mpptobe2011

Thanks very much! My official acceptance letter came within a week of the official acceptance email (which itself came a few days after the unofficial acceptance email... quite a procession). So I'd think you'll get your letter shortly.

GWU's website says, "AmeriCorps and Teach for America alumni are eligible to receive a $5,000 financial aid award for the MPA or MPP program." Does anybody know if this is a guaranteed award for all alums, or a limited/ merit-based thing? If you're an AmeriCorps or Teach for America alum, I'd be interested in hearing whether you got the $5,000 this year. I'm just wondering because when I received my official acceptance (whew!) the letter indicated that I hadn't qualified for any fellowships or assistantships. I'm trying to figure out whether that's because I was a marginal applicant or because one of my professors submitted my recommendation after I'd been accepted (and, presumably, after fellowship decisions had been made). Thanks in advance!

Yeah, I noticed the disappearance of the leadership essay too. I'm actually pretty annoyed about this since I started writing my essays-- using last year's application-- in June. Ugh! Any guesses on whether WWS will drop the policy memo as well? I'm not entirely sure where I'll apply. Probably Michigan, Berkeley, Georgetown, GW, and maybe Chicago and Duke. I'm only interested in domestic policy and not a quant star, so I feel like my options are limited.

HKS just posted the 2011 application and it looks like they dropped the policy memo requirement. Am I missing something? Also, the main essay for this year strikes me as a bit of a pain: "…Ask not what your country can do for you--ask what you can do for your country.”– John F. Kennedy, Presidential Inaugural Speech, 20 January 1961 In the spirit of President Kennedy's famous exhortation, please tell the HKS Admissions Committee what you can do to change your community or world through your leadership and commitment to public service. Specifically, we are interested to know * How your background has led you to apply to HKS; * How you have engaged in public service; * How you have demonstrated your capacity as a leader; * How the Kennedy School experience would improve your capacity to contribute to the public good. (Total length not to exceed 1,000 words)