HGSE 2020

[Oden]

From HGSE website.  Appears the number of admitted this July is significantly smaller than regular admission numbers this past winter.

Summer Admissions:

Why are you having a summer admissions round? 

We realize that some of our current students will not enroll this fall due to changes in personal circumstances or the move to being remote for AY20–21. As such, the summer admissions process allows us to include additional students eager to join our community virtually. Our summer admissions round, coupled with the decision to operate remotely, also presents an unprecedented opportunity for us to extend the HGSE learning experience far beyond Appian Way — to students who may never before have considered joining our community due to difficulties of relocating or leaving their professional positions. We view this shift in learning modality as an extraordinary chance to increase access to the courses, cohorts, and community experiences that are typically confined to Cambridge. Opening our doors to additional applicants is our effort to expand our reach; to bring in educators and changemakers who possess the same academic, personal, and professional excellence we seek in the winter application pool.

I’m worried that the summer admissions process will lower the quality of my cohort. Will summer applicants be evaluated the same way as spring admits? 

Our holistic review of academic readiness will not change, and we maintain our firm commitment to admitting and enrolling only those students capable of succeeding in our classrooms and in the field. The one change for the summer process is that we are not requiring the GRE, which would be logistically difficult given the short timeframe and COVID-related disruptions. We do not expect that making the GRE optional will change the admission evaluation process because the GRE does not figure strongly into our admissions review. Instead, our practice for years has been to rely on other parts of the application to assess writing ability and other academic skills. We have already been considering making the GRE optional for the past couple of years.

Does opening up another admissions cycle mean that our classes will be much larger next year than previous years? 

We are committed to making sure that we have the capacity and resources to fully serve the students who enroll so we are being very mindful of cohort size. We do not intend to grow the overall cohort size in terms of the number of full-time equivalent students. To ensure class sizes do not grow, our summer admissions decisions will not happen until after we have a sense of how many of our current students plan to enroll (the deadline for informing us is July 15). As always, we will maintain a mix of large and small courses, though we expect to have many more small seminars and tutorials during AY20–21 than in past years so students have multiple opportunities to engage in smaller classes. 

[Ashley Kung]

Hi all,

With the deadline for the online program this year a day away, I'm getting super anxious and am definitely overthinking everything. I was wondering if anyone would be willing to give me a low-down on what to expect realistically? Here are my stats:

Program/Concentration: IEP
GRE Score: V 165 / M 159 / 5.5 AW (As you can see, my math isn't that great, but I'm pretty happy with the verbal and AW sections.) 
GPA: 3.34 undergrad
Work Experience: One year as a full time tutor, six months of which are concomitant with additional responsibilities as an educational consultant, and one year of tutoring during college as a side job
Undergrad/Grad Institution (Public, Private, Ivy, etc..): Columbia University
Research Experience: None.
LoR/SoP: I have two recommendations from professors I had enjoyable classes with, and one from my current boss. My SoP focuses on how I wish to make education and consulting services more accessible to students of all backgrounds.
What Other Schools Are You Applying To: TC, NYU, USC, NYIT, UPenn, University of Texas at Austin, and BU.

Additional information: My undergrad GPA is low because I learned too late how to best manage my time and optimize my results. My semester GPAs increase from about a 3.0 to about a 3.7 by the fall of my senior year, but it goes a bit down again in the spring because I was an idiot and took on too much at once. Would HGSE look at this and be understanding? What's the best way I can show that I have learned from my mistakes and am hoping that they will take a chance on me? I know that there's a part that asks you to elaborate if you don't think your GPA is indicative of your actual performance of a student, so would that be the right place? 

Good luck to those applying in July, and congratulations to those who have made it in already! 

Edited July 13, 2020 by Ashley Kung

[ponomoc]

Just applied to IEP :) Good luck everyone!

[Ibn Rushd]

Just applied to EdM SSP. The eternally painful wait lasting 2.5 weeks begins now. 
 

Any other SSP applicants? Already accepted? Applied during this (July 2020) cycle? Decided not to join SSP? 

[Ibn Rushd]

1 hour ago, ponomoc said:

Just applied to IEP Good luck everyone!

