2021 Results

[maham 9]

Program Applied To (MPA, MPP, IR, etc.):  MPP/M.Ed Policy
Schools Applied To:  Vanderbilt Peabody, HGSE, Sanford, Ford, GW Trachtenberg, UVA Batten
Schools Admitted To:  Peabody ($$), Batten ($$), and Sanford!!(funding to come this week so the !! may quickly diminish lol)
Schools Rejected From:   
Still Waiting:  HGSE, Ford, GW
Undergraduate Institution: State flagship
Undergraduate GPA:   3.94
Undergraduate Major: Political science
GRE Quantitative/Verbal/AW Scores:  Not submitted
Years Out of Undergrad (if applicable):  1
Years of Work Experience:  3 -- paid policy work in undergrad
Describe Relevant Work Experience:  Two terms as Student Body President at large SEC university, policy work with State Council on Postsecondary Education, currently working at my undergrad alma mater as a student life coordinator and contact tracer
Strength of SOP (be honest, describe the process, etc):  Maybe 8.5/10 I had all of my recommenders read it and they each said it was very strong. A lot about personal ties to impact of education policy and goals of serving rural low-income communities through policy work.
Strength of LOR's (be honest, describe the process, etc):  A 9/10 Each from a reputable faculty member who know me personally and respect the work I have done. One was from a professor and faculty advisor for a lobbying/advocacy project I did. The second was from another professor who I had twice for policy/civil rights related courses, but he was also heavily involved with uni admin, so we worked closely during my time as SBP. The final letter was from our faculty senate chair, and we had a great working relationship.
Other: My main dilemma is choosing between an education-specific MPP at Vanderbilt or a general MPP but with a focus on education policy. All of the MPP programs I have applied to have strong education colleges/research, so I think they would be well equipped to serve my research and curricular interests. I'm sure I want to work in the realm of education policy, but I'm not dead set on a particular path. Ideally I would like to work with a think tank for a while and then take my expertise either to federal or state government work. Consulting is also really intriguing to me but I don't know much about how to navigate that world. This may be a better question for the education forum, but I know ed policy is a popular focus for many MPP students. 

Also, I was wondering about the waiving of GRE score requirement for all of these programs. I did not take it, and I feel like the rest of my application is pretty strong, but I'm wondering if that will hurt me. I don't have much post-grad work experience in policy, but COVID knocked me out of a policy job I had lined up. Any and all advice is greatly appreciated! 

[EscapingBrexit 63]

There can't be that many schools left now that haven't released results? Harvard, Georgetown, Tufts obviously.

Expecting another quiet week here. 

[Think Tanker 0]

10 minutes ago, EscapingBrexit said:

There can't be that many schools left now that haven't released results? Harvard, Georgetown, Tufts obviously.

Expecting another quiet week here. 

If only!! I'm still waiting on UMichigan, Princeton, Georgetown, Tufts, Harvard, Columbia, and Berkeley. Another quiet week might break me  

[EscapingBrexit 63]

8 minutes ago, Think Tanker said:

If only!! I'm still waiting on UMichigan, Princeton, Georgetown, Tufts, Harvard, Columbia, and Berkeley. Another quiet week might break me  

Wowwww! I take back everything I said 😂

[academiaenthusiast 4]

And Yale!

[sp_ 1]

Also waiting on Stanford FSI unless anyone has heard anything back yet.

[taxbat 8]

Still waiting on GWU as well. I got an email from CCAS that my application was in review but that was 3 weeks ago. 

Edited 5 hours ago by taxbat

[MPA2021 1]

1 hour ago, taxbat said:

Still waiting on GWU as well. I got an email from CCAS that my application was in review but that was 3 weeks ago. 

Same with me! Based on years prior, I was expecting to hear last week. Hopefully early this week!

[mppapplicant2021 1]

Program Applied To (MPA, MPP, IR, etc.): MPP
Schools Applied To:  UChicago Harris, Duke Sanford, UMichigan Ford, UC Berkeley Goldman, HKS
Schools Admitted To:  UChicago Harris (35k/year funding), Duke Sanford (TBD funding) 
Schools Rejected From:  
Still Waiting:  UMichigan Ford, UC Berkeley Goldman, HKS
Undergraduate Institution: Ivy league (very unique major so I won't name it ) 
Undergraduate GPA: 3.48
GRE Quantitative/Verbal/AW Scores:  164 Q / 167 V / 5.0 AW
Years Out of Undergrad (if applicable):  3
Years of Work Experience:  3 by the start of fall semester
Describe Relevant Work Experience: 3 years at a think tank with 3 publications (one is first-author). 5 years of part-time research work for professors from college (2 years during undergrad, 3 years post-college).
Strength of SOP (be honest, describe the process, etc):  I think they were decent--I made very clear ties between my personal narrative and my professional interests. If I'm being honest, I didn't start drafting my essays more than a week before the deadline (lol) so they could have been stronger.
Strength of LOR's (be honest, describe the process, etc): Very strong--I only saw the LOR my supervisor wrote. The other two were from professors from college that I've continued to do research for part-time since graduating, so they know me well academically and professionally. 
Other: I'm a URM. I'm very involved in service/volunteering, and have held several leadership positions. My biggest weak point is my quant skills--those are the courses that brought down my GPA during my freshman year. I re-took microecon last summer online, got a certificate in program evaluation, and highlighted how I utilize SPSS in my current job.

[Samdaman164 2]

Just got the rejection letter for Yale Jackson MGA. Sucks but probably a good thing. Narrows down the choices for me!