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ZacharyObama

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  1. Upvote
    ZacharyObama got a reaction from refreshingmyemail in USC Rossier Ed.D.   
    Hello, 
    Did anyone else apply to the USC Rossier Doctorate of Education in Education Leadership program regular Feb. 1 deadline? Still waiting for a decision! 
    Zach
  2. Upvote
    ZacharyObama reacted to HappiStar in USC Rossier Ed.D.   
    I am also having a hard time with rationalizing the cost. However, I work at a nearby community college and I have noticed many of the exec admins on campus have their Ed.D from USC. I think being apart of the network, as you have pointed out @ZacharyObama may outweigh the steep tuition. I am still debating, but I have also noticed that USC offers a variety of concentrations in the program that nearby colleges do not. I think  USC may be the best fit, but I obviously will need to think about all of the pros and cons. Good luck @ZacharyObama !! Thanks for agreeing to answer any questions. Also, the CSU tuition is about 54k for the Ed.D program. I am not sure paying 25k more is that much of a difference when you consider the reputation and opportunities of belonging to the Trojan family.
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    ZacharyObama got a reaction from wintergreenfiend in USC (University of Southern California) MPP/MPA/MPL   
    I should have noted in my previous post that I'm a second year MPA, Sustainable Policy and Planning Certificate student. 
     
    Jobs
     
    I think Price differs from some of the schools I see discussed on this forum in that we don't use research/assistantships as an admissions tool. I think to an extent this is a function of the school focusing a bit more on professional development and a bit less on academic research. At USC Price, and USC more broadly, there are a fair amount of opportunities to secure such positions but that they are competitive. Such positions are generally with one of the research centers (some more than others) or for grant funded research projects; there are also a limited number of TA gigs. There are also a lot of opportunities to get involved in the many programs that the university has related to its administration/policy efforts as a student worker (I do this). 
     
    I would also note that USC is the largest private employer in Los Angeles and if you already have relevant work experience this can be a good deal if you want to work and do school at the university. Depending on what you're interested in, you may be served well by having USC employment or you may be better served getting out there for a paid internship or job. USC Price has really good relationships with people/organizations in local government, the non-profit community, and planning/development. I think it's really about how fast and hard you are willing to go at getting a position. I know some people really rapidly found something to do and others who wanted to give being just a student a go for awhile. 
     
    Careers
     
    In terms of ranking/career development, I think at a certain point the say top 15 or so are on a level playing field. The US News Rankings are simply the result of a period sampled survey and not some comprehensive assessment based on rigorous quantitative and qualitative analysis. If I were to want to try an orient my school choice to career prospecting I would look at what organizations you want to try and get in on the ground floor and then which school geographically places you in workable proximity. I think employers in an open job search are looking less at which top school you got your degree from and more at your relevant experience. The job market for policy-type positions is going to be pretty competitive and you are likely going to be competing with people who may already be a few years out of school. This is where networking really comes into play. I can't speak to the other schools you mention, but one of the main characteristics of USC is the Trojan Family (it can be a little corny, I know). We really have an ethos of networking, public service, and beating UCLA. 
     
    Minnesota
     
    I Googled for the USC Alumni Club in Minneapolis and there looks to be a fairly active alumni club in the Twin Cities. I also do have a friend who came to USC Price from Minnesota and despite bouncing around a bit job-wise is pretty happy with his life in LA. 
  5. Upvote
    ZacharyObama got a reaction from DanP in USC (University of Southern California) MPP/MPA/MPL   
    I should have noted in my previous post that I'm a second year MPA, Sustainable Policy and Planning Certificate student. 
     
    Jobs
     
    I think Price differs from some of the schools I see discussed on this forum in that we don't use research/assistantships as an admissions tool. I think to an extent this is a function of the school focusing a bit more on professional development and a bit less on academic research. At USC Price, and USC more broadly, there are a fair amount of opportunities to secure such positions but that they are competitive. Such positions are generally with one of the research centers (some more than others) or for grant funded research projects; there are also a limited number of TA gigs. There are also a lot of opportunities to get involved in the many programs that the university has related to its administration/policy efforts as a student worker (I do this). 
     
    I would also note that USC is the largest private employer in Los Angeles and if you already have relevant work experience this can be a good deal if you want to work and do school at the university. Depending on what you're interested in, you may be served well by having USC employment or you may be better served getting out there for a paid internship or job. USC Price has really good relationships with people/organizations in local government, the non-profit community, and planning/development. I think it's really about how fast and hard you are willing to go at getting a position. I know some people really rapidly found something to do and others who wanted to give being just a student a go for awhile. 
     