Good luck to you as well!  

[Oden]

Ashley,

Your stats are fine. None of the items you mention will keep you from being admitted to HGSE.  That said, everyone being seriously considered by the HGSE will have great stats.  What really separates the candidates is a combination of volunteer/public service, great essays, and recommenders that cite examples of their experiences with you that align with experiences listed in your resume (Harvard loves verification of applicant’s claims through triangulated sources).  Also, it greatly matters how many are competing against you within your demographic  - if your demographic is a small group of applicants, that further increases your chances of being accepted.

Unfortunately, because this is a one-off admission cycle, there are no past stats on the number of applications vs the number admitted.  For instance, the regular winter application has about a 36% admission rate. My guess is that the number admitted this summer cycle will be significantly less, because the HGSE is using summer admission to replace those admitted last winter that are choosing not to attend online this fall, including existing part-time students that also will not return until onsite classes resume.

In any event, we’ll know in a few weeks!

Warm regards,

Oden

[oldisgold]

previous year's intake was about 700 for ed m

there are about 500 in the 2021 admitted students facebook group

they might admit say 250 to account for rejections due to maybe financial aid issues

impossible to tell how much the applicant pool has widened due working professionals becoming interested (i expect applicants to double at least) or students rejecting it due to it being a 50k off-campus experience in the middle of a pandemic or if hugsee has tightened up aid numbers

a lot of words for nobody knows

[Ashley Kung]

10 hours ago, Oden said:

Ashley,

Your stats are fine. None of the items you mention will keep you from being admitted to HGSE.  That said, everyone being seriously considered by the HGSE will have great stats.  What really separates the candidates is a combination of volunteer/public service, great essays, and recommenders that cite examples of their experiences with you that align with experiences listed in your resume (Harvard loves verification of applicant’s claims through triangulated sources).  Also, it greatly matters how many are competing against you within your demographic  - if your demographic is a small group of applicants, that further increases your chances of being accepted.

Unfortunately, because this is a one-off admission cycle, there are no past stats on the number of applications vs the number admitted.  For instance, the regular winter application has about a 36% admission rate. My guess is that the number admitted this summer cycle will be significantly less, because the HGSE is using summer admission to replace those admitted last winter that are choosing not to attend online this fall, including existing part-time students that also will not return until onsite classes resume.

In any event, we’ll know in a few weeks!

Warm regards,

Oden

Oden,

Thank you for taking the time to reply to my concerns. I am very aware of the amount of applicants with similar stats as mine, which is why I find myself constantly worrying about my application. Additionally, one of my recommenders, despite reassuring me otherwise, did not turn in his recommendation by the deadline, so I already feel like I'm at a disadvantage. I emailed admissions and asked if there was anything I could do about this. The following is their answer:

"We are not able to extend the deadline for recommenders. However, they can still submit their letters using the link in the automatic email sent from the application. Since there is a short period between the application deadline and when admissions decisions are released, we cannot guarantee that any materials submitted late will be reviewed alongside the rest of your application. If any materials are missing, your application will be reviewed as is."

This makes me think that it may be quite unlikely for me to get in, but I figured I might as well submit my application and see how it goes.

As for the admissions rate, thank you for putting it into perspective like that. Applying, I did have the idea that the school seemed to be in need of students, but being reminded that there are considerably less spots available than usual is always both reassuring and (admittedly) terrifying.

In any case, I do look forward to finding out soon. Again, thank you for taking the time to reply! 

Best regards,

Ashley

[Dragonboat]

Hi all!

Joining the chorus of people here who have applied for this summer round of admissions (I applied for the TIE program, part-time).

I've also gotten the impression (and from conjecturing with a few other people who work/are familiar with grad admissions) that this particular round is actually going to be quite competitive as they're opening up admissions to a much larger group of people who might otherwise not consider the program, and for a much smaller number of seats. Either way, best of luck to all!

My most pressing question is how financial aid will work for this new cohort, especially for those who are part-time. I think they recently changed their "Financing Your Distance Ed.M. Guide" because it now says that most part-time students are ineligible for the HGSE Grant of max $19,000 (if I recall correctly, it didn't include that line when I checked the guide a couple of weeks ago), and one of the FAQ pages states part-time students are eligible, so I'm not sure what the situation is...

