LRPolicy

Hey all, I was wondering if anyone could advise as to how much importance a school really is in placing PMF finalists. I know there's a lot of data and statistics about which schools place the most finalists--but how much of that depends on the school really? As far as I can tell, the school no longer has to nominate students, and your initial qualification to semi-finalist stage is based on a standardized test. Do certain schools really offer much more in terms of preparing students to be a PMF finalist? I guess my question would be: if you really like a program/school and also really want to be competitive for the PMF, should you be dissuaded from that school if they have a poor history of placing finalists?

Any suggestions for best time to look for an August lease? I'm trying to plan a trip to look at places with my roommates and its starting to look like we might not be able to go until mid- May (17/18). Will this be too late to find a place? we need a pet friendly place so our options are limited as is.

Hi all, I'm in the midst of looking for a roomie/housing and I'm wondering if it's better to live with someone from my program or a grad student at a different school/program. On the one hand, I'm worried about competition/stress/too much time together if I live with someone from my direct program. But I'm also worried that my roommate and I would be complete strangers if we were in different programs/school, as we'd both be preoccupied with out separate worlds. Any advice/insight?

Another question--I know that in some cities its free for the renter to use a realtor to find a place. Is this the case in Pittsburgh? If so, anyone have any realtors they recommend?

Yup!

I negotiated an increase in my scholarship, and I did it as soon as possible. I had a bit of a unique situation because I retook the GREs right after I found out I had gotten in, and so I asked for an increase in aid given that my profile had just improved significantly. I called the admissions office and spoke to a secretary--I wanted to speak to an admissions officer but since they were still reviewing applications I wasn't able to be passed through. However, they actually had a form they emailed to me that they use for people who ask for an increase in funding--so it was clearly something they run into frequently. If you have another offer you want to leverage, by all means do it. I wouldn't try to throw a bunch of offers out there, but pick the other biggest contender (assuming they're similar in respect to prestige/tier) and ask if they can raise their offer to make it more competitive with that one. I would suggest asking sooner rather than later, and just calling the admissions office. Worst thing they do is get snippy and turn you down--they're not going to rescind your current offer. Just make sure to be gracious and humble! Good luck!

I'm not sure if you calculated this in your debt estimates, but just to throw it out there, cost of living in Pittsburgh is WAY below what it is in DC. You'll likely pay at least 2x as much in rent in DC (even if you live in the burbs, like VA or MD, which is kind of a drag), and transportation costs are likely to be significantly higher as well (I don't know if GWU offers transportation subsidies, but I know in Pittsburgh the city buses are free with a university ID). As someone who is currently living in DC and moving to Pittsburgh in the fall to start at Heinz, I'm blown away by how much lower my costs are going to be in Pittsburgh than in DC. Just food for thought--might mitigate some of the difference in debt calculations!

hey all! I'm about 90% sure I'll be attending Heinz in the fall--if there are any females out there who are also planning on enrolling at Heinz and want to look for an apartment shoot me a message! I'm looking at Shadyside/Squirrel Hill, hoping to keep it at or under $500/person per month

Just got my email--in to the DC Track! $10k/semester scholarship, I was hoping for more but my GREs weren't very strong so I'm happy with what I got!

The results database lists one candidate who says they were admitted into the DC track. But that's all I've seen

Just wondering--did you all get emails telling you to check online, or did you just go look? Still waiting to hear back!

Hi everyone, I recently graduated from undergrad and wanted to take time off to work for a few years before applying to grad school. However, the job market has been difficult and while I found a position, its not one I want to stay at for very long. So now I'm thinking of applying to schools this fall. I was thinking MPP but I've recently been thinking I want to stay in research and have been looking into PhDs in Public Policy. My questions is though whether or not I can get into a PhD program without having a masters. My undergrad was pretty strong. I have four majors (poli sci/french/comparative lit/international studies), 4.0, wrote an honors thesis. I worked on two research projects and have a couple internships. I took the GREs and did okay (620V 730Q) but I"m studying to retake them and am thinking I can get around a 700V/760Q (or whatever the new equivalent scores are). Without much work experience and no advanced degree, am I still competitive to apply for PhD programs this fall for admission in Fall 2013?