    Careers
     
    In terms of ranking/career development, I think at a certain point the say top 15 or so are on a level playing field. The US News Rankings are simply the result of a period sampled survey and not some comprehensive assessment based on rigorous quantitative and qualitative analysis. If I were to want to try an orient my school choice to career prospecting I would look at what organizations you want to try and get in on the ground floor and then which school geographically places you in workable proximity. I think employers in an open job search are looking less at which top school you got your degree from and more at your relevant experience. The job market for policy-type positions is going to be pretty competitive and you are likely going to be competing with people who may already be a few years out of school. This is where networking really comes into play. I can't speak to the other schools you mention, but one of the main characteristics of USC is the Trojan Family (it can be a little corny, I know). We really have an ethos of networking, public service, and beating UCLA. 
     
    Minnesota
     
    I Googled for the USC Alumni Club in Minneapolis and there looks to be a fairly active alumni club in the Twin Cities. I also do have a friend who came to USC Price from Minnesota and despite bouncing around a bit job-wise is pretty happy with his life in LA. 
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  9. Upvote
    ZacharyObama got a reaction from Brunell047 in USC MPP Acceptances 2014   
    As a current MPA student, I'd say that it's a fair assessment to say the Price programs aren't designed to be immersive in the field of social justice studies. By and large, I would say we're more focused on questions of good governance. I think in terms of the faculty there is a clear bent toward political scientists, sociologists, and economists with a generally shared obsession with modeling and statistics; the MPP program is more heavy than the MPA program in this regard. As a "lefty" myself, I'm often more critical of these fields and the judgments they yield than many of my classmates (my undergrad major was History). 
     
    That said, I think there is enormous opportunity at USC and Los Angeles in general to not just study social justice but put it into practice; doing, much less achieving social change/improvement can be very difficult. A big part of the university culture (besides football) is community service. USC does a lot of community programming at both the University Park and Health Sciences campuses. A number of schools (not Price) have their own outreach programs, there's also the USC Volunteer Center, and programs like the Joint Educational Project - https://dornsife.usc.edu/joint-educational-project/ 
     
    I think if you throw a term like "non-profit industrial complex" at most people working in non-profits they're going to be confused, and our staff (such as admissions, career services, and student services are not trained to be intellectuals); that said I think most professors would grasp that without much explanation. 
     
    If you're looking for rallies and protests, this is probably not the place (and that's perfectly okay). However, if you're looking to work in the trenches there's a lot of opportunity, I mean look at where USC is in geographic terms. USC Price students aren't tone deaf to these issues, but they are also not outwardly vocal by and large unless it's on topic; many of us do work in such fields and deeply care about the issues, but it's not always the central topic of discussion in class and outside of class. 
     
    I think the best way to assess whether you can make the program work for you is to start looking at the degree requirements, who teaches what on the course schedule, and then start thinking about how you could incorporate internships/employment into capitalizing on what you're learning in class. http://classes.usc.edu/term-20143/ (both PPD and PPDE (E is for expanded). I'd also note  the faculty page doesn't show the number of excellent adjuncts we have so the class schedules are more useful in that regard. 
     
    I would agree that USC Price is not particularly internationally focused outside of China/Korea and Mexico/Brazil. 
     
    As an MPA, I actually just now looked again at the MPP requirements and they're definitely a lot more restrictive (not too late to switch before you have to take multivariate statistics). However, you can petition to have a course counted so long as there's a good reason. The MPP program is really designed to train you to do formal policy analysis for a government, private consulting, non-profits and organizations. The MPA program is more designed to train you to be the person "doing" public policy and making decisions based on the policy analysis produced by the MPP (warning, it becomes substantially harder to switch after you start).
     
    Hope this was helpful and fair.  
  10. Upvote
    ZacharyObama got a reaction from jz19 in USC MPP Acceptances 2014   
    As a current MPA student, I'd say that it's a fair assessment to say the Price programs aren't designed to be immersive in the field of social justice studies. By and large, I would say we're more focused on questions of good governance. I think in terms of the faculty there is a clear bent toward political scientists, sociologists, and economists with a generally shared obsession with modeling and statistics; the MPP program is more heavy than the MPA program in this regard. As a "lefty" myself, I'm often more critical of these fields and the judgments they yield than many of my classmates (my undergrad major was History). 
     
