Jump to content

went_away

Members
 View Profile  See their activity

  • Posts

    272

  • Joined

  • Last visited

  • Days Won

    1

 Content Type 

Everything posted by went_away

  1. went_away
    UCSD is the clear winner with Harris a distant second and all the others not even visible in the rear-view mirror.
  2. went_away
    LOLOLOLOLOLOL That is absolutely hilarious. There's pretty much no competition between Wilson and SAIS/SIPA - they're in entirely different leagues. It's like a Harvard MBA vs. Georgetown MBA. GO TO PRINCETON!!!!!!! (and congrats!)
  3. went_away
    No. And remember, an IR grad degree is one small part of a much larger career structure.
  4. went_away
    I would say they are equal; SAIS has some good inroads with the World Bank and defense consulting and SIPA is obviously stronger on the UN front and to a limited extent the finance world. The Bologna thing is nonsense - it's housed on the same campus and they share professors. The SAIS students just get ripped off.
  5. went_away
    You're overthinking this. The Harris program has only grown stronger in recent years. You're definitely headed to the right place for public policy research. Go and enjoy.
  6. went_away
    Go wherever's cheaper (neither school is worth it without a massive scholarship). Money aside, SIPA is the clear winner here; it's not even close. The first-year in Bologna thing is way overblown (you get to attend a university that is free to basically free for Europeans while paying massive US tuition rates, huh??). More importantly you're interested in human rights and NGOs and SIPA wins that race by a mile (and breaking into anything UN-related or multilateral is extremely difficult - SIPA seems to do better at inserting their students into those circles). If Fletcher would beat or match SIPA's scholarship offer, I would take a look at them also as they do pretty well in the NGO field as well.
  7. went_away
    I'm not sure what world you're living in where you're seeing a "benefits race" amongst government contractors (first time I've seen that expression most would refer to a race to the bottom since budget sequestration), but I'd like to be introduced to that world. Seriously, the comment differs greatly from the broader economic and lived reality I have experienced and seen in the foreign affairs interagency and contractor world. I would certainly love to be proved wrong... Go back and read my comments on MBAs again - I was talking about overall career prospects and earnings and pointing out the relative weakness of grad degrees in international and public affairs. It's a long-time theme in my posts and forms the basis for why I caution eager, prospective students about these degrees.
  8. went_away
    UMD has a great public policy program. GMU is at best a commuter school; I would stay away unless you want a quick and easy degree. UVA I don't know anything about - they're probably fine just case their brand is so strong in the DC area. Not sure why anyone would go to VT for public policy, great school but it's all about engineering and agriculture.
  9. went_away
    If you'll get noncompetitive eligibility you may not have to go the pathways route. Use that to the max and aggressively seek out anybody you can find from your program who has used it and figure out how they were successfully (a lot of government agencies may ignore your eligibility so they can hire their military/frat buddies instead, so get a good sense of how others have successfully used it). If I were you I would also check out (roughly in order) Yale Jackson, SAIS, and Fletcher in addition to Elliot. Good luck and stay laser focused on getting a real civil service job, ideally promotable to GS 13 or at least 12. You're ahead of 90% of the pack already. Your foreign residency should raise less problems if you're there for a US government program. You should also apply for intel, State, and USAID positions.
  10. went_away
    Pathways program leads to a job - read up on it. the State internship program is unpaid (which is incredibly unethical and insulting) and definitely does not lead to a job, however they will get you a clearance which unfortunately does make it worthwhile. Also, if you're unclearable you might as well find that out during an internship investigation instead of later on when you have a good job offer. Also, there's a huge difference between a secret clearance, a ts/sci, public trust, etc. Make sure you're getting at least a secret out of an internship, a top secret or better would be ideal. My sense from your post is you need to devote a lot more time to researching these options and need to be a lot more aggressive about going after government internships early on. What do I mean by better? In a word, savvier. SIS is a quality school, no doubt about it, but the Elliot school is much, much better about preparing kids to serve in federal service positions and dispensing insights and guidance much like what I wrote above. As always, remember - these programs aren't that great and don't make you all that competitive on the job market. A former military officer or good MBA/elite law grad will always have more and better prospects. Addendum - just noticed you are in South Korea, so you may not be eligible for any US government job much less security clearance.
  11. went_away
    Elliot is better, but it doesn't matter all that much. You just have to figure out how to get into the federal government - veteran's preference, pathways, PMF, or another hiring entryway (applying for federal jobs on usajobs is a waste of time nearly all the time). All other options will be shitty-to-decent contractor jobs - working within a government but as a second-class citizen much like a Google contractor who isn't allowed in the lunch room, gets none of the great benefits, and serves the googlers. (really don't recommend it). Most likely you'll want to go the pathways route (PMF is super competitive/a crap shoot). You should also do an internship during (or before) your grad studies that gets you a clearance.
  12. went_away
    Mickey mouse nonsense to put it mildly. The first year's coursework is identical to their MPP program and the 2nd (and final for those with an MA) year is part-time, off-campus. That doesn't add up to a doctorate by anybody's definition. This is another cash grab that will accelerate the dilution of the once-proud SAIS brand.
  13. went_away
    I was being a little tongue in cheek. I work within the federal government in the DC area and have a good feel for at least my agency's hiring practices. What's clear is that since the expanded veteran's preference that occurred under the Obama administration it has become dramatically more difficult for government agencies to hire anybody who is not a veteran. In most cases, nearly impossible. Hence we see increasing use of backdoor hiring methods in an effort to skirt that requirement. My basic point to the poster above was that setting out with a vague idea that you want to join the federal government - without doing your homework and being aware of all the 'bonus points' out there that others have - is most likely to result in extreme disappointment and at best an unstable contractor position.
