Applying to Munk 2019, NPSIA, GSPIA, BSIA etc.

[diplomaniac]

4 hours ago, revalith said:

Yes, the opportunities are much better with the federal government staying in Ottawa, which is part of the reason I don't want to leave this city! If you want to work for the federal government leaving Ottawa is very counterintuitive. I actually started working on FSWEP/co-op contracts right from the beginning of my undergraduate degree (the undergrad pay scale tops out at 21$) and I'm on a temp contract now until I figure out where I'm off to. That's how I paid for my undergrad and cost of living. I was lucky and got in on my first contract and from there it gets much easier to get rehired.

For me personally the more professional focus NPSIA allows you to have is more important than the research one - I fully intend on completing the degree with coursework and not an MRP/thesis. NPSIA's setup is better for people who don't want to do as much research and are more focused on the professional applications of the degree, which is definitely where I'm at right now.

 

Personally, I plan on coop and thesis for the increased funding opportunities. However, I could change my mind after first year. According to my colleagues who are attending NPSIA, almost everyone does the coursework option. I think *around* 10 people are doing thesis or MRP. The co-op constructs withthe Feds is the only reason why I’m braving Ottawa rather than staying in BC. Though, cost of living in Ottawa is far more affordable than Vancouver, so I’m not that worried about finances. 

[revalith]

16 hours ago, diplomaniac said:

 

Personally, I plan on coop and thesis for the increased funding opportunities. However, I could change my mind after first year. According to my colleagues who are attending NPSIA, almost everyone does the coursework option. I think *around* 10 people are doing thesis or MRP. The co-op constructs withthe Feds is the only reason why I’m braving Ottawa rather than staying in BC. Though, cost of living in Ottawa is far more affordable than Vancouver, so I’m not that worried about finances. 

Yep, that's about right - the vast majority do the coursework option. I was discussing whether or not I wanted to do an MRP with a few NPSIA professors I know and they mentioned that relatively few people in NPSIA do it. In the end it's about priorities - I don't think most NPSIA students are looking to go on in academia so an MRP or thesis is not a useful exercise.

Co-op in NPSIA is quite solid. When I was working at GAC I'd say a solid half of the students on my last team there were NPSIA students, and my friends in the program all found work, which is more than can be said about some other programs.

[v_vexed]

16 hours ago, revalith said:

Yep, that's about right - the vast majority do the coursework option. I was discussing whether or not I wanted to do an MRP with a few NPSIA professors I know and they mentioned that relatively few people in NPSIA do it. In the end it's about priorities - I don't think most NPSIA students are looking to go on in academia so an MRP or thesis is not a useful exercise.

Co-op in NPSIA is quite solid. When I was working at GAC I'd say a solid half of the students on my last team there were NPSIA students, and my friends in the program all found work, which is more than can be said about some other programs.

See that's really interesting cause I know someone who got accepted into NPSIA & another MA program in Carleton, they decided to go to the more specific MA program rather than NPSIA because apparently hiring managers at GAC are straying away from NPSIA because they don't want a 'bubble' and the same of type of people in GAC. They suggested trying to specialize in a region, field, or interest because specialization shows expertise in an area. They also said there were some co-op GAC students in NPSIA that never got bridged into full-term roles in GAC. I think there is some merit to this but I also know someone who's working in GAC that said there's still a lot of people from NPSIA and its well known. This is why I am still choosing to go there but am worried about the future a little. 

[poutinead]

Has anyone heard from Munk MGA?

[snowflake96]

2 hours ago, poutinead said:

Has anyone heard from Munk MGA?

I think the majority of acceptances come out in early or mid March.

[revalith]

14 hours ago, v_vexed said:

See that's really interesting cause I know someone who got accepted into NPSIA & another MA program in Carleton, they decided to go to the more specific MA program rather than NPSIA because apparently hiring managers at GAC are straying away from NPSIA because they don't want a 'bubble' and the same of type of people in GAC. They suggested trying to specialize in a region, field, or interest because specialization shows expertise in an area. They also said there were some co-op GAC students in NPSIA that never got bridged into full-term roles in GAC. I think there is some merit to this but I also know someone who's working in GAC that said there's still a lot of people from NPSIA and its well known. This is why I am still choosing to go there but am worried about the future a little. 

