emforpeace

Previous Schools: Top Ivy Previous Degrees and GPA's: BA in Politics. Overall: 3.75, Department: 3.86 GRE Scores (Verbal/Quantitative/Analytical Writing): V: 740, Q: 780, AW: 5.5 Previous Work Experience (Years, Type): 6.5 years, state politics and lobbying Math/Econ Background: Undergrad Macro, High School Calculus Foreign Language Background: 6 years classroom study of Spanish Intended Field of Study in Grad School: International Relations Long Term Professional Goals: African political transitions and American foreign aid Schools Applied to & Results: Columbia - SIPA MIA (accept); Harvard - KSG IGA (accept); Oxford - MPhil IR (accept), MSc African Studies (accept), MSc Global Governance and Diplomacy (withdrew); Princeton - WWS (accept, $); Yale - MA in IR (accept, $) Ultimate Decision & Why: Princeton WWS. Once all the decisions were in, Columbia quickly knocked itself off the list for its insane price tag, huge size, and total lack of funding. Harvard was off next, for some of the same reasons. I also wasn't a big fan of the heavily prescriptive course load in areas where I already had experience. While the idea of turning down Oxford was nearly impossible, the more I looked into the actual coursework, the less useful the programs seemed. All were very research focused and designed mostly for folks leading into a PhD. Might have been a fun year or two, but probably not best for the long term. So it came down to Yale and Princeton. Yale's open house was very friendly and welcoming with nice students. Classes were a mixed bag. I'd heard criticisms of the program for its overly academic focus, but wasn't immediately turned off by it. I was a bit worried about the size of the program and 20 students seemingly headed on 20 different paths, but left thinking I'd be pretty happy there. The visit to Princeton started off somewhat slowly (especially after a formal Open House) with a small Q&A session in a conference room. After that, we were turned loose to just explore the school and classes and campus. This is where the program really set itself apart. The classes, while somewhat bigger than Yale's, were much more interesting and the students engaged better with the classes and with each other. The whole program felt very collaborative. I'm not usually one to go for that sort of thing, but there was this pretty genuine since of community that I got there (and from every alum with whom I've spoken). Adding in the resources available for summer programs, year out, and career stuff (and, I'll admit, the lack of a language requirement), it was pretty impressive. In the end, it was the difference between the student populations that was decisive. At Yale, I talked to a lot of students about what they wanted to study. At Princeton, it was all about what they wanted to do. As someone who'd been working in the activist world, that made all the difference to me.

At least we're in good company. Thanks for confirming my reading Charley.

WTF? This is the most confusing thing I've ever seen. If I'm interpreting this correctly, I think it says my "award" is some amount of unsubsidized loans, and then another (much larger) amount of loans that I may qualify for. This seems more like a not-very-helpful recommendation on how to pay for school than an award. And did anyone else read that part in the understanding your award document that said students generally can't apply for assistance in their second year?

Definitely east for sure - my husband and I grew up in the west and came out here for several years after we finished school, so are ready for a change of pace. I tried hard to get excited about GSPP, but I've worked in state politics for a while now, and wasn't that enthused about their focus on theories of policy change, etc. Just seemed too far removed from actual policy. Which I suppose makes it somewhat ironic that I'm really excited about Yale, but it is what it is. I want to do work (either on the ground, from DC, or both) on African political transitions. I'm interested in both doing it from a multilateral org or NGO. I guess I'll meet you both (Cornell and Yuhoolio) soon - have a great trip out! I get there wicked late on Sunday, but will be there for Monday and Tuesday morning.

Hooray for two other west coasters into African IR! (I'm based in Berkeley now, heading east soon...). Yuhoolio - I'll be at Yale on Monday and maybe Harvard Friday (depending on whether an aid package comes through tomorrow). Maybe I'm crazy, but I'm leaning toward Yale over HKS, WWS, and Oxford. I've already ruled out SIPA for all the reasons you mentioned, but am torn on the others. My offers from Princeton and Yale are pretty similar, but I went to P'ton as an undergrad, so am wondering about the wisdom of heading back there for a matching diploma. I'm very interested in responses from others to your posts about why people don't seem to be applying to Yale. I really like their set up...

I guess I make 3 here...

Anyone have thoughts on the Oxford IR MPhil program? I'm still waiting to hear back, but wondering how the program stacks up against the top American programs. The most I've heard from the British boards is that it's wicked competitive to get in...

So, a week later and I'm still stumped. I just bought a ticket to New Haven for the Open House and will swing through Princeton (and maybe Harvard, if applicable) as well. Hoping this will help me sort it all out... Did anyone get any conditions put on their acceptance? My letter didn't mention anything, but I'm wondering if they considered my econ background sufficient or they just thought I should know I need to do summer school...

i got a university fellowship offer for "tuition fees". i'm still trying to figure out exactly what that includes and doesn't. waiting on WWS offer still, but this looks pretty tempting.

Any idea what the aid package options for Yale are? (For example, it seems SIPA's three options are half tuition, full tuition, or full tuition with stipend.)

GPA: 3.75 overall, 3.86 departmental (politics) top ivy GRE: 740v, 780q, 5.5aw 7 years work experience in state policy and advocacy, moving to international conflict resolution applied to yale, wws, ksg, sipa, and oxford (3 programs - mphil in international relations, msc in african studies, msc in global governance and diplomacy)