  14. went_away
    Forget joining 'the fed' without veterans' preference.
  15. went_away
    Fletcher school students definitely do get to take Harvard classes but it's only useful intellectually and not at all useful jobwise. ANU is definitely known in the IR circles and once you graduate what matters is your career, not (really) your school. Fletcher is a wonderful place, but the world is changing and competition and visa restrictions are only getting worse. You'll be far better off with a strong quant focus while staying a little closer to home and engaging in international opportunities and Centers of study - of which there are many - at ANU. Fletcher isn't really worth the debt for US students and it definitely isn't for international students who will need a US work visa. One thing I'll add - if you want to focus your career on Oceania or even Asia Pacific region, ANU will immediately mark you as strong for that area, more so than a Fletcher or SAIS would.
  16. went_away
    I don't have the time or energy to properly engage with this post at the moment, but there is nothing to prevent an IR grad from getting the PMP. In fact it's a great complement to an MA in International Affairs; I'm studying for it right now. MA in International Affairs + security clearance (which you can get from one of those unpaid internships at State Dept.) + a bit of international development experience + PMP can = a very nice career.
  17. went_away
    Speaking as a contended Fletcher graduate, you should absolutely NOT go to Fletcher. ANU is a fantastic school and being in Australia provide you with far more career opportunities - thanks to its location in your general part of the world and its visa regime - than being in the US will. The only way I would counsel you to go to Fletcher is if they will match your cost/financial aid package at ANU. Otherwise, enjoy Canberra! (I've worked with some folks from there and have been very impressed)
  18. went_away
    Given what you've written about what you want to do, I would strongly recommend you go for the security studies program. Its grads do quite well in that field and it will set you apart and 'brand you' as a security person, which can be quite helpful. Just try to be realistic about your career prospects. If you go in without military experience and lacking a security clearance you're going to struggle. The clearance backlog at this point is at 1.5 years or longer (in other words, pretty much entirely broken) and the few government agencies that are even hiring are pretty much exclusively hiring veterans. Also - your gut is spot-on in terms of avoiding a regional program. Just don't do it.
  19. went_away
    lol go to Chicago; it's better on *every* metric; don't know how this is even a question.
  20. went_away
    Princeton should set you up with the more premo international development jobs like Gates Foundation, and the student body will be significantly higher caliber. Cambridge would certainly be a lot more fun and you'll definitely get oohs and ahs the rest of your life for Harvard (not worth much imho).
  21. went_away
    Dude, go to Yale. Head and shoulders above the other schools and you have the resume to get in with funding.
  22. went_away
    My 2 cents: turn down the Cornell offer, stay at your competitive leadership program at the pharmaceutical MNC, work your way into management, and check back in when you're 26/27/28. Cornell is not that great of a school, particularly for public policy and I see your current situation as superior to studying an MPA in upstate New York with an uncertain job future ahead competing for low paid NGO jobs. When you do re-apply, if it's for a public policy degree, I would suggest you exclusively apply at Harvard Kennedy, Princeton Wilson, and Yale Jackson. I would also strongly suggest you take another look at doing an MBA. That route will lead to much better renumeration and far better options on the job market. A top 10 program (think Harvard/Wharton/Kellogg/Columbia/Yale/Michigan/Chicago/MIT/Berkeley) - even with debt - would certainly be preferable to a fully funded Cornell MPA.
  23. went_away
    Yep, I totally agree with you, which is why I always distinguish between the MSFS and other programs at the School of Foreign Service. Georgetown clearly cares the most about MSFS in terms of investment, promotion, and helping graduates do well (though perhaps they're looking to put GHDP in the #2 slot) and their grads seem to be far more competitive on the job market than those with master's in regional areas.
  24. went_away
    To both of the previous two posters: the Georgetown MSFS is a good program. That's why I ranked it #3, in the world! On Jackson vs MSFS, for sure Georgetown's brand is much better known in DC circles. For any individual students however, I would likely recommend Jackson over the MSFS as their career prospects are likely to be just as good and they are far, far more likely to receive funding from Jackson. More broadly speaking, Georgetown's tiny endowment is a strategic weakness for all of its programs and weakens its long-term competitiveness. Yale's (truly) massive endowment makes this a very uneven fight in the long run. See the huge strides its business school has made in the last very few years as an example of how any underperforming Yale school can shoot up in the rankings when it chooses to. Meanwhile, Yale's always-#1-ranked law school, far from DC, is an example of how the university exerts policy power from afar. The GHDP is more of a niche program and still so new that it feels a little premature to rank it, not to mention difficult to compare to more generalist programs at Fletcher or SAIS. I've only heard good things about it though and am delighted to hear they are placing an emphasis on scholarships. On that note, I would emphasize that the MSFS admissions reps explicitly state that nobody receives a greater than 1/3 scholarship from the program, so you can't blame it on the individual student for failing to secure more funding from that particular program. On the lack of career opportunities, I work and interact with quite a lot of MSFS grads and while they certainly do significantly better on the whole than SIS/Elliot grads (and slightly better than Fletcher/SAIS grads), they are still subject to the whims of the very weak job market for entry-level IR types.
  25. went_away
    You can get either or, more likely, both of those focuses in any number of IR or security studies grad programs. All of the programs are wildly overpriced, but Georgetown's master's in security studies is the best for your needs. Apply for internships early. Clearances, even low level ones, can take up to a year (sometime much more) to process. SAIS and Fletcher also have decent programs. Finally, joining the military as an officer will do far more for you in this field than any of these programs. Better yet - Military officer ------Kennedy School ------ Profit!!!
×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

This website uses cookies to ensure you get the best experience on our website. See our Privacy Policy and Terms of Use

  I accept