zourah

To those who got the GPPN email - anyone else suddenly thinking that the idea of a year abroad (and sometimes at considerably lower expense) looks very, very attractive? I liked the Sciences Po MIA option, but didn't want to do dual applications last fall. Now, that MPA (and knowing before I commit if I can actually do it or not!) seems very tempting indeed...

At the Fletcher NYC reception, there was an alum there who was on a consultant contract (not a consulting firm, just a way of bringing in temporary project staff without necessarily having committed to hire them afterward) with UNDP and another who was a regular staff member at DPKO. If you're concerned about getting where you want to go from Fletcher, stop worrying. That said, go where you feel compelled to go. If the debt worry is going to ruin your sanity, don't take it on. If passing up the dream option of MSFS will lead you to forever wonder how far you could have gone, don't pass it up. I realize this is kind of like telling you to flip a coin, as both are probably concerns.

Do have big goals, but the US just isn't getting the SG slot. Sorry. There are some USG/ASG-ships and other executive heads of agencies that traditionally go to Americans, though, so don't despair. That said, yes, to be a professional/international staffer at the UN, you'll need a grad degree. (Bilingualism, not so much, unless you really want to be in Geneva, but being English-only does limit your options). Find a focus (WFP sound good? What about UNDP? UNESCO? DPA? DPI???) and yes, take your time. You've got big goals, but they're broad ones, and you'll want to take that year and refine them before you take off on an unclear path. Tanzania sounds pretty awesome, actually.

True, true. I had another point I'd forgotten to include; see edits above.

I'd start by assuming that any amount you'll need beyond what they've already given you as a fellowship will be loans. $8500 limit on federally subsidized, the rest will be unsubsidized. The admit pack included their basic costs calculation, so you can get a pretty good estimate from there already - and any formal package including work-study or other offers can only look better than what you've already calculated!

I think that a lot of it has to do with need, also. I'd like to think my application was strong, but having gotten out of undergrad with some of my parents' savings intact (hooray for merit scholarships!) and then worked/saved the past year and a half, I think that my FAFSA expected contribution hit me pretty hard. At least, I like that narrative better than "well, I guess I'm somewhere in the lower half of the admits..." Also, given that many schools either don't release or don't promote their test scores much, I doubt these carry much weight. Seeing as they DO tout where their grads end up, I think they're probably trying hard to predict professional success - does this person have a glowing LoR from a boss? Is the essay clearly focused? Can we imagine him/her getting in at State, UN, World Bank...? I mean, I don't know any of this, but I think the stats obsession is far more an undergrad thing.

Yes, but that fellowship was presented with the admit letter, no? I got a similar offer, but it still hasn't come accompanied by a complete financial aid statement regarding the necessary work study/loans I'd need on top of that in order to pay for everything. I'm still waiting for that letter, too.

I think everyone intends to post in the "final decisions" thread eventually - we're just still panicking about where to go for a while longer!

Wow. Thank you - please feel free to post more when you have time, either here or in the SIPA-specific thread. Now where are your peers who aren't answering questions on the SIPA boards?

The letter definitely made it sound like it would simply be via the portal. I'll stake my bragging rights on it coming shortly after close of business on the East Coast (let's say 5:22pm EST that day). No disgruntled calls from non-recipients, and it keeps with their pattern of wonky notification times.

I'm debating the same four, albeit with less money involved. I, for one, am going to all the visit days and plan to sit in on some classes.

They only cap two concentrations. Seeing as they don't limit your choice, I don't know how they could possibly block you from taking it.

First, I'd read the HKS and the Mountain of Debt thread, which covers most of this debate, though through a slightly different lens. The basic argument seems to be boiling down to that it matters far more how hard you work at getting what you want than where you went to school, provided the two institutions you're comparing are within an order of magnitude of one another. Not knowing either of your choices, I won't speculate further.

But now you bring in the question of correlation/causation. HKS gets to be choosier than most of these schools in terms of picking its students as well (I'd argue that SAIS is probably similarly selective, but perhaps not the others), and also self-selective in that some students choose not to take on that kind of debt risk. It could well be that those students with the confidence to take on such a debt might also be those inclined to take greater risks and then benefit from those rewards. Look, if you're comfortable with risk, HKS is a spectacular deal. Odds are, you'll be well-placed to pay back every penny. But if the stress level alone is going to cripple you, don't get into it. If you managed to get accepted at Kennedy, you're obviously doing something right and will certainly find ways to succeed coming from another program, even if you have to be a bit more creative/dedicated to make it happen. Oh, and if you really are talking about funding from one of the other top programs (SAIS, SIPA, Fletcher, WWS...) you'd be an idiot not to take it. These are stellar schools - and though Harvard's brand is unbeatable, it's not actually magic.

I sure didn't.

I'm going to clarify/repeat myself a bit . If you live frugally and are willing to spend off your savings AND look primarily for paid internships, you're going to be able to get through with a manageable debt load - paying it off then becomes a much lesser worry for the future. And yes, while these boards get tied up in minute degrees of prestige, Elliott is a strong school and its career people are devoted. So long as you are, also, you'll be able to get where you want to go.

Indeed, the small envelope was disconcerting even AFTER having gotten the acceptance email. No room in Int'l Policy; choose another track (this on top of the conditional "we must see your final Econ transcripts" conditionality is getting to me - so many obstacles! Are you sure you really want me after all?) Also no aid info - I'm guessing something went wrong with the FAFSA and will have to look into that one on Monday. Gah...

I would email them. Two years ago, I was in a similar situation, I sent a short note, and someone wrote and confirmed when the letter had been mailed, at least.

Are you kidding? Megabus's schedules are the most unreliable. Boltbus is fine but often requires pre-booking, which I don't like (for example, what if I end up in an interesting conversation and end up sticking around an extra hour after the final event?) I've spent considerable time on the Fung Wah bus over the past year and have found it to be reliable. To each his/her own, but I'll stick with the Chinatown.

I'd already mentioned coordinating the trip with anyone else who will be making it. The Chinatown bus (Fung Wah or Lucky Star) will run every hour until 10pm or so, takes 4 hours, and costs $15. I think I'll try and edge in an announcement at some point during the day at Fletcher so we can just all take over one bus - no point in a boring commute, right?

Elliott schedules classes mostly for evenings so students can take internships easily - hopefully building ties to post-graduation employment. No school is a guarantee for its students, but I do have a friend who took an internship with the civil service at State and now has an offer to stay once he finishes the program this spring. If you're prepared to work at it rather than trusting that the degree is going to magically get you in places (no degree does that, but you sound like you've got a very realistic outlook already), then I think Elliott should be able to help you quite well. Be sure and talk to the career center folks, whether at their visit day or via email.

I'm certainly not expecting any fellowships, but while I haven't heard anything, I'm not willing to believe that means I should be in despair. I never saw a mention of interviews in the application process, so there's no real reason to believe that it isn't taking place in a black box somewhere, with no news to anyone until next Friday. We'll see.

This isn't GW, but I suspect most schools do what SIPA describes in a recent admissions blog post: offer more than they really have, knowing some won't take it. I don't believe that any school does fellowship "waitlisting," for example.

That's an especially good deal for your program - I have a friend doing that track who's interning with (& has been offered a post-graduation job with) State right now - it seems to do quite well by its students.

congratulations!