rose1

I have to say I was leaning toward declining SAIS, but I talked to a current student yesterday and she REALLY sold me...now I'm reconsidering. She raved about the classes, the community, the location, etc. She said SAIS also has lots of funding to help students do what they want to do, like a fund to pay students who want to take unpaid internships over the summer, and fully funded trips abroad. I was iffy because I didn't get IDEV, and she told me that she DID get it and she DROPPED it because it was too restrictive. The internships she's been able to get during the semester sound great, and it sounded like being in DC has really opened a lot of doors (complete strangers hearing she's a SAIS student and offering career/networking help, etc.) She got me on everything from the accessibility of professors to the great running trails in DC to the way she walks her dog on the national mall every morning.

This is so nice! Thanks for the votes of confidence - much appreciated!

Hahahahaha. Don't worry. I've been stalking this thread, each time hoping to be alerted that admissions decisions were forthcoming. It's really not going to kill me if I don't get in, but it IS killing me that I don't know / can't plan / am unable to weigh my options properly. GAH. At this point I'm kind of assuming I'm either waitlisted or rejected. I've already gotten multiple e-mails, financial aid offers, packages in the mail, etc. from all the other schools I applied to. I've had my questions answered by admissions and financial aid offices and gotten in touch with current students. Nothing from GTown

I've seen some shared houses (3 bedrooms) for less than $2,000 in DC. Personally, the room and board up on DC websites aren't very accurate for me because I share a room with my significant other and we still have other roommates. Living with him makes living AND eating costs SIGNIFICANTLY cheaper. Maybe Oregongal has a similar situation or just knows what works for her.

There are still about equal people posting acceptances and rejections, and the acceptances seem to be finally coming with some funding. I really think they're just releasing decisions as they make them, in whatever random order the application pile happens to be sitting on their desk.

Yea, way to go Oregongal. Good to know somebody is on top of things! Unfortunately, when I made a spreadsheet of my own, SIPA turned out to be TWICE AS EXPENSIVE as the other schools, which pretty much puts it out of the running for me. Good to know though!

Come on SFS! How am I supposed to plan my trip to DC for admitted student days without knowing about Georgetown??

I've e-mailed admissions offices asking to be put in contact with current students. I think speaking to people in each program will be extremely helpful in getting over the branding illusion

Does anybody have an answer for how important concentration is at SAIS? I got into the MA, but not into IDEV, my preferred concentration. I don't know if that's utterly unimportant or a total deal breaker. I've e-mailed the admissions office asking to talk to a current student that chose to enroll despite not getting IDEV but I haven't heard back yet.

I'm having the same issue. I feel that Fletcher is probably the best fit for me, substantially more affordable, and possibly even a better program than SIPA overall, but I'm having trouble letting go of my fantasy of walking around in a Columbia sweatshirt. Please tell me I'm an idiot.

While lay prestige can be important, and SIPA might beat SAIS in that regard, I think the connections you make while in school are at least as important, and I'd pick SAIS over SIPA any day when it comes to a close knit community and supportive alumni network.

It's acceptable for PhD programs in some fields but I havent heard about it among IR masters programs

Boo, no aid. I guess that makes my decision easier

Basically I feel like there is no wrong decision since they're all amazing schools, so i might as well go to the one that puts me in the least debt and feels like the best fit for me, which seems like Fletcher. That being said, I still will be at the SAIS and SIPA admit days!

This is the LAST school I'm waiting on...come on SFS! You're cramping my style!

I think at this point fletcher is looking like my best bet, although I haven't heard from SAIS about funding yet. I do plan on emailing SAIS to see if there's any possibility of being admitted to IDEV depending on the number of people that enroll. Also still waiting on SFS. I almost forget about Georgetown since I've known about the rest for a few days!

I already visited fletcher for the evaluative interview and I got into more than one school in DC so that's where I'll be for admit days. Anybody going to Fletcher's that can give us the scoop afterward? Barring tons of funding from SAIS or a surprise admit from SFS, fletcher is looking like my best option

Three of my acceptance letters have come after 5pm, EST (although my SIPA email came in the morning)

Nope. Not a penny.

Nope. Not a penny.

I doubt there's anything you can do about it now. You could ask, though. The worst thing that could happen is they say no, and then you'll be in the same boat you're in now.

I thought AU released all financial aid offers with their admissions decisions?

Wash DC - What makes you say that SAIS is the way better program? Really they are all ranked comparably. Jeewai, I'm more inclined to agree with you and Piquant that not getting into IDEV might be a deal breaker for SAIS. I'm still waiting on financial aid though. As for Fletcher, I'm not sure how heavily to weigh the fact that the location would make it hard to intern during the semester, since finding a paid internship in my field might make up for a lack of aid at SAIS or SIPA. Even for the summer I would prefer to find an internship in the same city where I go to school (simply for practical reasons - I live with with my boyfriend and our dog, and paying double rent all summer would be annoying). However, Fletcher's job placement record after graduation is comparable to the other schools and they seem to try really hard to make up for their location by providing a lot of career services. Fletcher and SAIS also seem to have really close knit communities and access to professors, which is important to me, where SIPA just plain doesn't.

I'm more concerned with the option to study abroad. I find it odd that so few top tier IR programs encourage this. Also my mom went to Tufts so it's my #1 for sentimental reasons (I've spent a lot of time there). I haven't heard back from Georgetown yet, so I might have to consider SFS too! Congratulations on getting into so many great programs! I just feel lucky that I have a decision to make at all.

Harvard is amazing, but really is only a #1 school for people interested in domestic affairs. GW has a fantastic IR program and is in a better location for internships and networking. Harvard has a better name abroad. It's really a toss-up, but I think the funding puts GW over the top. You can't go wrong, whatever you decide!