holycow

Hi all - first-time poster here, but like others I learned a lot from this board while researching schools so hopefully this is helpful to others: Previous Schools: Big state school with less-than-stellar academics Previous Degrees and GPAs: B.A. in public health, minor in leadership (3.9 overall); GRE Scores (Verbal/Quantitative/Analytical Writing):630/760/5.0 Previous Work Experience (Years, Type): Total of 5 years (~3 years full-time, ~2 years part-time) in health policy research, extracurricular global health work in college + some random community service activities, studied abroad for a semester Math/Econ Background: AP Calc in high school, but not a single math class since then with the exception of intro to statistics for sociology majors. I took micro and macroeconomics at a community college last summer but no other economics classes. Foreign Language Background (if applicable to your program): Intermediate Spanish Intended Field of Study in Grad School: MPA/MPP, focused on health/domestic policy Long Term Professional Goals: My background is in health policy research, and I'm thinking of switching over to the advocacy side of things. Not entirely sure what that looks like yet (foundations? non-profits? state/federal government?). Schools Applied to & Results: Georgetown MPP (Accepted, $20k), GWU Trachtenberg MPP (Accepted, no funding), NYU Wagner MPA in Health Policy/Management (Accepted, full tuition), Princeton WWS MPA (Accepted, full tuition + stipend), Harvard Kennedy MPP (Accepted, no funding), and Harvard School of Public Health SM2 in Health Policy/Management (Accepted, half tuition). Ultimate Decision & Why: Princeton WWS. My decision pretty quickly became a choice between HKS and WWS and after visiting both the choice became very clear. I think HKS has an incredible program, and folks with very specific interests are probably better served by such a large university with more faculty, classes, alumni, etc. in that area. The downside, of course, is that it's easier to get lost in a sea of hundreds of students - HKS's new admit day felt oddly formal and impersonal to me. Resources are a big difference between the two, though in a lot of ways, the resources available at WWS (summer funding, travel grants, etc.) are available at HKS too - you just have to compete for them. Perhaps as a result of the financial aid situation, more HKS students are bound for the private sector (a current student told me that 75 first-year MPP students were applying for a summer internship at McKinsey) which felt odd for a school with a tagline of "ask what you can do..." In the end, though, I'd choose WWS over HKS even if the money were even. The curriculum is exactly what I want to learn in grad school. The faculty and staff at new admit day genuinely seemed to care about the success of their students. Career services is phenomenal, and current students looking for jobs told stories of alumni "falling over themselves" to help with informational interviews, networking, jobs, etc. Above all of that, I think the most surprising part of the visit was the community at WWS. The current students are accomplished yet extraordinarily humble, friendly and just plain happy to be there. Many of them travel together over winter/spring break. Princeton certainly isn't Cambridge, but the train to NYC is quick and not prohibitively expensive. Advice for Future Applicants: 1. Don't underestimate yourself. I was very close to not applying to HKS because I didn't think I had a shot. Admissions is a crap shoot, and if you can find a way to swing the application fees it's worth going after a few "reaches." 2. In my opinion, the question isn't if you can go to grad school right after college, but if you should. I thought originally about applying straight out of undergrad, and am so happy that I didn't. I have a much clearer understanding of what I want out of the program, will contribute more to class discussions, and probably got into much better schools than I would have right after college. It's a tough job market for sure, but even somewhat-related work experience is better than nothing. 3. I had a fairly significant typo on the second paragraph of my personal statement, but it apparently didn't sink my application. This isn't to say you shouldn't proofread, but if you have a team of people that read your essays a gazillion times and somehow one typo slips through in an otherwise flawless application, try not to spend the next four months beating yourself up about it. (Like I did.) 4. Once I was in decision-making mode, I tried to talk to as many current/former students as possible. (And not just the ones that called me because the admissions office asked them to.) Asking questions like "what's your favorite part of (school)?" or "what do students complain about the most?" or "what would you change about the program if you could?" were more informative than any glossy brochure or website. And if you're trying to discern fit, there's no substitute for talking with current/former students, even if it has to be over the phone/Skype. Use your networks - I was surprised by the number of friends/colleagues with connections to students at schools where I applied.