown's Asian Studies program is very small and specialized, with plenty of opportunities to find work in the DC bubble. There are pros and cons to this size, as individual attention opens the door to deeper connections to faculty/mentors, but also there is a smaller pool of alumni compared to other programs. DC is also comfortable for me as I spent 4 years living there during my undergrad and I have a good understanding of living there/ housing costs/ etc. SIPA is a much larger program and is located in NYC, meaning that living expenses will be higher. However, SIPA also offers a dual degree program with the University of Tokyo’s Graduate School of Public Policy. If I were to pursue an IR career in Japan, having Todai on my CV is an instant foot in the door. Japan really prioritizes name brand recognition over experience. Likewise, Columbia is a name that is familiar here, but Georgetown might not be (despite both universities being quite prestigious in America). I did not receive funding for either, so I am currently looking for outside means, but I also have assistance from family so the financial side of things does not weigh as heavily on me as it might for other applicants. If people have any thoughts, I would love to hear it!

Also got in! :') But I think no aid... nothing was mentioned in the letter. Crossing my fingers that something is still coming because it did say "In a few weeks you will receive specific information on the cost of attendance and possible sources of aid" but I'm not too hopeful. I didn't get any funding from SFS either.

i still have to mull it over i think >< i’m waiting for SIPA’s responses to go out, and that may influence my decision. i thought i would be sure because GU is my dream school, but now i’m undecided!

finally got my official letter from MASIA! mmkaayyy the lack of any scholarship or financial assistance is a total bummer though.

I really hope that SFS is sending things electronically and not by snail mail aaaaa it would take a month to get here But I guess the waiting game continues...

oh just responding to my email from last week lol i guess he just got around to looking at all the replies now

right???? i got another email from the program director today and its like hhhh wheres the official letter though?? ;(

nope, not yet but iirc everyones still waiting for SIPA to get back to them, so im not too worried in the end GU is my top choice because even though Columbia might be a more prestigious name abroad I do think that DC is a must for policy/IA, and the overall academics and alumni base of GU appeals to me more

nah i just applied for the MIA program, because of the dual degree with GraSPP

Nope! Just another reminder that the FLAS application is up on the website and to apply while there's still time. That kind of makes me feel better? If none of us got any information about scholarships/fellowships/financial awards/etc. then that information might still be included in the official letter... whenever we get that

i believe that niceswing and i both applied for MASIA i dont necessarily know how to interpret information from these smaller programs because they look like they all do things differently. all we can really do is wait and hope for the best