Jump to content

Is Georgetown SSP worth it?


Recommended Posts

I have been accepted into Georgetown SSP for next year with a heavy scholarship (turned down at Fletcher and SAIS).

Fletcher and SAIS both rejected me for lack of professional experience, and I am sure Georgetown MSFS would have yielded a similar result. However, it is clear that Georgetown MSFS gives you a much broader range of skills than Georgetown SSP - plus, it's longer, has electives and is more flexible, and has a much wider range of full-time professors.

I guess I am wondering if it's worth it to go to Georgetown SSP, given the above, rather than getting some professional experience, and reapplying later to MSFS, SAIS and Fletcher, maybe just concentrating in security at MSFS. I want to do MA programs because I have career goals - but, simultaneously, I want to be competitive for a PhD program, and I feel like MSFS would be much better for that.

Do some SSP students go on to PhD programs later on? Are they competitive - do they get into top tier programs for international relations? Is Georgetown SSP looked down on as sort of JV? Are there good opportunities while at SSP for publishing in the Georgetown Journal of International Affairs? Would it be better for me to skip the funding, suck it up, get some work experience and reapply for other programs? I want to work in security in the public sector, but my academic goals make me wonder if Georgetown SSP is a dead end.

Thoughts?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

When did you find out about SSP funding? As far as I know, I didn't get any. I was waitlisted at SAIS which is my top choice. I'm leaning towards thinking that SSP is not worth it for me at this point. Too much money and I just don't think the program is at all comparable to SAIS. I'm still weighing my options (and I'm quite fickle) but I'm leaning towards putting grad school off for a year and trying again for SAIS later.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I found out earlier this week via e-mail...

After some more thought and examining the coursework, I think the main difference between a program like SAIS and a program like Georgetown SSP is in focus. Georgetown MSFS or Hopkins SAIS are sort of more international relations in general degrees - economics, area studies, and security, a broader package.

Georgetown SSP, however, is probably better than both of them as far as getting a national security job is concerned - but not as good if you see yourself possibly working for some financial firm and having lots of options beyond the security field. The thing is, SSP is just not designed to be as broad as SAIS. That does not mean it's not as good - it means it is focused very deeply on security issues, and you are going to know a shitload more about international / national security coming out of a program like SSP than if you came out of SAIS, but more about economics if you come out of SAIS. This stuff about "MSFS being the peer program to SAIS, not SSP" is a bit misguided - MSFS and SSP have totally different goals, and both are within one of the top 3 I.R. schools in the world.

Given all of that, my advisor at my undergrad institution seems to think programs like SSP are better than programs like MSFS or SAIS for someone who has a straight up international relations B.A. - because SSP gets you more focused, whereas SAIS or MSFS keeps you really broad. But, it depends on your aim, you know.

To figure this out, I planned out all the courses I would take, reading through the descriptions. SSP looks very satisfying and worth it for me at this point - but only because I really want to go into national security, and the fact SSP has analytical methods and a thesis built into its core coursework is pretty good for PhD prospects.

So, if SSP is worth it for you might depend on how broad you want to me, how good your I.R. background from undergrad is, and what career you are looking for. If it's a national security career, or even a private sector consulting career, I can't imagine SSP not being worth it. That thought process has sort of made me decide to go for SSP.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Thanks for that input, it does help think things through a bit. My problem is that I'm really not totally sure what I want to do after graduation yet, but I'm thinking US Foreign Service or Congress. A consulting job for a bit is a little appealing too. But I'm still not sure if I want to keep my options open to do something more in the business realm as opposed to strict security issues.

I also did not receive any funding (from anywhere it seems), so that makes things more difficult as well.

Have you decided on a concentration? I guess I would be between international security or US security policy. Not sure if it matters all that much though.

Edited by efs424
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Thanks for that input, it does help think things through a bit. My problem is that I'm really not totally sure what I want to do after graduation yet, but I'm thinking US Foreign Service or Congress. A consulting job for a bit is a little appealing too. But I'm still not sure if I want to keep my options open to do something more in the business realm as opposed to strict security issues.

I also did not receive any funding (from anywhere it seems), so that makes things more difficult as well.

Have you decided on a concentration? I guess I would be between international security or US security policy. Not sure if it matters all that much though.

Sorry on the no funding :-( - that is shitty. But maybe once there, you can look for different fellowships within Georgetown for the second year?

The key thing for us I think is the job placement rates. Looks like over 90% of SSP grads get jobs within three months, according to their website. Lots of them are in private-sector consulting firms, lots of them are in the federal government, lots of them are in non-profit.

