Georgetown SFS ($0 scholarship) vs Tufts Fletcher MALD ($50K scholarship): FSO hopeful

[Bails]

Hello all you IR folks - I desperately need your help!

So I got into my dream grad school, Georgetown University's School of Foreign Service, but they're not offering any scholarship funds and are the most expensive school on my list. I was accepted to Tufts University's Fletcher School MA Law and Diplomacy with more than 50% scholarship. Fletcher is my second choice but significantly more affordable. Georgetown will be about twice the overall cost for tuition alone.

Career Goal: Foreign Service Officer (Consular track). I've passed the FSOT three times but always get stuck on the Personal Narratives. I paused my pursuits during the whole Trump admin restructure.

Research interests: Great power politics, conflict mediation, US-China relations.

Question: Do I take out 80K in loans for SFS, which is arguably the best program for FSO dreamers, or do I go with the more affordable Tufts which is a good program but less impressive on a resume? Is the loan justifiable for the program, or am I stupid to take the risk that Georgetown would offer many more opportunities than Tufts given the DSO isn't overly concerned with university attended? 

[PolicyGradInterests]

Hey!

With this kind of funding difference and even given your goals, I would definitely lean towards Fletcher. I've heard that there is a decent contingent of FSOs from Fletcher, and I don't think that $80k is necessarily worth the difference (plus, you've made it to Personal Narratives without a grad program).