dcenergygirl

Finally, saw it on the website, no email yet. I'm in, but no funds. Probably not going with a price tag like that.

So for anyone wondering, I just got off the phone with Fin Aid as SAIS. Here is the deal- all 1st year awards have been made (except the Philip Merill, which will come out in about 2 weeks *****fingers crossed!!!!*****), and they do not do reconsiderations. So the fact that competing schools have offered you substantial fellowship doesn't matter, they aren't willing to fight for you. If you didn't get anything, tough luck for first year. About 50-60% of students, read about 20% more than did first year, get fellowships for their second year between 8 - 18k. Check with your department, I'm sure IDEV has more $$, but energy had $0 for first years this year. Also most departmental awards go to second years. There are some jobs in various departments, and there are a lot of TAs in international econ (but for non econ majors like me, dont' bet on getting one of those). There are also very small fellowship available through the career office for summer travel and stipends for unpaid internships, probably only about cost of an airticket and 1-2k. Hope this is helpful to anyone trying to swallow a tough pill of possibly 120k in debt. My sympathy is with you.

If there is one thing to invest in, its your education. Given that, I had a panic attack last night seriously considering going into about 100k debt for SAIS. My plan to make this decision is to make a massive spread sheet with loan information and repayment options to help me fathom how long I will have the debt and what restrictions its going to place on me. I'd be more than willing to share once its completed. I currently make about 60k a year, so I figure hopefully when I get out I'll be able to leverage at least 20K extra onto that salary once I've got my MA in hand, and basically put the bulk of that toward my debt for the next half a decade. If I take on that much, my career will be very driven by who can give me the most money, which might mean going to work for an oil company...(I'm energy focused). There is also always the chance for second year fellowships... The hard thing for me is Fletcher will be about $45k less expensive than SAIS, but still about $60k in debt. So all that said, is a $40k difference in debt worth it over the long run?

this makes a lot more sense. almost makes me feel better about not having heard yet.

energypolicy23 i wonder if they're debating over the two of us, we seem to be pretty similar... all i have left is completely random speculation. "research has shown that people can tolerate uncertainty for only so long." from a random nytimes article on phobias, http://opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/03/03/things-to-fear-and-loathe/?scp=1&sq=anxiety%20phobias&st=cse but at least something to keep your mind busy for another 10 minutes or so.

so as i carry on a nutzo conversation with myself: I called. They said not all admissions decisions had been sent out yet, but they were aiming to get them out by the end of the month. Worthless.

anyone willing to call today?

I have tempered all expectations for SIPA and SFS at this point. No real hopes for a big prize, I would just love to have all my desicions and fin aid info on the table so I can move forward with a decisions. Is that too much to ask??

anyone notice the results forum, fellowships look like they are coming out...

thank you for the much needed laugh.

anyone else getting paranoid? based on last year's results they sent out all the ssp decisions via postal mail, then two days later a rash of acceptances for msfs from march 16-18, then the week after that a slow trickle of waitlists and rejections. I only saw 3 msfs acceptance posts for '12 versus 11 for '11...are we already on the slow trickle of wait list vs. rejection decisions?

I am right there with you. I've gotten a vary generous financial package from Fletcher, and think their curriculum is almost a perfect fit for me. The location is rough though...Boston/Medford seem so out of the loop comparatively, and there are no opportunities for paid internships during the school year. I think both SAIS and even more so Georgetown MSFS rely on their students getting paid part-time internships during school to help defray costs.

if i didn't have meetings for the rest of the afternoon i would. anyone else up for calling? do they have the same admissions process as SIPA? first batch 60% are unambiguous yes/no decisions, second batch 25% are borderline and need extra review, and 15% are the top group up for funding?

are you on some kind of list serve for that specific society? i'm waiting to hear about the MPA as well and am not getting any emails of that kind.

Does anyone have any idea if this is the only offer for financial aid packages? I've recieved fellowships from the other schools I've been accepted to, but nothing from SAIS. I'm just wondering if they make a few rounds of offers for financial aid as some offers are inevitably turned down.

uuuggghh Red Line is AWFUL. if you commute during peak hours be ready for hell.

Charlotte's advice is good but if you're really looking for something specific: M St NW between 8 - 2nd Sts will probably be your best bet The area east of Mt. Vernon Metro and north of NY Ave. This is a pretty boarder line, if not down right bad neighborhood (many muggings, drug dealers etc), but your cheapest closest bet if you want to walk to SAIS. I would recommend capitol hill NE for more affordable options, but you will need to figure out the bus system (really not that bad) to get to and from class.

I'll be at the DC event as well - looking forward to seeing you all there!

I did not do the dual degree option, just MPP. Sorry to hear they dinged you. Agreed about ERG - that was the focus in SOP for why Berkeley was the best option for me.

This is going to be such a hard decision for me. Personally I'm looking to do a mix of domestic and international energy policy work - finance and deployment. The only reason Goldman may not be as attractive is because its really not an international program. I've spoken to a current student, and will probably reach out to some faculty if I can make it out CA about options for international policy/project prospects. It seems kind of ridiculous though to "make my own program," when Columbia, SAIS, Fletcher, and SFS all have fantastic international programs in place. Goldman has one of the best energy policy programs, not to mention contacts with the national labs. Then there is also money. If Columbia accepts me, but gives me no money, it won't be feasible. Any advice would be welcome.

I feel your pain. I don't think it means anything special unfortunately, just that we haven't gotten our decision yet.

I also applied to IFP and have heard nothing via email or on the myapp page. Congrats erry, and everyone else, deep breaths.

I'm still 0 for 2 on decisions from Colubmia SIPA and MSFS... this is so frustrating. Does anyone have any idea how the MSFS decisions are rolling out?

I'm probably leaning more towards east coast options since ideally I'd like to have a more international bend. I just spoke with a Berkeley student who said there is always a way to make the program more international. However, that seems like a lot of unneccesary work when I've gotten into international programs. Sounds like you are also energy focused, and as far as that goes, Berkeley is fantastic. It will be a tough choice... Best of luck getting in off the waitlist!

Generally this is $500 towards your first year's tuition, non-refundable. It will guarantee you a spot at one of your other schools, but you aren't obliged to pay the rest of that years tuition if you end up getting in off the WL. You'll also probably have to pay the deposit if you decide to defer.