Here is the official report, lots of people working for different private sector firms as well as federal gov:

http://cpass.georgetown.edu/documents/SSP%20CAREER%20PLACEMENT%20REPORT_Jan09.pdf

I also got in touch with alum in D.C. who went to these schools from my undergrad institution, one of whom works for State and is on the NSC right now (e-mail given to me by advisor). He says tons of G'town people are in foreign service - I, like you, really like the idea of a potential Foreign Service career. And the bottom line from most of them, in any case, was that it doesn't matter that much which school you went to if you are at the level of Georgetown, Hopkins, Tufts and these types of schools - they will all get you a job, and once you get that job, it's about performance. Though one Georgetown grad I talked to said the name-recognition she has gotten for her Georgetown degree at companies outside of the D.C. area is very valuable.

I think the bottom-line from that information is that the answer to my original (and your original) "Is Georgetown SSP limiting?" question is an obvious "no" - in fact, it's probably just the opposite, that it opens up tons of opportunities and is a great school (in some ways better than SAIS - all depends). As I said, you'll know more about economics at SAIS - but you'll know more about security at Georgetown, and be just as well-placed to get a job and still have access to excellent faculty and an alumni network and so forth. And yes, if you are still thinking about business, maybe SSP isn't as good as SAIS - but, look at the job placement rates, you can still get into a private consulting thing fine, and if you end up going into national security, you are pretty set.

To answer your question: I am looking at the U.S. National Security concentration. It seems to be best for me... I like how they have economics applied to security courses there, and there are courses about the defense industry that can get you into a consulting position if you are interested in that. One thing i like about the applied economics courses is that whereas at SAIS you just have a course on, say, International Finance Theory, at Georgetown you instead of a course on National Security and the International Finance System - it's more applied to the field, it seems like (same with, at Georgetown: "Economic Instruments of National Security Policy" or "Economics of Sub-state Violence" or "International Arms Trade" - all economics applied to security courses on public and private sector issues, rather than economics for the sake of economics).

I suggest planning out your ideal curriculum at g'town based on their requirements and course availability. That's what I did. Keep in mind, too, for your free elective you can take MSFS course "Analytical / Statistical Skills" - which would make up for alot of lost quantitative opportunities at SAIS and be nice for a private or public sector career.

If I were you though, I would probably go to Georgetown. I've been on the fence like you, too, although I have funding so it's a bit different, but I think the opportunity to go to a school like Georgetown is a great one and that you can use the resources there to your great advantage. I always try to remember that no school itself will do it for you - you yourself have to take advantage of that school's resources and make it work great for you. I don't see that being hard to do at a place like Georgetown, with exceptional faculty, career resources and great placement rates. And with those thoughts, I stopped acting irrational and tried to wake up and realize I am going to one of the best IR schools in the country, even if it might not be number 1 in every area and I won't be an expert on Monetary Theory.

Lots to think about...Hope that helped. Maybe see you in the Fall!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I'm an Int'l Studies undergrad looking to apply to SSP next cycle. If you don't mind answering a couple of questions... what kind of work experience do you have? coursework?

Edited by Liberty
Link to comment
Share on other sites

I'm an Int'l Studies undergrad looking to apply to SSP next cycle. If you don't mind answering a couple of questions... what kind of work experience do you have? coursework?

Sure! I PM'ed you my stats. Good luck!! Applying for grad schools sucks.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Thanks for that input, it does help think things through a bit. My problem is that I'm really not totally sure what I want to do after graduation yet, but I'm thinking US Foreign Service or Congress. A consulting job for a bit is a little appealing too. But I'm still not sure if I want to keep my options open to do something more in the business realm as opposed to strict security issues.

I also did not receive any funding (from anywhere it seems), so that makes things more difficult as well.

Have you decided on a concentration? I guess I would be between international security or US security policy. Not sure if it matters all that much though.

Also, since the only core difference between SAIS and G'town SSP that I can find is SAIS's focus on economics, if you really wanted to balance that out, you could do "Economics and Security" as a concentration, which I am sort of considering. Having 4 or 5 economics applied to security courses under your belt would be pretty good stuff.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 1 year later...

Sypher, i appreciate your insight- and agree with everything youve said. im applying to ssp/sais/msfs next cycle (i'm 2 years out of UG), if i had my druthers i'd work for a 3 letter agency or go into the foreign service. i would be interested in knowing some of your credentials- i think that ssp is the right play for what i want, but really going to sais or msfs which are obviously more broad can get me to where i want to be. what kind of experience do you have?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

This website uses cookies to ensure you get the best experience on our website. See our Privacy Policy and Terms of Use