Okay here's the honest truth - not to be a pessimistic ass, but the thing is GAC isn't hiring anyone. ANYONE. I have literally heard an executive in HR at GAC say flat out to a hall of ~400 students: "We do not have the money to hire 99.9% of you full time, and we won't until the old guard retires in 10-15 years." Most of the younger employees at GAC are on revolving 90-day/1 year contracts with no job security, and all of them are competing for the same half-dozen jobs in the hopes that they'll be the ones to make it. Of the ones I know who did make it, 1 actually got a trade job and the other 2 got in by becoming IT support. It's theoretically possible to get in and a solid chunk of NPSIA students will do a co-op at GAC in the hopes that they'll be the 0.01%, but the actual likelihood is so small you shouldn't be picking your degree based on whether GAC will bridge you in or not. I worked there on 3 different teams for 4 semesters (support, project management, and trade) and they do not hire basically anyone except on temp contracts.

What you should look at is the degree that will give you the best overall opportunities. It is much easier to get bridged in in other departments and deploy into GAC - I jumped ship and have worked at several other departments that actually have the money to bridge me in. My friend is over at Public Safety - doing international work - and she's already got her offer in hand for when she graduates. I personally work at Transport (doing high-level coordination, including intl files) and there's more promise here than there ever was at GAC.

tl;dr GAC isn't hiring anybody, NPSIA or otherwise, but NPSIA will get your foot in the door in other depts too.

Edited February 13, 2019 by revalith
typos

[diplomaniac]

 

34 minutes ago, revalith said:

Okay here's the honest truth - not to be a pessimistic ass, but the thing is GAC isn't hiring anyone. ANYONE. I have literally heard an executive in HR at GAC say flat out to a hall of ~400 students: "We do not have the money to hire 99.9% of you full time, and we won't until the old guard retires in 10-15 years." Most of the younger employees at GAC are on revolving 90-day/1 year contracts with no job security, and all of them are competing for the same half-dozen jobs in the hopes that they'll be the ones to make it. Of the ones I know who did make it, 1 actually got a trade job and the other 2 got in by becoming IT support. It's theoretically possible to get in and a solid chunk of NPSIA students will do a co-op at GAC in the hopes that they'll be the 0.01%, but the actual likelihood is so small you shouldn't be picking your degree based on whether GAC will bridge you in or not. I worked there on 3 different teams for 4 semesters (support, project management, and trade) and they do not hire basically anyone except on temp contracts.

What you should look at is the degree that will give you the best overall opportunities. It is much easier to get bridged in in other departments and deploy into GAC - I jumped ship and have worked at several other departments that actually have the money to bridge me in. My friend is over at Public Safety - doing international work - and she's already got her offer in hand for when she graduates. I personally work at Transport (doing high-level coordination, including intl files) and there's more promise here than there ever was at GAC.

tl;dr GAC isn't hiring anybody, NPSIA or otherwise, but NPSIA will get your foot in the door in other depts too.

 

 

If you one mind me asking, what kind of your does your friend do internationally for Public Safety?

Edited February 13, 2019 by diplomaniac

[revalith]

16 hours ago, diplomaniac said:

 

 

 

If you one mind me asking, what kind of your does your friend do internationally for Public Safety?

It's really a mixed lot. Public Safety as a department includes work with CBSA (border security, trade/import/export regulations), crime (which sometimes has international aspects), national security and a whole bunch of things. PS is a coordinating department so a lot passes through it. Anecdotally, I worked with CBSA in a regulatory team and that included international stuff too! Like bilateral agreements between us and other countries (especially the US), trade agreements, the works. There's a lot more than GAC out there for international work

[v_vexed]

21 hours ago, revalith said:

Okay here's the honest truth - not to be a pessimistic ass, but the thing is GAC isn't hiring anyone. ANYONE. I have literally heard an executive in HR at GAC say flat out to a hall of ~400 students: "We do not have the money to hire 99.9% of you full time, and we won't until the old guard retires in 10-15 years." Most of the younger employees at GAC are on revolving 90-day/1 year contracts with no job security, and all of them are competing for the same half-dozen jobs in the hopes that they'll be the ones to make it. Of the ones I know who did make it, 1 actually got a trade job and the other 2 got in by becoming IT support. It's theoretically possible to get in and a solid chunk of NPSIA students will do a co-op at GAC in the hopes that they'll be the 0.01%, but the actual likelihood is so small you shouldn't be picking your degree based on whether GAC will bridge you in or not. I worked there on 3 different teams for 4 semesters (support, project management, and trade) and they do not hire basically anyone except on temp contracts.

