state_school'12

Before I came to GSPP I was under the impression that this path was extremely unlikely, but was advised by faculty that infact it was a path well-troden. I personally know three folks from GSPP who went on for a econ Phd (two from Berkeley econ and one now at Michigan econ). Two had mathamatical backgrounds prior to the MPP, and third had little math. It can be done, the problem would be waiting until after your MPP before you decide to apply. If that scenario you've largely squandard your time in the MPP. All three of my examples used all of their electives to take additional math, culminating in very advance math, with near perfect grades. Obviously the purpose of an MPP isn't to prepare you for a PhD, but you can leverage your time getting the MPP to make yourself more competitive. If you check out the econ Phd forum at urich: http://www.urch.com/forums/phd-economics/ if can probaily find some discussion as well. Good luck!

84% of the Federal jobs you'd want with MPP are not outside of DC. For sure.

I don't think GSPP publishes that info, but I can tell you qualitatively that it was very similar to HKS in 2011/2012, with the exception of the private sector. At GSPP, private sector graduates earned more than public sector graduates, but not as much more as the HKS graduates. GSPP grads don't often go after/land the 120K+ jobs around here. Also, in general we have more people here that go into state/local, and non-profit sectors, both of which pay less on average than national/Federal government jobs. I think that's largely a choice, driven by people that want to work in the Bay Area/ Sacramento, with generally means non-profit state gov type jobs. Recent classes have pursued jobs out east, and I expect the salary figures to increasingly reflect that.

That I don't know... You'd better ask Martha Chavez, the dean of student affairs.

No worries, I think I knew what you meant I don't think the WB recruites specifically on campus, but I could be wrong. I do know we have numerous recent and older alums in the World Bank and UN, instance. From what I understand, much of the applicaiton process involves networking with current employees/alums to be succesful. Career services have a ton of advice and experience to help get you into your desired field. I've persoonally reached out for 6-7 alums for informational interviews, and I've been amazed at how friendly and accessible everyone has been. Offering to edit applications/cover letters, even! We've got a small but dedicated network, which I really appreciate.

Ed Pioneers summer fellow here Waiting on placement information nervously.

Figure out if there are U of T alums working in education in DC. Likewise for Ford. Have faculty in either program worked in DC on Ed Policy? Also, if you're interested in DC work, look/ask about PMF finalists/placements at each program to give a sense of how many people they send each year to that program. Try to talk to current students about their prospects in DC/Ed Policy. If I had to guess, I'd say Ford will have a more extensive network in Education, and in DC in general. MPPGal, did you apply to programs last year, too?

I don't have funding, and I'm out of state. After talking with current students and staff on admited students day, I made the assumption that I could land a GSI position, which with the tuition remission that accompanies it, meant that GSPP was the cheapest option for me (aside from UW Madison). I didn't have any trouble landing a position by June, although positions open up throughout the summer and into the start of the semester. The economics department generates a lot of demand (800+ econ majors + countless other undergrads, and only 20-ish PhD's available to teach). So if you have econ experience, that's a plus. After the first semester here, you are qualified to teach at least econ's intermediate micro (three first-years are teaching in that this semseter, some without any previous econ experience. The stats department has a similar story. So if you know econ or stats, that's a slam dunk. But there are many other positions in envirionmental classes, business, history, law, etc. Bottom line, the jobs are there if you want them enough. I think it's really an effort thing, becuase GSSP has a reputation for supplying good GSIs to so many departments. It's only a matter of finding the right one for you.

Goldman has a modest endowment that the administration managed through the recession quite well aparently, and this allows us to smooth out the funding cuts from the UC. I imagine faculty have had pay freezes, and we've likely delayed some maintaince. However, we are in the process of hiring two new faculty (that comes from a separate funding stream), and we're also moving closer on the plans to expand the school by constructing another building next door. There are also plans to create a mid-career MPP/MPA, which there is a lot of demand for, especially internationally. This would likely come out a sizable revenue generator. So, while things aren't exactly flush, I think we've done pretty well. There may be more going on behind the scenes, but it's not something that I'm aware of.

