aspiringmaster

thanks! MPA at both

Just accepted at American SPA and GW Trach...no word about funding from American, no funding from GW

Hi all, I have yet to see a thread dedicated to acceptance/rejections from MPA/MPP programs for 2012, so I am starting one here. I've applied and am waiting to hear back from: Syracuse Maxwell (top choice), American SPA, GW Trach, and Penn Fels. I have yet to hear any chatter so far.

Thanks for the insight mmclean. MPA is more in line with my career goals.. so I'm going to take my chances and apply! Fingers crossed!

Cost of living is expensive and I don't want to be in NYC

MMclean...have you heard of anyone else with similar stats who were accepted to the program? It does seem that more than any other school I've looked at, Syracuse really stresses the point that they are holistic in their approach towards evaluating applicants....which makes me feel a little bit better about my situation. 3+ years of relevant work, interesting study abroad experience, good GPA, good letters of rec.....etc. What have you heard from other students at Maxwell?

As far as regional, top quality MPA programs go in Northeast, I've narrowed down my list to the following: Albany, Penn (Fels), Pitt GSPIA, Cornell (CIPA) How would you rank these programs against one another? Any others I should be considering?

Alright thanks for the advice. I think I'll just take my chances and apply...

anyone on here think I'll be ok with my current stats at Maxwell?? Or should I retake the GREs

Albany is one school that doesn't get talked about much here but has a great MPA program (highly ranked) that is very affordable

Thanks for posting that yo_yo. Pretty high acceptance rate, no? I'm having a hard time deciding whether or not it would be worth it to cram in a 2-week study session and retake the GRE's to up my chances of admission to Maxwell. My scores are pretty low (510v, 530q, 3.5) but I have a few years of political and non profit experience (some managerial), great LORs, a strong SOP and a 3.5 undergrad GPA. I've already been accepted to Albany and Pitt with my current stats.

Does anyone know what it is? Or how it compares to other schools of the same caliber? I'm applying for an MPP/MPA at GW, American, Cornell, Pitt, Penn, Albany

Sorry for not being more clear - my Americorps service and work on political campaigns have all been professional full time jobs that I've held since graduating college in May, 2007.

Hi all: Thanks so much for all of your great insights. I was hoping you would be willing to take a look at my profile: Undergrad: - BA Cum Laude (3.48), Political Science & International Studies, State University of New York at Fredonia. - leadership roles in several campus political groups and judicial boards - study abroad in Cairo GRE: 510v, 530q, 3.5 Work/Volunteer experience: - Internship for U.S Senate committee - 3 campaign cycles at the state and federal level (congressional race, presidential race, managerial experience) - 1 year of Americorps service as a "manager of partner relations" for a small non profit in DC Applying to: Maxwell (top choice), Fels, GSPIA Pitt, Albany, UVA Batten, CIPA, UW Madison (La Follette) Any advice would be greatly appreciated!!

Thanks for your opinion. It seems that you think that a good GRE score can offset an application deficiency more so than getting good grades in relevant grad classes, correct? I feel like if I can do well in a few classes, I can prove to them that I will be successful in their program, regardless of what my GRE score says. Am I wrong? Also, do you agree that a 1080 will keep me out of Maxwell, regardless of the rest of my application?

Does anyone know anything about it? It's consistently ranked number 1 (which everybody knows)..but why? Is it incredibly difficult to get into the program? Has anyone applied/gotten in and willing to share their experience?

anyone?

I would hope so. If not, will it still look good that I've started taking graduate level courses? Or do institutions not really care about work from outside places (aside from pre reqs)?

All, I am looking to apply to MPA/MPP programs for Fall 2011. I'm in Americorps and my year of service will conclude on August 27th. I want to make myself more competitive between the end of August and the time that applications are due in Jan/Feb so I've considered the following: 1. Taking classes as a non-matriculated student for a semester to prove that I can excel in grad level courses (and then transferring in the credits) 2. Volunteering for a political campaign and/or local community non profits to demonstrate my commitment to public service 3. Studying hard and retaking the GRE's (I did poorly the first time around - 1080 cumulative) 4. Any other suggestions on how to maximize my time between Aug and Jan/Feb? A couple of things about me - I got a 3.5 GPA from a state school in NY. Been out of school since 2007. Low GRE score Since graduating, have worked on a presidential campaign and done a year of service with Americorps SU's Maxwell School is my dream school...but I think my GRE scores alone will preclude me from getting in. Any insight would be greatly appreciated!

I'm looking to take a GRE prep course as soon as possible in the D.C. area and I am wondering which program I should go through. I know both PR and Kaplan are available...but I am highly skeptical of both. I have heard Testmasters is the best, but seeing as it is only available in CA and NYC I am wondering what my best option is. Any insight is greatly appreciated! I am also wondering what GRE score I will need to get into a top 20 IR grad program with a 3.5 undergrad gpa, great extracurriculars, a hill internship, and abroad experience in cairo. I know I need more work experience...thinking about doing a peace corps stint in Jordan.