    That said, I think there is enormous opportunity at USC and Los Angeles in general to not just study social justice but put it into practice; doing, much less achieving social change/improvement can be very difficult. A big part of the university culture (besides football) is community service. USC does a lot of community programming at both the University Park and Health Sciences campuses. A number of schools (not Price) have their own outreach programs, there's also the USC Volunteer Center, and programs like the Joint Educational Project - https://dornsife.usc.edu/joint-educational-project/ 
     
    I think if you throw a term like "non-profit industrial complex" at most people working in non-profits they're going to be confused, and our staff (such as admissions, career services, and student services are not trained to be intellectuals); that said I think most professors would grasp that without much explanation. 
     
    If you're looking for rallies and protests, this is probably not the place (and that's perfectly okay). However, if you're looking to work in the trenches there's a lot of opportunity, I mean look at where USC is in geographic terms. USC Price students aren't tone deaf to these issues, but they are also not outwardly vocal by and large unless it's on topic; many of us do work in such fields and deeply care about the issues, but it's not always the central topic of discussion in class and outside of class. 
     
    I think the best way to assess whether you can make the program work for you is to start looking at the degree requirements, who teaches what on the course schedule, and then start thinking about how you could incorporate internships/employment into capitalizing on what you're learning in class. http://classes.usc.edu/term-20143/ (both PPD and PPDE (E is for expanded). I'd also note  the faculty page doesn't show the number of excellent adjuncts we have so the class schedules are more useful in that regard. 
     
    I would agree that USC Price is not particularly internationally focused outside of China/Korea and Mexico/Brazil. 
     
    As an MPA, I actually just now looked again at the MPP requirements and they're definitely a lot more restrictive (not too late to switch before you have to take multivariate statistics). However, you can petition to have a course counted so long as there's a good reason. The MPP program is really designed to train you to do formal policy analysis for a government, private consulting, non-profits and organizations. The MPA program is more designed to train you to be the person "doing" public policy and making decisions based on the policy analysis produced by the MPP (warning, it becomes substantially harder to switch after you start).
     
    Hope this was helpful and fair.  
  11. Upvote
    ZacharyObama got a reaction from cy213 in The 'Am I competitive' thread - READ ME BEFORE POSTING   
    Re-posting with GRE scores:

    Schools Applying To: USC MPA - specializing in Environmental Management and Land-Use Policy, I'm not applying anywhere else yet because of family/financial/traffic (looking at you UCLA) reasons.
    Undergraduate institution: Reed College - 2009, one year of part-time community college.
    Undergraduate GPA: 2.8 Cumulative
    Undergraduate Majors: History
    Study Abroad: None, is Hawaii a foreign country again like Kenya/Indonesia?
    GRE: 162 Verbal (89%), 149 Quantitative (39%), 5.5 Analytical Writing (96%) (I won't retake)
    Years Out of Undergrad (if applicable): 3
    Years of Relevant Work Experience: 2 - 10 months AmeriCorps internship with Hawaii State Parks and 1-year with a local city parks and recreation department.
    Languages: American English, Hawaiian Pidgin (brah), and a little French.
    Quant: None, no requirement.
    Strength of SOP: Focusing on work experience as a public servant and upbringing in SoCal in relation to my specialization. I really want to advance my career in public service by developing my professional skills (and going from hourly to salary!).
    Strength of LOR (be honest, describe the process, etc): Strong letters from my former Hawaii and current SoCal supervisor, second reader on my senior thesis, and the president of a non-profit I interacted with with in Hawaii as part of Americorps.
    Other: I'm attaching an addendum describing the Reed undergrad experience: grade deflation, academic integrity, and my senior thesis (133 pgs) on 19th century American foreign policy/imperialism in the Asia-Pacific. Also, I need $$$. Fight on.
  12. Upvote
    ZacharyObama got a reaction from Damis in Current USC Price Student   
    Hey All, 
     
    I went through this last year and am now in the scrum of school, but I figured I would drop in and see if anyone had any questions about USC Price Programs. I'm an MPA. I'll try and check in on this periodically throughout the Fall. Don't worry too much, this process will end eventually (I say this despite my worrying which can be found in a simple archival search). I'm of course pretty busy but I'll try not to forget about this for too long (i.e. when I'm bored of doing homework/working/watching sports). 
     