What you should look at is the degree that will give you the best overall opportunities. It is much easier to get bridged in in other departments and deploy into GAC - I jumped ship and have worked at several other departments that actually have the money to bridge me in. My friend is over at Public Safety - doing international work - and she's already got her offer in hand for when she graduates. I personally work at Transport (doing high-level coordination, including intl files) and there's more promise here than there ever was at GAC.

tl;dr GAC isn't hiring anybody, NPSIA or otherwise, but NPSIA will get your foot in the door in other depts too.

Thanks for your input! I know I am kinda making it seem like I have a one-track mind. GAC isn't my only end goal. I actually would like to be a diplomat, now, there is no one route to doing this. I guess I was just more curious about what everyone thought in regards to NPSIA still being the #1 program for international work and whether it might actually be better to specialize in area or region.

[revalith]

46 minutes ago, v_vexed said:

Thanks for your input! I know I am kinda making it seem like I have a one-track mind. GAC isn't my only end goal. I actually would like to be a diplomat, now, there is no one route to doing this. I guess I was just more curious about what everyone thought in regards to NPSIA still being the #1 program for international work and whether it might actually be better to specialize in area or region.

We all want to be diplomats. Or something like that. My advice to you (based on the experience I have) is to remember that there's only maybe a dozen openings in the actual foreign service a year, and thousands of people apply, so it's worth looking at how you can gain the experience you want elsewhere. I've seen too many grads (not just NPSIA) waste years on contract with GAC or similar organisations hoping to break through and coming out of it behind their peers because there's little upward mobility at that dept.

I honestly think NPSIA is still top for international work generally speaking. It has the name recognition, it's in Ottawa so you can get the experience you need, and more importantly the profs often teach their classes with a very applied lens (i.e. not just "here is a theory of conflict" but rather "here is a theory of conflict, how would you use this?"). It's very much so an international affairs program that's targeted at people who want to be working in an international field, rather than a program for academics. Not that it doesn't produce the latter of course, but it's definitely a different vibe. As for area/region, I wouldn't worry about that as much and do what you're interested in for that aspect. The specializations don't really change all that much for employability - if you have the sector knowledge it'll come out in an interview. I've interviewed for geographic desks at GAC in areas I haven't taken any classes on and did fine just because I had learned about them in my spare time.

If you end up at Carleton, feel free to shoot me a message and I can always show you the good spots to grab a coffee or study. I've spent four years learning the campus, might as well share the knowledge lol.

[GradSchoolWot]

Got a verbal offer of admission a few days ago from the director of Carleton's MPM program. It was my second choice to NPSIA, so regardless looks like i'm going to Carleton. Hoping the NPSIA gods are on my side next week when their offers get sent out.

Edited February 15, 2019 by GradSchoolWot

[v_vexed]

23 hours ago, revalith said:

We all want to be diplomats. Or something like that. My advice to you (based on the experience I have) is to remember that there's only maybe a dozen openings in the actual foreign service a year, and thousands of people apply, so it's worth looking at how you can gain the experience you want elsewhere. I've seen too many grads (not just NPSIA) waste years on contract with GAC or similar organisations hoping to break through and coming out of it behind their peers because there's little upward mobility at that dept.

I honestly think NPSIA is still top for international work generally speaking. It has the name recognition, it's in Ottawa so you can get the experience you need, and more importantly the profs often teach their classes with a very applied lens (i.e. not just "here is a theory of conflict" but rather "here is a theory of conflict, how would you use this?"). It's very much so an international affairs program that's targeted at people who want to be working in an international field, rather than a program for academics. Not that it doesn't produce the latter of course, but it's definitely a different vibe. As for area/region, I wouldn't worry about that as much and do what you're interested in for that aspect. The specializations don't really change all that much for employability - if you have the sector knowledge it'll come out in an interview. I've interviewed for geographic desks at GAC in areas I haven't taken any classes on and did fine just because I had learned about them in my spare time.

If you end up at Carleton, feel free to shoot me a message and I can always show you the good spots to grab a coffee or study. I've spent four years learning the campus, might as well share the knowledge lol.

