winterxrose

I'm undecided on pre-term. I'm coming straight out of undergrad so I don't need to get into the groove of studying, I could use the break from school, and I'd like to use the time to independently study Spanish. But I heard it's very beneficial socially and an extra elective would be nice. Tuition is not as bad as I thought. Where do you guys think you'll be living? Anyone started apartment hunting? Hope to see you all in the fall! A facebook group would be great if anyone could get that started.

Previous Schools: Johns Hopkins University Previous Degrees and GPA's: 3.94 in International Studies GRE Scores (Verbal/Quantitative/Analytical Writing): V 700, Q 740, AW 4.5 Previous Work Experience (Years, Type): I'm entering grad school straight out of undergrad, but I work(ed) during the school year at an environmental nonprofit and have held various summer internships since high school, including researching international climate change policy, working for my state representative, and working for the government relations arm of a business conglomerate. Math/Econ Background: My major required Macro, Micro, and two international economics courses. I haven't done any serious math since high school (AP Calc BC). Foreign Language Background: 3 years of Arabic in college, plus studying Spanish on my own (with a bit of success). Strength of SoP: I believe it was good, despite writing it all in one night! I made sure to address the potential weakness of entering grad school without years of professional experience, and gave examples from my past showing my dedication to my studies and ability to succeed in graduate school. I gave specific examples of the focus that I wanted to pursue, the classes I wanted to take, and how those would relate to my future career. Strength of LOR: One was written by a supervisor, an executive in NASA Earth Science. Another supervisor, the VP of the business conglomerate. And a professor. Intended Field of Study in Grad School: Latin America + Environmental Studies Long Term Professional Goals: Creating/implementing adaptation strategies to the effects of climate change in Latin America Schools Applied to & Results: ACCEPTED: GWU Elliott, Georgetown, Hopkins SAIS WAITLISTED: none REJECTED: none Ultimate Decision & Why: SAIS. For a long time I was tempted by Georgetown's name and GWU's cheaper tuition, but SAIS has some advantages that the others do not. SAIS has a stellar alumni network with lots of grads working for places that I am interested in, the reputation for international econ, an exciting internship program in Latin America, professional development and leadership programs, and the opportunity to take trips abroad over breaks to meet very high level officials in other countries. I cannot wait for fall!

Anyone else go to the open house today? What were your reactions? I'm pretty much sold on SAIS, they made a really good case for its uniqueness compared to other IR grad schools. I'm hoping I can defer for a year to build up some savings (I'm coming straight out of undergrad), study my languages, and then hop into Latin American Studies.

Good to know I'm not the only one in this position--it seemed like everyone who got accepted to SAIS was deciding between the other "top tiers" with Georgetown, HKS, and Fletcher. There are a couple specific reasons that I want to go to SAIS, and one of them is the Latin American Studies internship program, which helps to set you up with an internship on the topic and region of your choice over the summer, with a stipend. That's an experience that I don't think could be replicated at GW.

Thanks guys! I would have to find some way to pay/take on 50k in debt for SAIS, versus 25k at Elliott. I thought about deferring for a year but I don't have a job lined up and I'm not sure how much of a dent it would make anyway. Is it really that much of a myth? It's been propagated a lot on these forums and at the grad schools themselves (that's not exactly surprising though...)

I can't help you compare with Fletcher or Yale, but I visited the SAIS ERE program on Friday, so I can tell you a little bit about what I heard. It seems that a lot of SAIS ERE grads go into oil companies, energy finance on Wall Street, or the Dept of Energy (apparently there are a LOT of SAIS grads in the DoE, so if you want to work there SAIS would give an advantage.) Very few ERE people go into nonprofits. I told the ERE coordinator my personal goal--to help communities protect against or deal with climate change--and while she said that you can tailor the curriculum however you want, I got the impression that I wouldn't fit in very well with the students pursuing this type of work. But your goals are different from mine, and given your interests, it looks like SAIS would be great for you because of the required concentration in International Economics and the number of grads that join the DoE and World Bank.