    Fight On! 
  13. Upvote
    ZacharyObama reacted to DaniCM in Unexpected Second-Round Funding from SIPA = DILEMMA   
    Wow! Okay, first, let me just say that I agree that tying up funding is a pretty selfish thing to do, and that's why there are earlier deadlines for those who receive funding...after which the school can reallocate funding to alternate students should someone turn down their offer.
     
    However, as one of these second-round funding recipients at SIPA, I had actually already paid my non-refundable deposit to Fletcher BEFORE I found out about my SIPA funding. After being notified of my SIPA fellowship, I only had 5 days before their deadline, which simply was not enough time to make a decision, especially as I had not attended their open house. So yes, I paid their deposit as well to buy myself some extra time to connect with current students and alumni and get more information on the program. As Hlove said (and thank you), this is a huge decision for both my present and my future and even with the funding it is the biggest financial decision I have ever made. I simply cannot restrict such a decsion to 5 days.
     
    Lastly, the May 1 deadline I was given for SIPA was also the last deadline for both Fletcher and SIPA. So, at that point, all students had to have made their decisions already. So after May 1, my turning down funding at one of these schools will only mean a pleasant surprise to a student who has already accepted their offer. It will be too late to act as a factor in their decision. As for the waitlisted students, my spot will still go to one of them when I finalize my decision in the next few days. At that point they will likely have to make a decision similar to mine - they've probably already made a deposit to another school and have mentally committed themselves to attending it, and now they'll have a completely different option to consider and a short time frame to do so. Such is the nature of the waitlist... It is an extremely difficult situation to be in, and I can certainly empathize. But I will not jeapordize my future by making a hasty decision simply to put them in this same position a few days earlier than they will be after I make a more informed decision.
     
    Believe me, had I received funding from SIPA outright, I would have attended both open houses and used the month or so you're given to make an informed decision and meet the specified deadlines. I certainly wouldn't have paid both non-refundable deposits and lost $500-1000. However, that wasn't the case. While my decision trajectory isn't the norm, neither was my funding decision. I am simply making the best of a complicated and confusing situation. Come May 19th, I will have given myself a full month to decide at which school I will be dropping upwards 80K and spending the next two years of my life...I feel like that's a fair thing to do.
  14. Upvote
    ZacharyObama reacted to DaniCM in Unexpected Second-Round Funding from SIPA = DILEMMA   
    hahahaha...it appears I've been caught red-handed.
     
    I think I did, in fact, change my mind. I was apprehensive to share as I'm a little embarraassed by my indecision and I'm pretty sure everyone is probably as over this decision as I am.
     
    I'm still not 100%...I paid both non-refundable deposits...but I'm heavily leaning SIPA. After I mentally committed to Fletcher a few weeks ago, I found that following through with it (i.e. telling SIPA's admissions office I wouldn't be attending) was really difficult. I was kind of bummed about my decision to turn down SIPA, and realized that, even if I loved Fletcher, I would probably always regret not taking a chance with SIPA. Or, at the very least, I'd spend a lot of time wondering "what if...?"
     
    But Soaps is right...I can talk myself in circles on this and change my mind more often than I'd like to admit. 
  15. Upvote
    ZacharyObama reacted to flyingjellyfish in How much does your GRE Quant. Score REALLY Matter for IA Programs (non-Econ focus)?   
    GRE quant scores are an important factor but not the only one in terms of getting into programs, especially when you have many other strengths.  Unfortunately, though, I think they are definitely a deciding factor for funding.  I retook the GRE less for improving my chances of getting in to programs and more so for improving my chances of receiving funding.  Some (if not all) of the schools I applied to use GRE scores and GPA's for selecting merit aid awardees.
     
    Perhaps take a look at the "Government Affairs Wrap-Up" threads to get a sense of people's scores and how that relates to where they got in and how much funding they got?
     
    I've already recommended it on this forum, but I'll say it again:  I found the Manhattan Prep series REALLY helpful for improving my quant scores on my own (I didn't take a course).  Their practice tests are harder than the actual tests, which I found very useful for increasing my confidence day-of.
     
    Best of luck!
     