Thank you so much for that offer! If I do get in to Carleton, I will be coming in from Calgary, AB. I've never been to Ottawa so it would be great to connect with a few people there and get to know the campus. And thanks for sharing your input too, I think I tend to over-stress a little about these things, but you are right, it is better to have flexibility and not put all your eggs in one basket.

Also thought I should add, my admission to NPSIA is in the recommended for assessment status. I am guessing that means they've looked through the documents and will send it to the department to make the final decision. Best of luck to everyone else!

Edited February 15, 2019 by v_vexed

[snowflake96]

Has anyone heard anything from other schools yet?

[twin1]

1 hour ago, snowflake96 said:

Has anyone heard anything from other schools yet?

Still waiting on Munk and NPSIA  

[snowflake96]

54 minutes ago, twin1 said:

Still waiting on Munk and NPSIA  

I'm waiting on SIDGS at Ottawa, Munk npsia and GSPIA. I'm beginning to get nervous

[mppa]

On 1/15/2019 at 12:35 PM, moon-girl said:

is anyone else applying to balsillie? how long did it take for your QUEST emails to come in? 

I applied to Balsillie. The only email I got were the reminders about reference(s) not being submitted but that's all...

[mppa]

I applied to Balsillie and Ryerson's MPPA. Currently completing my Masters in IR. From my understanding the Munk school is now combined with UofT's Public Policy program? I'm not 100% sure tho but if so I would assume it would be heavily policy oriented rather than international development. it all depends on your interests tho, Balsillie has a great Global Governance program as well

[takeuaec]

has everyone's application status for NPISA moved to "recommended for assessment"? mine is still at "preliminary review required" so I'm a little worried!

[snowflake96]

16 minutes ago, moon-girl said:

has everyone's application status for NPISA moved to "recommended for assessment"? mine is still at "preliminary review required" so I'm a little worried!

Mine is still preliminary review required. I just want the wait and nerves to be over with   I'm pretty sure most acceptances for schools will be going out within the next 3 weeks 

Edited February 16, 2019 by snowflake96

[v_vexed]

15 minutes ago, snowflake96 said:

Mine is still preliminary review required. I just want the wait and nerves to be over with   I'm pretty sure most acceptances for schools will be going out within the next 3 weeks 

 

32 minutes ago, moon-girl said:

has everyone's application status for NPISA moved to "recommended for assessment"? mine is still at "preliminary review required" so I'm a little worried!

Hey guys, I honestly would not be worried. I think they're just going through the applications in order and mine just got through first. It doesn't mean an acceptance or anything. It is nerve-wrecking though, I've been checking it almost every day haha

[poutinead]

2 hours ago, mppa said:

I applied to Balsillie. The only email I got were the reminders about reference(s) not being submitted but that's all...

I applied to Balsille and I have heard nothing.  My files is still in 'Application' status...

[poutinead]

19 hours ago, snowflake96 said:

Has anyone heard anything from other schools yet?

I have not heard anything...(Munk/Waterloo/Queens)..

[mppa]

40 minutes ago, poutinead said:

I applied to Balsille and I have heard nothing.  My files is still in 'Application' status...

I did my undergrad at WLU so I'm not sure if my application process was different but I uploaded everything on LORIS and it shows all documents were received. At the bottom it says "Your application documents are received by the university in real time. You do not need to confirm or verify completion of your application once you have uploaded all of the required (and/or applicable) documents. Click on Review & Save My Copy to ensure that all of your documents are viewable as a standard PDF file, and to retain a consolidated file copy for your own records."

 

If something is missing they would have reached out to inform you.

Edited February 16, 2019 by mppa

[mppa]

20 hours ago, snowflake96 said:

Has anyone heard anything from other schools yet?

It is still a bit early for them to be sending out acceptances.

[lily22]

For those who are worried about having not heard back yet, I really wouldn't worry. I applied to Munk last year (waitlisted) and most folks on the forum did not hear back re: acceptances until between March 9th-12th. It was like one big sweeping forum post where everyone on the forum posted at the same time saying they had heard back. I got waitlisted on March 13th. There were very few people who heard earlier than that. When I asked the Program Coordinator at the time, she said that some people will hear back sporadically earlier for reasons she wouldn't divulge (I would assume super early applicants, or international students), but that the majority of acceptances will go out at the same time.

I can expect it to be around the same timeline this year, as they switched it from 2 years ago (admission used to be sent out in late February).