younglions

Hey policy_applicant - Congratulations on coming to a decision--I'm sure you won't regret the choice. GPPI is a good school with great internship and career opportunities.

Alright, this is getting ridiculous. I've already admitted I went too far with my message and deleted it. Vannik was being outright arrogant with his/her insistence that some of us couldn't understand the math (making demeaning comments at least two times). In a bad mood, I impetuously responded that maybe it wasn't the math we couldn't understand, but his/her language, and that that was the source of our disagreements. It was snotty (not racist) and it was a mistake. I admitted I was wrong, and I apologized. Glasses - Have you ever spent time outside an English-speaking country? It's an honest question. I haven't lived anywhere where English is spoken for more than three years, and in the process, I've gotten to know quite closely a lot of friends and coworkers who are learning the language. The differences between poor native speakers and ESL speakers are usually discernible. I made an observation, and I was correct. How about we get back to the real issue here--whether or not HKS is worth the debt.

I just want to say that it wasn't my intention to criticize vannik's English as I did. I was merely attempting to explain the source of a disagreement--30% of it was slightly imperfect wording on vannik's behalf, and 70% of it was poor reading comprehension at 3 a.m. on my behalf. I've since deleted the comment and apologized to vannik. Vannik's math is accurate, but probably not relevant to the original poster. If a person is interested in going to HKS, s/he is likely interested in a career in public service. Generally public service careers don't pay well and prestige doesn't matter nearly as much as it does in a discipline like business or law. That 130K in debt likely won't appreciably augment a HKS graduate's salary, despite the reality that HKS grads are among the best prepared in the discipline. As someone also interested in a public service career, I'm acutely aware of the deleterious effects a heavy debt load can have on the borrower interested in the field. My main concern wasn't having to pay $1,300 a month for a student loan bill--I'm sure I could find a job after graduating from a place like Harvard to cover that--but the career sacrifices that the heavy debt load would necessitate. I'm interested in Int. Development, and with massive debt there is no way I could work in the field (that is, work locally in Swaziland, Guatemala, etc.) after graduating. Most of those positions pay $35k-45k a year, and some are even unpaid.

Most MPA degrees are Masters of Public Administration; the Princeton MPA is a Master of Public Affairs (as is the LBJ degree). If anything, it has more of an international focus, as evidenced by its membership status in APSIA (Association of Professional Schools of International Affairs). Many of the other top "public policy" programs are also members of APSIA. These include: Duke Sanford, HKS, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, and LBJ. Any of these schools will set you up for a career in international service, and assuming you are already proficient in another language, sometimes with a more desirable skill set than some of the more theoretical international relations programs. If you know you are interested in an international career, there is no problem going to one of the aforementioned schools--however, it might not be a good idea to go to a MPA/MPP in a school that offers a strong IR program as well (GW, GT, Johns Hopkins, etc.). I suggest looking at job solicitations for some of the careers that might interest you. When I do the same, I almost never see any preference for a MPP vs. MPA vs. IR, but a preference for candidates who speak a "useful" second language, know SAS/STATA/SPSS, and have some sort of masters degree broadly related to field.

I am about 75% sure that Fletcher often offers some waitlisted candidates a small amount of funding. I think I read that at some point, but now I can't find where.

rising_star - the question remains, why are we doing math on 100-200k salaries?

vannik - I recognized that English is your second language... I'm not faulting you for lacking clarity. Like I said, your English is quite good for a non-native speaker. However, the arrogance is not appreciated. You're correct on your discussion in regards to high income earners. Perhaps government/non-profit workers are highly paid in Korea, but in the United States they are not. The salaries of your friends working in the pharmaceutical industry have very little relevance to anybody interested in pursuing a career related to public policy. People deciding not to go to Harvard because $130k in debt is too much are not engaging in "very bad mathematics," rather they are engaging in REALITY based mathematics. EDIT: In response Jordan+Airforce1 - Two people, myself included, misinterpreted vannik's posts because of lack of clarity in language. I was merely pointing out that the misunderstandings were due to the lack of shared native language. For me, it was quite easy to recognize vannik's english as being non-native. In retrospect, "poor mastery of english" was too harsh of language. Sorry for that vannik.

something i shouldn't have said

vannik - Why are you talking about 100-200K salaries? Most public servants will never see these numbers. For a very large percentage of HKS graduates, $1,600 a month in students loans would substantially exceed impossible. Also "Min on gov't max on private" isn't the best advice in a down economy. Private loans give borrowers very little hardship protection versus government loans.

Linden - Like, others have said, ultimately this decision is up to you (and also, you're married, right? what does your husband think about the choices?). But, if I had your offers, I would probably go to GWU or GPPI. We're not talking about HLS or HBS school here. Ultimately, the end game for most of us is to get a better job in public service, and prestige in public service occupations generally doesn't go as far as it does in the private world. If you're interested in staying in Washington D.C., or really anywhere on the east coast, everybody who matters is going to know and respect the GWU and Georgetown brands. Also, I'd like to point out that the analogy of making an investment in a house has one critical aspect missing: you can buy the house for 250K on one side of the street, but on the other side of the street, there is a quite nice house that the owner is offering to you for free. Anyways, good luck. Although there is certainly a "best option" of these three for you, each one of them is a great one. If you choose Harvard as your best option, I'm sure everything will work out for you. Harvard has a 60% matriculation rate, which by "government affairs" standards is HUGE. Obviously the school must be doing something right if the majority of presumably informed decision-makers are deciding to go there. Just don't let lay-person prestige blind you.