I'd say, figure out what you'll learn in your MPP program, and teach yourself a little of a different language, if you want to start before the fall. That way, you'll have some experience with both.

Anshuman, Congrats! Will you attend admitted students day next month? I strongly encourage you to come if you can - You might ask for some money for travel if you're international. My understanding is that there is support to expand our international focus. This semester we hosted several groups of international mid-career times (one from Honk Kong government). On the student side, there's definitely a desire for more international faculty and offerings. I think the lack of strenght definitely does relate to the fact that most graduates work domestically, on domestic policy. I'd estimate about 25% of current students are interested in international policy in one form or the other, and we do manage to get pretty cool internships, with the UN, WB, etc. Part of the difficulty there is that our alumni base in DC is relatively small (but it's grown a lot in the last five years). I think you'll likely have to work a bit harder to get the exact experience you might want. That said, Berkeley's strength in such a broad array of programs (Economics, Ag Econ, Political science, etc.) means you can tailor it to get the most benefit. Many GSPPers are taking an international impact analysis class from the econ department, and really enjoying it. Other schools have more international focus, and have the same breadth of departments. However, I'm increasingly aware of how well regarded GSPP students are across the university. Unlke a criticsm of Harris, and HKS that I've heard. I think if you can identify classes, professors, and programs outside of GSPP that you find interesting, than you can use those experiences to flesh out your degree. One of GSPP's greatest strength is the core, second only to the quality of peers, and the excellent peer effects of spending so much time with such great folks. If you feel like sharing a bit more about your interests, I might be able to connect you with a current student or two for them to give you their take on the international experience. Also, which job stats do you find troubling?

McKinsey recruits on UCB's campus, I beleive Deloite does as well. I don't know about the other "B"'s. Most likely they want MPPs for their federal consulting work, although the big firms usually have a social policy practice as well.

Goldman's fantastic; I'm very happy with my decision. It was an easy choice, because a. it was the most prestigous, b. located on the coast that I want to settle on, c. matched my interests in domestic policy, specifically education / social policy. Of all the programs I looked at, I think it does the best job training generalists, which is really the right way to go (confirmed in many informational interviews I've done, and alumni panels, etc). Also the people (i.e. my peers) are amazing, and I absolutely love every single one of them. We're a pretty small program <90 per class, and our location in a former fraternity makes for an intimate atmosphere. Faculty are very accessible, and suprisingly humble. It's easy to take classes from the law, planning, and business schools. The weather isn't bad either Although Cal didn't offer me any funding, it was by far the most affordable option. In-state tuition is standard after the first year, and GSI (teaching) positions are plentiful. If you work more than 10 hours per week, you get tuition remission for all of the UC tuition in-state tuition, and if you work 20 hours per week, you get $1700/moth stipend as well. I think about 1/3 of my class GSI'd first semester, and probabily 2/3s are doing it this semester. I projected the net costs of all of my options, and Berkeley ended up way below the rest. My second year is basically free. I don't know much about the waitlist, getting off it, etc. I think it's all pretty random, especially becuase GSPP seems to value diversity more than other policy schools. So the composition of the application pool drives the competition. One of my classmates with fantastic experience in the Senate was originally waitlisted. So don't take it personally, I think whatever method the Adcoms use, you'd be silly to think it's perfect. Weakness include not enough faculty working on international issues, and a smaller alumni network than Harvard (they crank 'em out a lot faster than we do). If people have specific questions, I'll do my best to answer them. Overall, it's a killer program.

I'm a first-year at GSPP, and happy to answer any questions. Re decisions, I think they will start going out next week. Good luck!

For many MPP/MPA programs, the quality and diversity of your professional experience matter nearly as much, if not more, than your academic credentials. So, keep your fingers crossed and stay hopeful Re the Northwest, Evans is the most well established school. U Oregon has a better reputation as a university, but I think PSU is a better program, especially if you want to work in Portland. What do you want to get out of your MPA degree? Job type, location, skills learned?

