One Down; Three More to Go!!

[pisces81]

So, I got accepted into the Master's of International Studies Program at the Monterey Institute. They're offering me a scholarship to attend (which will cover maybe 1/3 of the tuition cost). I'm waiting on three other schools: SIPA, Tufts/Fletcher and George Washington/Elliott. I honestly don't think I'll get into SIPA. I applied too late and my GRE scores are not very good. I should blame it on the fact that I came here for undergrad but was born and raised overseas though I'm a permanent resident now. MIIS doesn't require its applicants to take the GRE which was really great. However, to secure the scholarship, they want my answer and $500 nonrefundable deposit by Jan. 28th. I emailed them recently and was able to push the deadline to March 1st. I like MIIS but I feel that I'd rather be on the East Coast in the "center of the action". It seems that most schools send their acceptance/nonacceptance/waislist letters by midmarch. Any thoughts about MIIS? Fletcher? Elliott (I applied to their part-time program)? Thanks.

P.S.: New hobby developed while waiting and calming down my nerves: organizing my closet and thinking that maybe, at this time next year, I will be so busy that I'd wish I would have enjoyed my time right now in the waiting frenzy.

[PurpleBrain]

congrats! i'm also a pisces :-)

[blorgmorg]

Hey congrats on the acceptance! I'm in a very similar situation, actually. I just got accepted to the same program at Monterey, and am waiting to hear back from quite a few schools (including GW!).

It seemed that the admissions board was willing to push your deadline back a bit further than that? I'm not really sure how it works. That being said, Monterey may not have the D.C. "in the middle of everything" experience, but Monterey has close ties with the State Department, USAID, and many other NGOs. I got the impression that there is a high caliber of internship and networking opportunities, many of which are located in D.C. or NYC. Which concentration would you pursue?

[pisces81]

Thanks blorgmorg . The deadline to secure the 8K scholarship for Monterey is tomorrow and I would have to send my $500 non-refundable deposit today. Not sure what to do yet. They were really nice to extend that deadline but I still have three schools to consider (though I doubt I'll get into Columbia). I hope to hear from all three schools before the end of March so that I can figure out what to do. I would like to pursue studies in the field of Security/Conflict Resolution.

How about you? Any news from the schools?

[blorgmorg]

I've only heard back from the University of Maryland (rejected) and Monterey, and am waiting to hear back from 7 other schools! I applied to quite a few to hedge my bets, haha. It seems like most schools in our discipline don't send out admissions decisions until March, so here's hoping we both start getting some news back!

[pisces81]

I just received the financial aid info for Monterey and I don't know if I feel comfortable being in that much debt. Like you say, this month should be it to hear from the other schools. I hope there are some good news in sight in regards to funding.