    Edit: Wow that was my 100th post!  It's probably about time for me to stop writing about grad school and just go already
  16. Upvote
    ZacharyObama reacted to soaps in MPA rankings.   
    Oh Jesus, everyone knows the US News ranking is wildly inaccurate. No need to repost it here thus giving it more false credence. Asking people to provide their own rankings accomplishes literally nothing except revealing the biases of everyone here. If you want an informal assessment of the top programs, you can search practically every thread in this forum. 
  17. Upvote
    ZacharyObama got a reaction from Cookie in Should I go back and get a second bachelors or try to get into to a graduate program?   
    I strongly second whirldpeas13's advice and encourage you to take her up on her offer. Career services offices can really suck sometimes and smart friends/family/acquaintances etc. can be a lot more helpful. I've been flat broke and on the verge of homelessness before, there are ways to get ahead. Look past the immediate circumstances, think really hard about what you can do week by week to try to get ahead, be open to suggestions both large and small, and above all remember that you are not alone in life, people here and in your life want you to succeed.
     
    I hope this might be of some comfort: - I also have a sub-3.0 GPA (2.7-8) and an D- on my transcript in a relevant course. I hope my advice above wasn't too blunt, but you would do well to think big plan even if it seems foolish in the moment. A lot things may be a crapshoot, but there are things you can do to learn to be a good craps player.
     
    One final thing I'm going to offer up and without knowing what your family situation is (housing is obviously one of the most important things in life) is to look into both Federal and local programs to help improve your housing situation: http://portal.hud.gov/hudportal/HUD?src=/topics/avoiding_foreclosure
  18. Upvote
    ZacharyObama reacted to Rugger in Official HKS Thread   
    You keep pushing this, which I guess any business person would do, but people can easily use this site, the admissions office, former supervisors, former professors, searches on LinkedIn (to find people from your job or school who are now at or alumni of HKS), etc to do almost anything on your site for free. Maybe you do have some value added but I would hope someone looking to be a part of HKS and finding solutions for the future would have the ability to use those resources to figure out how to write an SOP or build a resume. But maybe that's just my personal bias. I found this site and the work Matt Clemons did with the admissions blog to be extremely helpful in getting me where I want to be without spending a dime.
  19. Upvote
    ZacharyObama reacted to flyingjellyfish in Second-round funding   
    I just received more funding from SAIS.  What an unexpected and happy surprise!  I'm over the moon!!
     
    And I have no shame admitting that I did a little dance around my office just now
     
    Good luck everyone.  I hope more of us get some unexpected good news!
  20. Upvote
    ZacharyObama reacted to supbla20 in Unexpected Second-Round Funding from SIPA = DILEMMA   
    I think you were awarded the money I gave up at SIPA . They tried to induce me with big scholarships and access to special programs, but in the end I chose Fletcher. It is a much more flexible program, overall higher quality (in my opinion), a more engaged alumni network and a tighter community.
     
    The only area where SIPA conculsively beats Fletcher, in my personal opinion is the name. I admit that this is a big one - and thinking about that doesn't make you a shallow person. My parents and some friends seem disappointed that I chose Fletcher over SIPA, mostly because they wanted me to go to an Ivy League institution. But if you look at things objectively, outcomes at Fletcher are just as good, if not better, than at SIPA. I for one know that I thrive on a more personalized environment, thus the Fletcher choice over SIPA.
     
    I admit that I will question a bit whether I should have gone to the Ivy League - but I feel that I will have a better time, less pressure and a similar outcome at Fletcher (for one thing there is no mandatory 3.4 in order to maintain a scholarship). IF, however, you think your outcome for some reason will be better at SIPA or you just feel better there, then you should go there.
     
    I am a firm believer that you should go where you feel most comfortable unless there is a question of outcomes. In that case, I don't care how much I would torture myself over the next two years - I would go where I know the ultimate career result will be the most beneficial for me. That is really the whole point of this exercise anyway, isn't it?
  21. Upvote
    ZacharyObama got a reaction from lib87 in Why do you even want to go to grad school anyway?   
    I'm tired of being poor and underemployed.
  22. Upvote
    ZacharyObama got a reaction from Nanolol in Why do you even want to go to grad school anyway?   
    I'm tired of being poor and underemployed.
  23. Upvote
    ZacharyObama reacted to Hilldog2016 in Negotiation Advice   
    Just wanted to leave an update for future applicants: I asked a few weeks ago through email and they said they wouldn't know for a few weeks. I went to admitted students day and got advice from current students on negotiation. Then I emailed again saying what a great fit I thought I was and how much I wanted to go, and how much I was willing to take out in loans, and how much I would be paying at my second choice (less.) They emailed me back giving me a decision extension and saying they would let me know in about 2 weeks. They ended up offering me $25k + an assistantship over the original $10k no RAship.
     
    I saw a quote the other day on women's pay that I think sums it all up well "You don't get paid what you deserve, you get what you ask for." Get it girls!
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