Those look like solid choices for you. You should get in with decent aid to at least one of those, likely more. Can I ask what sort of work you did in the energy sector, and did you enjoy it/return to that field after graduation? I recall that UT Austin LBJ has a good energy program, pretty good aid/teaching opportunities. Might be a good safety(ish) school for you. Goodluck! P.S. Fenderpete, congrats on WWS! That's amazing

Well, first of all, don't get a PhD if you don't like research. Ok, you need to do some basic research on MPP programs before we can give you advice. Look at the program websites and get back to us.

Thanks for posting that. Very interesting reading!

Most PhD public policy programs accept students that don't have a masters degree. Berkeley is the only exception I can think of. They also shouldn't really care about work experience. Remember, a PhD in public policy is a fundamentally different type of degree. An MPP/MPA is a professional degree, with all of the associated nods to the real world (internships, group projects, etc.) A PhD is designed entirely around producing scholars capable of producing cutting-edge research. You're supposed to get a job in academia and do research after you finish, not work for a federal agency, IMF, WB, governor's office, etc. (Sorry if you already know this, but I was surprised at how great the difference is between the masters and phd). That said, many PhDs do work at the places I described, but typically that's more because the job market for policy PhDs is extremely competitive. So if research is your thing, then by all means, shoot for a PhD. If you can meet your target GRE score and have strong acadmeic LOR, you will definitely get in somewhere. Check out the profiles of PhD students at some of the places you'd like to go, and you'll get a good idea. One word of warning: a policy PhD can be a tricky sell to many departments. Some view it as a watered down Econ Phd, and there are plenty of Policy Sci PhDs running around. So your two main hiring departments have a reason to pass you over from the start. The consensus is, constraints aside, an Econ Phd will give you the ability to do research at an econ, polici, or policy department. And once you get through the first couple years, you can target policy topics for your research. Econ PhD admissions is a much, much more competitive than policy. In this case, 760 is at the lower end of the GRE.

You'll be fine. Just keep doing prison/housing stuff over the summer, and organize it all into something coherent for your SOP. Work experience is good, but demonstrable passion is possibly better. Your GRE quant is a little low, but As in econ should nullify it. One caveat: I have a suspicion that schools use GRE scores for AID decisions more than anything else, so you might want to think about taking it again. What other schools are you thinking?

Berkeley is cheap with in state tuition (by second year if out of state), plus GSI opportunities (both years) = half tuition plus $1700/month stipend.

I think they pick people with ridiculously prestigious background for the websites for a variety of reasons, but bottom line it isn't representative of a typical admit. My theory with HKS is to make admits feel like they miraculously got in to make the high cost and low aid situation easier to swallow. I think WWS has a profile of every student that accepts though, and I'm more inclined to believe they only take the very best.

Klaatu, Here's my response: Are you f***ing kidding me? Yes, you have an outstanding background for HKS or WWS. Get a decently good gre score and you're golden. IR is apparently a lot more competitive and difficult to get appropriate experience but for MPP you've got everything you need but a GRE score and a SOP.

If you've already deferred for a year, and I assume worked diligently at improving your application, then do you really think your results will change much on a third try? Will you apply to a wider variety of schools? On the other hand, how on earth do you intend to pay of *most of* $100k of debt in five years? If you can, then I want your job

You might be able to secure in-state tuition at UMN and UMD for the second year. At UMN it seems like you might be more likely to get a TA/RA position, since with a large undergraduate population UMN will need lots of teachers for the hordes of intro undergraduate classes. UMD may follow similar lines. Do you want to pursue a career in DC? American puts a ton of people into the PMF program (arguable the best way to launch a career in Federal government. How about the Midwest? Did you visit any of these schools? Are you interested in domestic policy, public/private sector (be more specific if you can)? On the jobs front, I'd advise you to change your thinking slightly. Rather than ask about employment rates, it's probably more useful to explore the kind of job you'd anticipate after you graduate. Eventually, everyone finds a job, but not everyone finds their first, second, or third choice job. After 9 months, I think most people are pretty desperate, and expectations are low. That why all these schools have pretty similar employment stats. So, look at the jobs recent (past 3-5 years) grads are getting. Look at LinkedIn, and try googling ("Humphrey grad", "MPP Humphrey", etc). I'd imagine that the cast majority of American and UMD grads stay in the DC area, and likewise for UMN grads staying in the twin cities/midwest.