UrbanWonk

I can't believe there aren't any posts on this! The Marshall Scholarship is a 2- (occasionally 3-) year program financing graduate study for Americans in the UK. Applications were due a few weeks ago, and initial interview notifications should be going out soon. Anyone else apply for this? Anyone hear anything yet, or know when decisions usually go out? I applied in the NY region, since both my university and hometown are there (sigh). Best of luck to all!

So, I'm the first in my family to be interested in the social sciences, and my undergrad school hasn't provided a lot of support in what to expect (we're a jobs-focused university). Can someone walk me through what both a visit (as a prospective grad student) and interview (as an admitted grad student) would look like? I've watched friends in the hard sciences be wined and dined, but I've heard things vary considerably for social sciences. If it matters, I'm applying to a few MPA/MPP/MUP programs and a few Econ PhD programs. Thanks!

FWIW, I took the GREs in June and had an identified AW section, which I only gave half an effort as it was at the very end and I was not thrilled to write a new essay. It was also of the new question type (or one of) being featured on the new exam. Wonder if anyone ever actually wins the $250?

I would look at the dual MPA/MA IR at Maxwell (Syracuse University). The quant courses are easy (I took them as an undergrad), and that dual is pretty common. I'm sure that the MPA is 12 mos, not sure about the dual. There's a lot of funding available, and I think about half are mid-career--it's very much a "professional" degree program...lots of part-timers, too. Best of luck!

I plan to apply to various MPA/MPP/MUP programs (concentration in urban policy) in the U.S. in additional to a Marshall Scholarship for UK study (UCL & Birmingham for Urban Regeneration). Trouble is, all the wonderful rankings out there (true or not) don't give any clue to prestige for urban policy, generally just public admin. I'm an econ/policy double major at Syracuse, math minor, graduating with a 3.91. GREs 800Q, 680V, 5.5 AW. I have a fair amount of work experience in public policy, including 3 semesters with the same think tank, but not as much urban as I'd like (just volunteering & a few data analysis projects for local orgs). Currently considering: Harvard, Brown, Pitt, Carnegie Mellon, NYU, George Washington, Columbia. Any thoughts on fit at these? Other schools I should consider? I'd like to stay in NE U.S., and am more interested in the policy/research side than the admin, so that's why Maxwell (Syracuse) isn't on my list. Thanks so much!