Linden - I'm pretty sure most of it is primarily merit based. After college, I was a Peace Corps volunteer, and since finishing with that I've been living off my readjustment allowance (about $200 for every month of P.C. service) down here in Mexico. I don't remember if Harvard requested parental financial info, but there's no way my mother earns enough to make a difference. If there's anybody who should qualify for need-based aid, it would be a PC volunteer. Thinking about it now though, maybe my HKS MPP scholarship is need-based, I don' really know.

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thehusband - Yes, I have a row that lists my scholarship (it's quite small). Also, on the messages tab it says that all decisions have been made and if nothing is listed, you're out of luck. Sorry to be the bearer of bad news, but I know you have some other great offers out there from great schools. Good luck on your decision, and good luck to everybody else with Harvard.

Looks like my info has been posted... and the offer is completely underwhelming. Seems like I'll be sending in my acceptance elsewhere.

What track would you do at HEI? If you got accepted into the International Economics track, I think it would definitely be the most rigorous of any of the schools you're considering. HEI is a great school with amazing connections in Geneva. As an international student, I imagine it would be easier to find a place in an international org in Geneva rather than in NYC or D.C.. I think you should seriously consider the option.

Also, I didn't see anything in MYFAID about any scholarships received. However, I never check the messages tab. I've been waiting for a "your awards' tab to pop up.

Yes, they do offer some scholarships (Dean's and Kennedy, and most likely presidential and PSF) based on academic achievement and professional distinction. I assume GRE is taken into account here, but I know it's not for any scholarship that required an additional essay.

I think I am less likely to get a big funding offer from Harvard than a place like Chicago, Fletcher, or (of course) WWS. From my understanding, most of the HKS scholarships (that is, for all of the ones for which we had to write essays), merit decisions are made completely blind of your application. Unless an item appeared in your scholarship essay or on your resume, the award committee is completely unaware of it. I think my relatively high GRE scores played an important role in getting me into WWS and getting a big scholarship from Chicago, but I obviously didn't include my scores on my resume or in my essays. I no longer have that important "distinguishing factor" working for me.

Linden - The March 13th date was pure speculation. The April 3rd date was announced by Harvard, and I can't imagine them not meeting it. As for when we will hear, I'm guessing close of business Friday. I'm also guessing that I won't receive much. Good luck to everybody!

jmoney - Your discussions are always insightful. Thanks so much for coming back to these boards to open up the curtains and reveal what you've learned from your experiences one-year in. Have you got any idea what percentage of HKS students receive funding, and what the average level is for the top 10%, top 25%, top 50%, etc.?

I think Carnegie Mellon is a great program. Its skill-based curriculum is quite attractive to most employers--Heinz graduates come out of their two-years actually knowing how to use technology, analysis, etc. to contribute to their organizations in a meaningful way. I don't know much about USC, so I can't offer much of a comparison... but I don't think it is in the same class as CMU.

I pick WWS in all three of your scenarios. Only way I would even consider HKS is if they offer a stipend of at least 4-5K more than Princeton, or if I get external funding (JKC scholarship??) to provide full support (the estimated $134K over two years). Even then, I probably still go WWS. Woody Woo has impressed me so much in every regard. Every person I've talked to (including a couple people at organizations I might want to work for in the future) has told me that WWS is the premier school for anything related to development/international affairs (maybe domestic too, but our discussion didn't go there).

SAIS and MSFS are very close peers in almost every regard. If you were to ask a SAIS alumnus your questions, s/he would say SAIS; if you were to ask a MSFS alum, s/he would say MSFS. On question 1, it's probably close to even. On question 2, SAIS is better represented, but this might just be a result of more alumni. However, all those organizations you listed love students with quantitative skills. They know that all SAIS students have at least a functional quantitative proficiency, which can be a great "signal" when applying for positions. On question 3, I personally prefer MSFS over SAIS--it's a smaller program (SAIS has close to 600 full-timers while MSFS has about 200) and I think you would be able to get more individualized attention. If you're looking to pursue a PhD, you're going to have to get some articles published, and I think a smaller program would be more conducive to that. The Denver offer is tempting, but it amounts to only about $33,000 over two years. I think the higher quality students (on average), higher quality education, and more connected alumni networks you will find at MSFS and SAIS are more valuable. Plus, Georgetown says that 50% of second year students receive financial aid (compared to only 10-15% of first years), so if you perform well, you have a great shot at getting some money your second year. I'm not sure about SAIS, but I think it's similar. Good luck with your decision; you have some great options.

I imagine MSFS has quite a few cross-admits with WWS, HKS, SAIS, SIPA, and Fletcher. Those schools, especially ones offering better funding, can definitely pull away students. There's a 98% chance I'll be declining my MSFS offer.

Accepted. In response to the poster who asked if any of us are likely to turn down our offers, I might. Harvard would have to throw a lot of money my way to compete with WWS or Chicago. I'm guessing that won't happen.