Edited July 14, 2020 by Dragonboat

[Oden]

3 hours ago, Ashley Kung said:

Oden,

Thank you for taking the time to reply to my concerns. I am very aware of the amount of applicants with similar stats as mine, which is why I find myself constantly worrying about my application. Additionally, one of my recommenders, despite reassuring me otherwise, did not turn in his recommendation by the deadline, so I already feel like I'm at a disadvantage. I emailed admissions and asked if there was anything I could do about this. The following is their answer:

"We are not able to extend the deadline for recommenders. However, they can still submit their letters using the link in the automatic email sent from the application. Since there is a short period between the application deadline and when admissions decisions are released, we cannot guarantee that any materials submitted late will be reviewed alongside the rest of your application. If any materials are missing, your application will be reviewed as is."

This makes me think that it may be quite unlikely for me to get in, but I figured I might as well submit my application and see how it goes.

As for the admissions rate, thank you for putting it into perspective like that. Applying, I did have the idea that the school seemed to be in need of students, but being reminded that there are considerably less spots available than usual is always both reassuring and (admittedly) terrifying.

In any case, I do look forward to finding out soon. Again, thank you for taking the time to reply! 

Best regards,

Ashley

Hi again Ashley - Oden here,

If you can nudge your reference to submit this week, I’m pretty sure the admission committee will get it, and consider it.  But, the reference would need to be submitted within these few days. The Harvard admission process is structured, but allows the committee lots of flexibility.  My kids go to Harvard.

[Oden]

3 hours ago, Dragonboat said:

Hi all!

Joining the chorus of people here who have applied for this summer round of admissions (I applied for the TIE program, part-time).

I've also gotten the impression (and from conjecturing with a few other people who work/are familiar with grad admissions) that this particular round is actually going to be quite competitive as they're opening up admissions to a much larger group of people who might otherwise not consider the program, and for a much smaller number of seats. Either way, best of luck to all!

My most pressing question is how financial aid will work for this new cohort, especially for those who are part-time. I think they recently changed their "Financing Your Distance Ed.M. Guide" because it now says that most part-time students are ineligible for the HGSE Grant of max $19,000 (if I recall correctly, it didn't include that line when I checked the guide a couple of weeks ago), and one of the FAQ pages states part-time students are eligible, so I'm not sure what the situation is...

Hi Dragonboat,

I agree that summer admission is going to be more competitive than the normal winter admission.  As you say, the no-GRE opens the program. Particularly, to highly qualified older applicants that don’t have or are not interested in taking the GRE, and may already be renowned scholars and practitioners.  And, since summer admission appears intended to fill what is likely a small gap made by applicants/current students unwilling/biased against online learning, this also intensifies the competition.

I was trying to speculate how many really would take a gap-year, based on my kid’s friends at Harvard, but it’s a big fuzzy guess.  Nevertheless, I think you’re pretty close with 200 MIA that need to be replaced with summer admissions.  And since this summer admission opportunity was pretty much a shotgun-wedding (only being announced a couple months before the deadline), I personally think there will only be about 1000 applicants - normally they have about 2200.  So, continuing deeper into conjecture ? , I figure we may have about a 18-20% admission rate (16-20% less than winter rate of 36%).  

Admittedly, that’s a mighty big hole, or pile, of speculation.

Oden

[EvolvedGradBlog]

On 7/13/2020 at 8:15 AM, Ashley Kung said:

Hi all,

With the deadline for the online program this year a day away, I'm getting super anxious and am definitely overthinking everything. I was wondering if anyone would be willing to give me a low-down on what to expect realistically? Here are my stats:

Program/Concentration: IEP
GRE Score: V 165 / M 159 / 5.5 AW (As you can see, my math isn't that great, but I'm pretty happy with the verbal and AW sections.) 
GPA: 3.34 undergrad
Work Experience: One year as a full time tutor, six months of which are concomitant with additional responsibilities as an educational consultant, and one year of tutoring during college as a side job
Undergrad/Grad Institution (Public, Private, Ivy, etc..): Columbia University
Research Experience: None.
LoR/SoP: I have two recommendations from professors I had enjoyable classes with, and one from my current boss. My SoP focuses on how I wish to make education and consulting services more accessible to students of all backgrounds.
What Other Schools Are You Applying To: TC, NYU, USC, NYIT, UPenn, University of Texas at Austin, and BU.

