Institute vs School

[ehallwyo]

Does anyone have insight on what the practical differences in attending an Institute within a school versus attending a standalone school would be? I am choosing between American's School of Public Affairs and the Cornell Institute for Public Affairs, which is housed within the College of Human Ecology. Do you think there would be any discernible difference in terms of opportunities, programming, available funding, etc? Is this worth giving weight when choosing one over another?

(I realize that Cornell will be changing their model to a School of Public Policy, but for at least one if not both years of the degree, it will function under the current Institute model).

Edited March 23, 2020 by ehallwyo

[failure2connect]

Hi ehallwyo, 

I'm currently making the same decision! I missed Cornell's spring open house (it was so frickin early compared to other schools), but my impression is that SPA is a very well funded program with a lot of history. They're going to be bigger cohort-wise and with class size but still a lot smaller than, say, Harris. I view Cornell's program as more of a boutique program, and I expect to have closer relationships with staff/faculty if I go there. I certainly don't think they lack funding - their scholarship was the biggest of all my offers, and their externship programs seem well funded. However, it seems like their boutique-y nature and reliance on other Cornell schools means less infrastructure for their MPP program.

[ehallwyo]

1 hour ago, failure2connect said:

Hi ehallwyo, 

I'm currently making the same decision! I missed Cornell's spring open house (it was so frickin early compared to other schools), but my impression is that SPA is a very well funded program with a lot of history. They're going to be bigger cohort-wise and with class size but still a lot smaller than, say, Harris. I view Cornell's program as more of a boutique program, and I expect to have closer relationships with staff/faculty if I go there. I certainly don't think they lack funding - their scholarship was the biggest of all my offers, and their externship programs seem well funded. However, it seems like their boutique-y nature and reliance on other Cornell schools means less infrastructure for their MPP program.

Cool to have someone in the same boat! I visited Cornell in Feb and they arranged meetings for me with the executive director, the head of career management, and about six different students throughout the day. Everyone repetedly stressed the flexibility of CIPA's programming. They really support students designing a program that works for them, and I think the ability to take classes from any of the schools across campus is a great asset (Yale Jackson does the same). I went to Brown (no core requirements) so being able to choose my coursework is something I really value. The other thing that I've heard over and over is how collaborative and friendly the cohort dynamic is; they specified that they know that a lot of other programs at Cornell have the reputation of being cutthroat/competitive, but that CIPA has a very different "familial" culture. The Open House videos are available online now--I watched them the other day, and you might find them helpful!

Re: SPA, did you happen to be at Top Prospects weekend in Feb? Since then, I've had further contact with Jennifer Forney, an alum, and a prof. I have to say that they are head and shoulders above other schools in terms of reaching out on a personal level. I've heard a lot about the collaborative atmosphere of SPA, too. I think one difference between the programs is that by virtue of being in DC, SPA just seems to be more intense/busy. Jennifer has said on a couple occasions that "everyone is busy and there will be no sympathy for you." 

Here are some of the other main differences that I'm factoring into my decision: Cornell has a better global brand, but AU has a better brand in DC/the field of Public Affairs; cost of living (152 in DC vs 98 in Ithaca); can't beat Ithaca for access to nature and a culture of outdoorsiness (which is something very important to me), but can't beat DC for caliber of speakers/cultural events/etc; accessibility/ease of travel; Cornell seems to have significantly more opportunities for international opportunities (check out the SMART program if you haven't already); AU has more general quant requirements while Cornell has more specific; Cornell has a wider variety of course selection due to having access to all of the schools; AU seems to be faster-paced in terms of balancing school + job + internships; AU stresses more about the point of the program being career-readiness/ROI. There are others but these are kinda this big things that I'm looking at, along with aid. I have similar aid offers from both, but a portion of AU's comes from a GAship, while 100% of Cornell's is tuition remission. Self-quarantining has meant that I've had too much time on my hands to flip flop between the two! 

[failure2connect]

On 3/28/2020 at 9:29 PM, ehallwyo said:

Re: SPA, did you happen to be at Top Prospects weekend in Feb? Since then, I've had further contact with Jennifer Forney, an alum, and a prof. I have to say that they are head and shoulders above other schools in terms of reaching out on a personal level. I've heard a lot about the collaborative atmosphere of SPA, too. I think one difference between the programs is that by virtue of being in DC, SPA just seems to be more intense/busy. Jennifer has said on a couple occasions that "everyone is busy and there will be no sympathy for you." 

Yeah, I was able to attend Top Prospects weekend (although not the class visits on Thursday). I got the same impression culture-wise; folks seemed to like each other and the program, but everyone had a million things on their plate. TBH, that's pretty intimidating to me, but I just keep reminding myself that it's a choice and not an actual part of their program. I personally can't see myself working more than part-time while attending school full time. 

I can see why you're leaning towards Cornell - the international aspect and Ithaca itself seem to work for you. I tend more towards local policy - I would love to work for state/large city government (think Boston, Chicago, Philly, etc). American seems more established in regard to that kind of policy work, but I'm kind of bummed that the program is only 39 credits. I love learning and I feel like I get more bang for my buck from other schools.

Self-quarantining has been rough on my decision process too. On one hand, I can attend more events now that they're all virtual. On the other hand, I keep circling back to other programs that I'd already mostly dismissed (Ford, Brandeis, GWU).

[GradSchoolGrad]

On 3/23/2020 at 1:42 AM, ehallwyo said:

Does anyone have insight on what the practical differences in attending an Institute within a school versus attending a standalone school would be? I am choosing between American's School of Public Affairs and the Cornell Institute for Public Affairs, which is housed within the College of Human Ecology. Do you think there would be any discernible difference in terms of opportunities, programming, available funding, etc? Is this worth giving weight when choosing one over another?

(I realize that Cornell will be changing their model to a School of Public Policy, but for at least one if not both years of the degree, it will function under the current Institute model).

I was an MPP student in the DC area and honestly, I never ever met an American University MPP or MPA student or alumnus (that I can remember) at any conference, learning event, research presentation (one of them was actually at American University), case competition, or internship. I met people from grad programs in Howard, George Washington, George Mason, UVA, Catholic University, and schools from outside of DC. Never have I heard people even talk about the MPP or MPA program from American University SPA. I always thought it was ironic because I would drive by the American University campus (and where SPA is) and wonder where their grad students are.

My point is that if SPA MPP or MPA students are out there doing things and taking advantage of the DC environment, I have no idea how I missed them (and I am the type of person that talks to strangers all the time). 

If I were you, I would go to CIPA hands down by virtue of the brand equity + flexibility of the program. 

Edited April 2, 2020 by GradSchoolGrad