The 'Am I competitive' thread - READ ME BEFORE POSTING

[justsomeguy75]

An update: just recieved my AW results, and got a 4.5. I wonder if my Verbal of 156 and AW of 4.5 will hurt me for these schools?

 

Also - would truly appreciate some inputs on my profile. Am I aiming too high? 

 

I mean 4.5 is not a bad score as far as I know, is it? 5 would've been better but 4.5 is like 78th percentile, which is a respectable score in my opinion. You should not worry about it. On the other hand, considering the GRE's average mathematic level, I would say that 152Q is quite low (or average) ... but I don't know how much the schools you are aiming for emphasize on quantitative. Your verbal is better than average (70%) but not exceptional either.

 

If you want be safe and not worry about your GRE score then try to aim at least for 161Q, 159V and 4.5-5AWA. 

[devly]

Programs: Programs with international development (ID) component: MPP, MPA, Urban Planning
Schools: American U/SIS: MA in International Development (two years), Australia National University/Crawford School: MPP (one year)

Considering applying to: Rutgers/Bloustein School: M. City and Regional Studies (one year), American U/SPA: MPP

Admission round: Spring 2014

 

Undergraduate institution: A good university in Southeast Asia
Undergraduate Major: Environmental Science

Undergraduate GPA:  around 3.6 when converted (cum laude)

 

Graduate institution:  A good university in Germany with full ride + stipend
Graduate Major: Environmental Policy

Graduate GPA:  3.3

Dropped PhD after a year but came out of it with a co-authored peer-reviewed article (this is entirely separate from the graduate degree)

 

 

GRE: 156 V 151 Q. 4.0 AW

TOEFL: Will take if required by university
Years Out of grad school (if applicable): 4

Years of Work Experience: 5 years

Describe Relevant Work Experience: 

 

3 months in an NGO

2.5 years in economic ministry

2 years in an international organization in Washington DC

 

Internships and volunteer work:

6 months with a think-tank

2 months in a radio station (worked in English)

1 month with an environmental NGO

2-day volunteer work in house construction

Co-founded a professional organization in my home country

 

 

Study Abroad Experiences :

3 years in Germany

2 months in Peru to learn Spanish (not part of curriculum)

Languages: 

My native language (not a major one like Chinese or Hindi)

English: Fluent

 

German: Advanced

Spanish: Beginner

 

Quantitative: Algebra, basic econ, basic statistics. No macro and microecon. This is the primary reason I'm going back to grad school-  strengthen my quant skills, and broaden my sector specialization.

SOP: Pretty strong writer, good narrative.

 

LOR:

1 from former supervisor in most recent job

1 from former thesis supervisor

1 from former supervisor in government work (if needed)

 

Other remarks: 

Preference for AU because of DC location so I can maintain my network. I also want to build my career in DC.

Not considering Gtown, GW, SAIS because of prohibitive costs.

Financial aid is a huge factor in my decision. I'm averse to student loans. If I don't get much/anything I'll be partial to one-year programs.

I don't like standardized tests

Questions:

• How will my first Masters and dropped PhD be viewed as part of my application?
• What are the pros and cons in applying for spring admissions?
• Should I take the TOEFL/IELTS? Or should I just mention I graduated from universities where English is the language of instruction?
• What other universities I should consider?

Thanks a lot!

[devly]

I suggest doing a Master's degree and write a thesis. Try to publish it in a peer-reviewed journal and showcase this when you start applying for a PhD. You have substantial work experience in the government, but your academic background in IT and business might not be viewed as good theoretical foundations in public administration to be qualified for pursuing a PhD.

 

Also, strongly consider Fletcher. I met someone who finished a PhD there, and she said it is doable in 3 years. So this reduces expenses out of your own pocket if you have limited funding.

 

Good luck!

