University of Maryland MPP Open House

[fishpoo]

Hey everyone! Did anyone attend the UMD Open House last week? If you have any comments to provide on the event, I'd love to hear! It would be especially helpful for me b/c I'm in LA, and I'm just not sure if I can make a visit eventually. I was hoping i could go, but $$ made that a no go.

Is anyone considering UMD v. any big name schools? I'd like to focus on the environmental track, but I have some concerns about employability after graduation. The private schools have such great networking opportunities and I hope to have an equally good pull with private sector employers with the strong foundational skills i'll get at UMD.

Thank you!

[pushpin]

I know that SDMPP just came back from the open house. You might want to PM him/her if they don't make a post.

Hey everyone! Did anyone attend the UMD Open House last week? If you have any comments to provide on the event, I'd love to hear! It would be especially helpful for me b/c I'm in LA, and I'm just not sure if I can make a visit eventually. I was hoping i could go, but $ made that a no go.

Is anyone considering UMD v. any big name schools? I'd like to focus on the environmental track, but I have some concerns about employability after graduation. The private schools have such great networking opportunities and I hope to have an equally good pull with private sector employers with the strong foundational skills i'll get at UMD.

Thank you!

[fishpoo]

I know that SDMPP just came back from the open house. You might want to PM him/her if they don't make a post.

Worth a shot - thanks!

[sdmpp]

I enjoyed Maryland's Open House. I had the opportunity to meet with a professor in the morning and attend two classes in the afternoon. My focus leans towards the Federal Government, so Maryland's location is a big plus for me. The professors and guest speakers either previous held high positions within the Government or are currently still serving. In terms of career services, they seem to work with you from day 1 and have great alum connections. The big question is if you want to stay in the east coast after graduation or move back to California. It appears to be easier to make local connections for post graduate employment. We may have similar funding offers at least for UMD and USC, which is something to think about. The other schools in my contention are UCLA and Berkeley. Not entirely sure how I'll decide by 4/15!! IM me if you would like additional information about UMD.

[fishpoo]

I enjoyed Maryland's Open House. I had the opportunity to meet with a professor in the morning and attend two classes in the afternoon. My focus leans towards the Federal Government, so Maryland's location is a big plus for me. The professors and guest speakers either previous held high positions within the Government or are currently still serving. In terms of career services, they seem to work with you from day 1 and have great alum connections. The big question is if you want to stay in the east coast after graduation or move back to California. It appears to be easier to make local connections for post graduate employment. We may have similar funding offers at least for UMD and USC, which is something to think about. The other schools in my contention are UCLA and Berkeley. Not entirely sure how I'll decide by 4/15!! IM me if you would like additional information about UMD.

SDMPP,

Thank you for the low-down from your experience at UMD's open house! I too am pretty impressed by the caliber of their faculty and I'm confident the curriculum (for enviropolicy) is well-suited for my goals. And, you're entirely right about the, "big question" - it really just boils down to where I expect to be after graduation.

I do want to spend a couple years in DC post graduation, but I'm strongly leaning towards working in the private sector and b/c UMD grads are so much more inclined towards federal govt positions, I just don't know if it's the right fit for me (i.e., whether they have the network connections I may need one day). It's funny that you mention their great alum connections - I spoke with someone in Career Services about this last week and I came away from the conversation still wondering whether alums would be enthusiastic about helping out graduating students in the end, so I'm glad to hear that your your positive impression on this topic.

When I was at USC, their connections in DC seemed sufficient so if I (or you) do eventually want to sway towards the east during the summers and post grad, it seems entirely possible to do so (though perhaps a bit more time-consuming than if you were graduating from Gtown, persay).

Ahhhh.... sooooo much to think about. I'll probably making some more calls and would be happy to share any new juicy details I find.

Good luck to everyone on the 15th's deadline!

Edited April 6, 2011 by fishpoo