Columbia SIPA MPA

[KNA_policy]

I got conditionally accepted (need to complete a calculus course from any institution) to Columbia SIPA for MPA without any financial aid so far. I got the decision on March 16th and in it they said more information about cost and financial aid would be given in a few weeks. Still waiting! I want to pursue a Policy PhD after this. I am a 36 old Canadian (originally from Bangladesh but now a Canadian citizen), married (my wife is working too), have a 6 year old son, and have a house mortgage to pay. I have an MBA from Canada, do not have any previous student loans and have been working in the non-profit and academic research sectors for the past 7+ years. Is taking on student loan to pursue my dreams worth it at this stage? I am passionate about public policy and really want to join the academia. Thoughts? By the way, I got waitlisted for Georgetown MPP and rejected by Harvard for MPA2. Still waiting for a decision from Cornell CIPA for MPA. 

Edited March 26, 2021 by KNA_policy
Typos and adding new information

[abay91]

This is a really really tough situation to be in, and I'm not sure how much help what I'm about to day would be. I would be slightly cautious of student loans in your situation because if you aim to do a pubpol phd, your pay will not be significant in the 5-6 years you will be in the program. However, if you were to work more for a few years after your masters, you might be able to make up the loan amount (take this with a grain of salt, I haven't worked in the American market or done a policy masters). 

Is there any reason you didn't apply to policy phds directly? would another masters help in maybe getting letters, coursework, RA experience during the course? I am considering accepting a ppol phd program after a few years of econ RA-ship and an econ MA -- please feel free to message me about policy phd apps whenever you apply!

[peachy4345]

Something to keep in mind (MAs in SIPA have it even worse) :

Among your choices, you should also consider which programs have a grad worker union AND treat grad students right. I am a current 2nd year PhD student at Columbia. The majority of grad students are currently on strike for a living wage, better healthcare, and protection from harassment and discrimination. I have been watching the process of our new graduate union try to bargain for our first contract for over two years. In these sessions, I have seen admin (and their sleazy lawyer, who charges $1,500/hr) do everything possible to stall negotiations, belittle us, and play down heartfelt testimonials that make clear why our demands are reasonable and necessary. Every time we've gotten a raise in the past, our Columbia rent magically goes up by a higher percentage. Our wages are not enough to live in NYC. There is no dental or vision coverage, and they recently removed the better health insurance plan option. The school has a terrible history with harassment and discrimination cases brought by both undergrads and grads (Google it), and at the moment they are doing everything possible to avoid meeting our contract demand about changing the investigation process to give more rights to the complainant (see link below).

We're entering the 3rd week of the strike, and Columbia has made very clear that they plan to not only doc our bi-weekly pay (which we receive for TA/RA work), but our academic stipends--yep, they are going to debit our student accounts, thereby jeopardizing course registration, degree progress, visas, and health insurance. We have a legal right to strike, but this later action constitutes illegal academic retaliation.

Long story short: I'm sure a lot of schools are as corrupt as Columbia, but I've just seen first hand how rotten this place is to the core. They only care about profit (their endowment grew $300 million during the pandemic alone), squeezing as much our of grad workers and adjuncts for as little pay as possible, sweeping bad press under the rug, and gentrifying Harlem with multi-million dollar campus expansions.

I encourage folks thinking about attending/applying to Columbia to express concerns to department chairs and administrators, and ask them why they insist on denying grad workers a fair contract: 

• President Lee Bollinger officeofthepresident@columbia.edu, Phone: (212) 854-9970
• Provost Ira Katznelson provost@columbia.edu,  +1 212 854 2404
• GSAS Grad Admissions: gsas-admissions@columbia.edu

 

https://gothamist.com/news/columbia-grad-students-strike-over-wages-and-harassment-policies-nyu-counterparts-vote-similar-actions