General consensus on DC schools? (MPP/MPA)

[kleisthenes]

I have applied to three DC area schools as an international student. I previously worked in the district and want to return because I love the vibe, the atmosphere, and the opportunities, not to mention the international mix.

I applied to GWU, GPPI and AU SPA, all for the MPP programme. So here's my question:

Is there a general consensus on the strengths of each particular school and their programmes?

I seem to be leaning towards GWU because of my service background, but I'm really dependent on wherever gives me the most funding. That being said, on the chance I do have some choice, I want to know I'm making the right decision.

I've come from a fairly modest academic background (equiv 3.5gpa from a mid-ranked UK institution), GRE scores 750 Q, 560 V and 5.0 A. My strongest qualification is my four years in equality lobby in the US and the UK and now my one year working in grassroots development as an Indicorps Fellow in India. I suppose, more than anything, I want this degree to have more practical application than academic quotient, although I'm very happy with the latter too.

What are the relative merits of each programme and if you were to rank them, how would they go? This might be an obvious question (Georgetown > GWU > AU). The thing is, they're all joint ranked on the US News rankings, so it falls to other merits for each campus and degree. While I'm put off by the distance of AU from downtown DC (although very close by metro), I consider this my most likely option for funding, and it's cheaper....

Oh, I've added a little poll to so we can measure school popularity, and I've thrown George Mason in there too...