 

 

 

Guys, have been reading the cafe for a while now. Your inputs on my profile will be really helpful. I am planning to apply for Fall 2014

 

Programs: MPA / PhD (considering whether I should do an MPA first and then try a PhD or go for PhD directly)
Schools: MPA - Fletcher, WWS, Maxwell; PhD - HKS, MIT, BU, Georgetown, Rutgers, George Mason (the area I am considering for research is at cross roads between political science and public admin)

 

Undergraduate institution: A good engineering college in India
Undergraduate Major: Information Technology

Undergraduate GPA:  70% (which corresponds to top 5% in the University

 

Graduate institution:  IIM Ahmedabad (Premier B School in Asia)
Graduate Major: Business Administration

Undergraduate GPA:  2.9 (it is a percentile system...corresponds to top 30% in the batch)

 

GRE: 158 V 164 Q. 4 AW

TOEFL: 111/120
Years Out of grad school (if applicable): 5+ years

Years of Work Experience: 5+ years of strategy consulting

Describe Relevant Work Experience: 

During the 5 years as a strategy consultant, worked on several nation building consulting projects which include

- Conceptualization and pre-feasibility of a new economic city to be developed in Bahrain (the project has been approved by The Parliament of Bahrain)

- Master Planning and Governance study for one of the largest global petrochemical complex to be developed in Malaysia

- Innovation Policy workshop for Emirates Competitiveness Council in UAE

- Investment strategy in renewable energy for Saudia Arabia

- Multiple projects for private sector clients in steel, turbine manufacturing, telecommunications, real estate and energy

 

Also worked for 4 months with the Performance Management Division in the Prime Ministers Office in India for setting up India's government performance management system. This was a voluntary project that I undertook taking a sabbatical from my consulting company

 

Study Abroad Experiences :

4 months in an international exchange program at University of Mannheim, Germany

Languages: 

English: Fluent

Hindi (and 2 other Indian languages): Native

Spanish: Beginner

 

Quantitative: Been good at Quant. Was selected for Indian National Mathematical Olympiad. Have scored very well in advanced statistical courses taken during my engineering. Have done Micro (with poor grades) and Macro (with good grades) at my B School

SOP: Have a story. Still formulating it

 

LOR:

1 from my faculty at IIM who I worked closely and published a case study on Government Performance Management

2 from Managers at my consulting company

Questions: 

• I have been away from academics for a while and I do not have sufficient academic papers to showcase my ability for a PhD
• Do you guys think my profile is good enough to get into Political Economy PhD programs at places like Harvard, MIT, etc. (still researching schools with my research interests) or do you think I should try to get into a MPA program and try from there (the advantage of the latter is that I can pull out in case I dont feel I am cut out for PhD)
• What do you think are my chances with the MPA programs at Fletcher, WWS and Maxwell
• Do I need to retake the GRE...how much is the 158 in Verbal and 4 in AW going to hurt me
• If I am to do an MPA, I would like to do it from institutions which provide a lot of scholarships and are either a 1 yr program or allow for transfering credits from the Masters to a PhD program - which are the other institutions that I should look up?
• Any suggestions on how I can put across that my GPA at grad school isnt bad (it is nowhere similar to the 2.9 you get on a US grade scale) without sounding like giving excuses

Will really appreciate your frank inputs

 

[prsnl_shppr]

Programs: MPA, MPP
Schools: Berkely, UCLA, USC, Cornell, CMU, Brown, UPenn, HKS?

 

 

Undergraduate institution: UC school
Undergraduate Major: Economics

Undergraduate GPA:  ~3.3 overall; ~3.76 last two years; ~3.85 in major

 

 

GRE Have not yet taken. Am currently studying, but Power Prep has me at 161V 166 Q. ? AW and I am hoping to score a few points higher in total than that. 

Years Out of grad school (if applicable): 2.5

Years of Work Experience: 2.5

Describe Relevant Work Experience: 

 

15 months in AmeriCorps VISTA with lots of responsibility and accomplishments doing program eval and data analysis in the education world. 

12 months doing title 1 tutoring. 

6 months T.A. in public school. 

 

 

Languages: 

Spanish: Conversational

 

Quantitative: Stats: A; Majored in economics with all A's except for a few B+'s. A in Business Calc 1 and a C in Business Calc 2

SOP: About my experiences in AmeriCorps, working in public education and my desire to continue working in that space as an evaluator and policy analyst. 

 

LOR: Two letters from prominent officials that I worked with while in VISTA, one from an econ professor. 

 

Questions:

Will it hurt that two of my letters of rec are from the same organization? I am going to ask them to focus on different things. 

 

I have a job offer from the organization I did VISTA with which I will likely take after I get back from my traveling/studying for gre hybrid sojourn, hopefully in time to be noted on my grad school applications. Will it look poorly if I took some time off to travel?

 

Do I have a chance of being admitted to top programs (Berkeley, HKS)?

