American and George Mason

[Clay Made]

Anyone aware of the reputations of the following programmes:

MA in International Relations - SIS American

MA in International Development - SIS American

MA in Global Affairs - GMU

Particularly concerned as to potential jobs.

Would like to work within consulting (public sector, emphasis on development, growth) or depts within larger organisations such as World Bank.

Thanks!

[Mal83]

GM's Global Affairs program is very new, I believe only 2 years old. It's only a 30 credit program so really you'd be done in a year and a half, that was something attractive to me but when I dove into the curriculum more it just didn't seem thorough enough, not compared to the ID programs at American and George Washington anyway. I feel that GW has more to offer in terms of classes, a rather vast array of them. I had applied to American (ID), GWU (ID), and GM (GA). American is certainly much more established, prestigious, and competitive than George Mason. But a nice feature at Mason is that a 2 week faculty-led study abroad trip is part of the program. It's also cheaper, which is something to consider. GM actually has a solid reputation for it's economics program and it seems like a fine school all around, I was very happy to be admitted there, but for IR related courses of study it's pretty much a given that the DC schools are the most desirable for their reputations, faculties, and connections, which is why I'm headed to GW this fall.

[Clay Made]

Thanks! Yeah, I spoke to the admissions dept at GMU and the program is indeed new. So new, they dont have admissions placements.

Probably rule that one out as they dont even offer financial aid to students. So too with GWU, who only offer it in the fall.

Kinda feel those programs pale in comparison to SSP and SIS..

[JAubrey]

American is alright if it is your only option...however I would not count on getting into the WB or any major consultancy (BAH, Deloitte, the holy trinity, etc) as you will be up against GTown, SAIS, SIPA, and even Elliott grads, all of which are superior programs and feed directly into the WB and top tier consultancies.

I would advise you get some relevant work experience and try again in a cycle or two.

[Mal83]

I pretty sure The Elliott School offers funding, but that is correct that they don't do spring admissions for the most part. Yeah, I heard there was no funding for that program at George Mason, I didn't expect it so it wasn't a deciding factor for me, but they absolutely do give financial aid, as in student loans, if that's something you'd consider. What I forgot to mention about GA at Mason is that they require proof of foreign language proficiency just for admission, so I'm not sure where you are with foreign language skills, but I imagine that could be a bit of a setback for some people.

I wouldn't say that Elliott pales in comparison to SIS, I think if anything they're on par with each other, but again, the impression I've gotten is that Elliott is superior...at least a little There is actually an entire thread in this forum dedicated to American SIS, but it kind of petered out after the results of the Fall 2011 cycle came in a few months ago...but do a search, there's lots of info and opinions in there. Also, people in threads dedicated to comparing SIS and Elliott have said that they were less impressed by SIS after going to the open house, I don't really recall the specific reasons but I will admit that I'm partial to Elliott so my opinion might be a little less objective. But if SIS is appealing to you and fits your goals then it's probably a good option and worth pursuing.