I was given comparable amounts of aid from both (Georgetown SSP didn't give me any funding so they're out of the running), but Elliott's tuition is 12k cheaper per year than SAIS. My financial situation is that I'm a current undergraduate student who has been working year-round since high school to pay for college tuition. I still had to take loans, so I have zero savings and am already in debt. I will have to take on more loans no matter what I choose, but Elliott's will be substantially less. Elliott also makes it much easier for students to take on jobs while they're studying--everyone that I spoke to at SAIS said that working any more than 10 hours of work per week was deadly. Still, SAIS will pay off dividends in the long run thanks to their name and network. I believe that I will get a much better education and employment prospects at SAIS (though I'm also worried about burning out there...) At Elliott I will be doing the International Affairs and Development program, concentrating in Natural Resources and the Environment. At SAIS I applied for Energy Resources and the Environment, but will probably switch to Latin American studies thanks to their fantastic internship program. What do you guys think? I am strongly leaning toward SAIS, but I'm seriously worried about money. Your input is much appreciated

Is it possible to switch concentrations from the one you applied to when enrolling? I was accepted to ERE but the regional studies programs look so tempting because of all the trips abroad they do!

Sorry for double post, but I found out that I didn't receive any funding. Guess I just have to decide between SAIS and GW now!

I had V 700 M 740 W 4.5 (that last one was kind of a blow)

Anyone else still waiting on funding info? It's really crucial to my decision-making.

I have the same Elliott fellowship as you and I am also deciding between GW and SAIS (Georgetown too). Why is Elliott tuition $12k cheaper than the other DC schools??

No, what was it about?

Unless I've managed to make a decision by then, I'll be GW, Georgetown, and SAIS that week. So much for keeping up with my last semester of undergrad... edit: thanks so much for doing that, SarahL!

Finally got my email too, that was a scary wait (after hearing about what admissions did last year) but I'm in! Now to wait for funding and decide between SAIS, Georgetown SSP, and GW Elliott...

Looks like some of the Security Studies people have gotten their snail-mail results...the wait is making me crazy!

Luckily mine was actually a fellowship award, plus the same ridiculous loan offers you got. Yikes. The system says SAIS tuition is $37k a year, when Elliot is only $26k. How does that work?

Unfortunately it's over two years, I think I was reading the cost of attendance graph wrong so it's only half of tuition...Oh well, I think it'll still cost less than SAIS (I got pretty nearly the same award from them, $12k for the first year.)

Looks like I'm getting $12k for the first year out of the $37k tuition cost...

Got 25k as well, looks like that covers tuition right?

No word yet and I'm in MD....

What do you guys think about the Baltimore-DC commute? I'd like to stay in Baltimore, as it's much cheaper and I have friends there, but I worry about the time/energy consumed by the commute and missing opportunities by being far away.

Whew, in! Accepted to SAIS and GW Elliott, still waiting on Georgetown...but SAIS has been my dream school since sophomore year of undergrad!

my first grad school response and I'm in for International Affairs!! now for funding, SAIS, and georgetown....

What do you think of my chances? Following benaro's format.... Schools Applying To: GWU Elliott, Hopkins SAIS, Georgetown Walsh SFS Undergraduate institution: Johns Hopkins University Undergraduate GPA: 3.94 Undergraduate Major: International Studies GRE Quantitative Score: 740 GRE Verbal Score: 700 GRE AW Score: 4.5 Years Out of Undergrad (if applicable): I will graduate this May (2011) Years of Work Experience: I have been working part-time during the school year and have had full-time summer internships since senior year of high school. Describe Relevant Work Experience: My part-time job is for an environmental non-profit, this summer I worked in the Public Policy office of a business organization, and last summer I did research on climate policy for a NASA official. Foreign Languages: Spanish and Arabic, both intermediate Publications: I was published in the Uni Wisconsin Journal of Undergrad International Studies last fall Recommenders: 1) the VP of Public Policy at the business organization I worked at; 2) the NASA official I worked for the summer prior; 3) one of my professors, not sure about his credentials No extended time abroad I had no idea SAIS would reply so soon! Yikes!