Additional information: My undergrad GPA is low because I learned too late how to best manage my time and optimize my results. My semester GPAs increase from about a 3.0 to about a 3.7 by the fall of my senior year, but it goes a bit down again in the spring because I was an idiot and took on too much at once. Would HGSE look at this and be understanding? What's the best way I can show that I have learned from my mistakes and am hoping that they will take a chance on me? I know that there's a part that asks you to elaborate if you don't think your GPA is indicative of your actual performance of a student, so would that be the right place? 

Good luck to those applying in July, and congratulations to those who have made it in already! 

To echo previous comments, nothing about what you've posted would preclude you from getting in to HGSE. My questions would be about your recommendations and your SoP. Absolutely critical parts of your application, and any assessment of your chances without them wouldn't be accurate. I'll say that increasing access to high-quality education for the children who are not currently getting it is something they look for. Best of luck! 3/3 admit at Harvard/Stanford/Upenn, shoot me a message if you have any questions!

 

Jeremy

Evolvedgrad.com

 

[ladybug1234]

Hi!

I am glad I found this community. I recently applied for the Higher Ed Program, Ed.M. I received a financial aid portal sign up notice. Did you all? Also, I did not apply part-time because when I spoke to the financial aid office they said that part-time students would not qualify for the the 19k grant. Prior, I thought it I read that part-time would minimize the chances of obtaining the grant, but not eliminate it. Perhaps, they have narrowed the grant qualifications? I am not sure.

Good luck to all! Everyone on here seems like a wonderful applicant with great stats. As for me, I am a 3.86 GPA from UC Berkeley, have higher ed employment experience and  research experience. MY SoP and letters of recommendation are strong. 

Best wishes to you all!

 

[hlang]

42 minutes ago, dangelykarla said:

Hi!

I am glad I found this community. I recently applied for the Higher Ed Program, Ed.M. I received a financial aid portal sign up notice. Did you all? Also, I did not apply part-time because when I spoke to the financial aid office they said that part-time students would not qualify for the the 19k grant. Prior, I thought it I read that part-time would minimize the chances of obtaining the grant, but not eliminate it. Perhaps, they have narrowed the grant qualifications? I am not sure.

Good luck to all! Everyone on here seems like a wonderful applicant with great stats. As for me, I am a 3.86 GPA from UC Berkeley, have higher ed employment experience and  research experience. MY SoP and letters of recommendation are strong. 

Best wishes to you all!

 

Hi dangelykarla!

Did you apply for the online Ed.M.? I have not received any financial aid portal sign up notice

[Ibn Rushd]

22 minutes ago, hlang said:

Hi dangelykarla!

Did you apply for the online Ed.M.? I have not received any financial aid portal sign up notice

Hey, 

I applied to the online Ed.M (SSP) and received the invitation to submit financial aid application around 12:30 pm Eastern (7/17/20). It is super simple application that would take 5 minutes or less to finish. You also have to submit FAFSA separately. 

 

Also. I reached out to HGSE Financial Aid to check for applying to merit-based scholarships and broader Harvard Committee on General Scholarships. They said online Ed.M applicants are not eligible for any other scholarships besides the need-based grant. 

 

Hope this helps. 

[Ibn Rushd]

3 hours ago, EvolvedGradBlog said:

To echo previous comments, nothing about what you've posted would preclude you from getting in to HGSE. My questions would be about your recommendations and your SoP. Absolutely critical parts of your application, and any assessment of your chances without them wouldn't be accurate. I'll say that increasing access to high-quality education for the children who are not currently getting it is something they look for. Best of luck! 3/3 admit at Harvard/Stanford/Upenn, shoot me a message if you have any questions!

