Indiana SPEA 2019

[Pj2401]

Did not come across a thread for this school for 2019. Haven't seen many applying to this school. Would like to know your thoughts and opinions. 

Thanks

[usernamesmakemeanxious]

Hey! I applied back in November and heard within 2-3 weeks, which was amazing. I still haven't heard about funding, but I suspect awards will come out this week. SPEA seems like a great school with interesting research opportunities. It is also significantly more affordable than some other programs. One downside for me is that IU is a very white campus, while some other schools have more diversity. Overall, I am a big fan and, depending on funding, may end up being my choice

[darkroastgopher]

They definitely don't receive enough credit for how strong their program is, in my opinion. I've heard great things regarding the quality/rigor of their research and connections with domestic institutions. Their degree program is also super customizeable depending on personal interests, which is great! I applied back in mid-February, but my application wasn't actually "complete" until just last week, so I'm still waiting to hear back (though admissions assured me I was still being considered for funding, which is supposedly coming out this week?)

They're one of four schools I applied to. I'd be happy attending, but only if funding makes it considerably more affordable than my other options as I agree with @usernamesmakemeanxious's assessment regarding diversity.

[Pj2401]

25 minutes ago, darkroastgopher said:

They definitely don't receive enough credit for how strong their program is, in my opinion. I've heard great things regarding the quality/rigor of their research and connections with domestic institutions. Their degree program is also super customizeable depending on personal interests, which is great! I applied back in mid-February, but my application wasn't actually "complete" until just last week, so I'm still waiting to hear back (though admissions assured me I was still being considered for funding, which is supposedly coming out this week?)

They're one of four schools I applied to. I'd be happy attending, but only if funding makes it considerably more affordable than my other options as I agree with @usernamesmakemeanxious's assessment regarding diversity.

Hey! Even I applied during the same time and faced the same issue. Hope we both get in

[usernamesmakemeanxious]

Hi there, just received a 50% tuition funding offer...hope your admissions decisions come in soon!

[darkroastgopher]

Hi @Pj2401. I called Indiana this morning to double check that my application was, in fact, considered for merit aid. It turns out that even though I was previously told by admissions that my materials were received on time, I wasn't actually put on the aid consideration list because one of my rec letters arrived after 2/15. 

The person I was speaking to was Michele Lersch, the associate direction of admissions. During our conversation, she said that because it was just one rec letter, she would make sure my application would still be reviewed and that I will hear back some time in the next few weeks. I suggest giving them a call if your admission/aid status is still up in the air!

[Bader-Vader]

Just got accepted today! Waiting for funding, and will definitely be calling bc one of my recommenders also submitted a day late. 

[MrBug]

On 3/15/2019 at 11:20 AM, Bader-Vader said:

Just got accepted today! Waiting for funding, and will definitely be calling bc one of my recommenders also submitted a day late. 

Congrats! I, too, got accepted on the fifteenth. I called about fellowships and/or merit aid earlier today and they said they would shoot me an e-mail soon about whether or not I was considered. I had one recommender who didn't submit late, but nearly did (on or the day before the due date, I think), so I'm a bit nervous about that... plus I didn't receive a notification that IU had received all of my materials until the 1st of March, which I found strange since everything had been turned in weeks prior. Anyway, the representative I spoke to on the phone said that merit aid and fellowship decisions are still being discussed and awarded, so there's hope yet!

Edited March 27, 2019 by MrBug
Edited for clarity

[@Envopol]

Hi all! Congratulations to everyone who got accepted. I received an informal acceptance yesterday evening from SPEA. They said I will receive an official acceptance email/letter this week. Haven’t heard back from them regarding aid, but since I am an international applicant from India, the  funding situation might be rough. My policy interests mainly lie in environmental policy and a mix of international development and social policy. I have received acceptances from Ford, LBJ and SPEA. I didn’t receive any funding from Ford and LBJ (applied for their round 2 deadline), haven’t heard back from SPEA regarding funding yet. But my understanding is that SPEA is a front-runner as far as environmental policy is concerned, also love the fact that SPEA’s  MPA is super customizable to individual policy interests. Would love to hear from all of you regarding your thoughts on SPEA. Looks like it will come down to LBJ or SPEA. The LBJ Acceptance deadline is inching closer, so would love to hear back from all of you, if you are in the same boat or generally how both the programs are regarded for environmental policy. Being an international applicant, I don’t really have a reference for comparison, so any help with this would be super helpful. Thanks!

                    

[MrBug]

So, I finally got my offer last week! Turns out they had actually made an offer in March, but misstyped my e-mail address... which I at first found dubious, but they showed me a copy of the original offer letter, complete with a character missing from the e-mail addressee line. Oh, well! Got a merit offer and a fellowship that come out to about 50% tuition the first year and a bit more the second, and the program seems like a great fit, so I decided to accept.

To anyone who thinks they should have received funding, but didn't, it doesn't hurt to call or e-mail, even at the last minute! You never know if someone didn't make a tiny error like in my case. I'm definitely glad I followed up, as they might have otherwise had no idea they made such an error.

Hope to meet some of you soon! Good luck!