 

Jeremy

Evolvedgrad.com

 

Hey, congratulations! This is amazing!

Which specific program did you apply to at Harvard?

[Dragonboat]

1 hour ago, dangelykarla said:

Hi!

I am glad I found this community. I recently applied for the Higher Ed Program, Ed.M. I received a financial aid portal sign up notice. Did you all? Also, I did not apply part-time because when I spoke to the financial aid office they said that part-time students would not qualify for the the 19k grant. Prior, I thought it I read that part-time would minimize the chances of obtaining the grant, but not eliminate it. Perhaps, they have narrowed the grant qualifications? I am not sure.

Good luck to all! Everyone on here seems like a wonderful applicant with great stats. As for me, I am a 3.86 GPA from UC Berkeley, have higher ed employment experience and  research experience. MY SoP and letters of recommendation are strong. 

Best wishes to you all!

 

Thanks for that intel -- yes, I had also recalled them mentioning that part-time students would be eligible for financial aid (and this page on the HGSE website still says so). I'm quite concerned that it seems they've changed tack... do you think it would be worth reaching out to the admissions office and clarifying if there is or isn't aid available at this point for part-time students, and/or if it would be possible to switch my application for full-time admission?

[EvolvedGradBlog]

24 minutes ago, DrPH Applicant said:

Hey, congratulations! This is amazing!

Which specific program did you apply to at Harvard?

Language and Literacy at HGSE

[ladybug1234]

1 hour ago, Dragonboat said:

Thanks for that intel -- yes, I had also recalled them mentioning that part-time students would be eligible for financial aid (and this page on the HGSE website still says so). I'm quite concerned that it seems they've changed tack... do you think it would be worth reaching out to the admissions office and clarifying if there is or isn't aid available at this point for part-time students, and/or if it would be possible to switch my application for full-time admission?

Yes, I would first contact financial aid stating that the information provided online is lacking clarity and use their response (I am assuming they will say only the 19k grant is available for full-time students) and email admissions after with the information you were provided with as your reasoning to change to full-time. I don't know if it is possible, but it is worth a try. 

[ladybug1234]

2 hours ago, hlang said:

Hi dangelykarla!

Did you apply for the online Ed.M.? I have not received any financial aid portal sign up notice

Yes, the online Ed.M. Higher Education Program.  Anyone else? 

[ladybug1234]

1 hour ago, DrPH Applicant said:

Hey, 

I applied to the online Ed.M (SSP) and received the invitation to submit financial aid application around 12:30 pm Eastern (7/17/20). It is super simple application that would take 5 minutes or less to finish. You also have to submit FAFSA separately. 

 

Also. I reached out to HGSE Financial Aid to check for applying to merit-based scholarships and broader Harvard Committee on General Scholarships. They said online Ed.M applicants are not eligible for any other scholarships besides the need-based grant. 

 

Hope this helps. 

Thank you for the information. That is unfortunate that the online Ed.M. cohort will be exempt from obtaining Harvard merit based scholarships. 

[2020666]

5 hours ago, hlang said:

Hi dangelykarla!

Did you apply for the online Ed.M.? I have not received any financial aid portal sign up notice

 

Edited July 18, 2020 by Childhood dreams

[Oden]

On 7/17/2020 at 4:50 PM, dangelykarla said:

Yes, the online Ed.M. Higher Education Program.  Anyone else? 

Hi dangelykarla,

I applied to same Ed.M. Higher Ed. program as you.

Here’s a good vid about the need based aid and other info.

https://m.facebook.com/HarvardEducation/videos/299107041261278/

Oden

 

[ladybug1234]

1 hour ago, Oden said:

Hi dangelykarla,

I applied to same Ed.M. Higher Ed. program as you.

Here’s a good vid about the need based aid and other info.

https://m.facebook.com/HarvardEducation/videos/299107041261278/

Oden

 

Hi Oden, 

Wonderful! Thanks, I appreciate the resources you shared. I hope we both get in the Higher Education Program!

[TeamGryffindor]

On 7/17/2020 at 1:47 PM, EvolvedGradBlog said:

Language and Literacy at HGSE

Me too!