 

 

Any input would be appreciated. 

[hashtags89]

Programs: MPP, MPA, 
Schools: HKS, WWS, SIPA, GPPI, Carnegie Mellon

Considering applying to: Berkley, Michigan

Admission round: Fall 2014

 

Undergraduate institution: Indian Institute of Technology
Undergraduate Major: Civil Engineering

Undergraduate GPA:  around 8.4/10

 

 

GRE: 161 V 166 Q. 4.0 AW

TOEFL: Waiting Results
Years of Work Experience: 3 years

Describe Relevant Work Experience: 

 

3 months with Legislature (Member of Parliament)

2.5 years in Strategy Consulting (1 year with a BIG 4)

Currently working with legislature on various consulting assignments

 

Internships and volunteer work:

1 year with a youth mentoring not for profit

 

 

International Experiences :

Represented  India in a Youth conference held in Edinburgh.

 

Languages: 

My native language ( Hindi)

English: Fluent

 

Quantitative: Good quant skills, Calculus, Algebra, basic econ, basic statistics. No macro and microecon. 

SOP: Pretty strong writer, good narrative.

 

LOR:

1 from former HKS alumni; founder of the current initiative that I am working in/ From earlier supervisor in strategy consulting job

1 from the not-for profit co-chair

1 from Legislature Member of parliament

 

Other remarks:

Preference for HKS, WWS and SIPA as they have a lot of international students and the school will not be as domestic policy oriented as others as I want to return back to India eventually. But, for the initial few years I want to work in international organisations (WB/ WRI/ WWF) based out in DC or NY for a few years hence thinking of proximity to Washington/ NY is a factor in deciding schools. Also sustainability and environment seem a specialization in most of these schools, which is an area I am interested in/

 

Questions:

• Since I have a relatively smaller experience in public policy, how are my chances of getting into top schools such as HKS and WWS?
• What other universities I should consider?  GMU, Syracruse, Wagner, Hopkins - should I look at applying to these schools as well?

I would really appreciate any input/ help.

[MPPgal]

 

Programs: MPP, MPA, 

Schools: HKS, WWS, SIPA, GPPI, Carnegie Mellon

Considering applying to: Berkley, Michigan

Admission round: Fall 2014

 

Undergraduate institution: Indian Institute of Technology

Undergraduate Major: Civil Engineering

Undergraduate GPA:  around 8.4/10

 

 

GRE: 161 V 166 Q. 4.0 AW

TOEFL: Waiting Results

Years of Work Experience: 3 years

Describe Relevant Work Experience: 

 

3 months with Legislature (Member of Parliament)

2.5 years in Strategy Consulting (1 year with a BIG 4)

Currently working with legislature on various consulting assignments

 

Internships and volunteer work:

1 year with a youth mentoring not for profit

 

 

International Experiences :

Represented  India in a Youth conference held in Edinburgh.

 

Languages: 

My native language ( Hindi)

English: Fluent

 

Quantitative: Good quant skills, Calculus, Algebra, basic econ, basic statistics. No macro and microecon. 

SOP: Pretty strong writer, good narrative.

 

LOR:

1 from former HKS alumni; founder of the current initiative that I am working in/ From earlier supervisor in strategy consulting job

1 from the not-for profit co-chair

1 from Legislature Member of parliament

 

Other remarks:

Preference for HKS, WWS and SIPA as they have a lot of international students and the school will not be as domestic policy oriented as others as I want to return back to India eventually. But, for the initial few years I want to work in international organisations (WB/ WRI/ WWF) based out in DC or NY for a few years hence thinking of proximity to Washington/ NY is a factor in deciding schools. Also sustainability and environment seem a specialization in most of these schools, which is an area I am interested in/

 

Questions:

• Since I have a relatively smaller experience in public policy, how are my chances of getting into top schools such as HKS and WWS?
• What other universities I should consider?  GMU, Syracruse, Wagner, Hopkins - should I look at applying to these schools as well?

I would really appreciate any input/ help.

 

You really should get at least 1 or 2 academic references as you do no have that many years WE. Your chances of WWS and HKS are like everyones, a gamble where they accept around 15% so the question is do you want to go to graduate school next year or do you only want to go to either of those two. If the answer is a then YES you should apply to a few others, in general I would say you have a good shot at Harris, GPPI, SAIS, GW, Berkeley, Michigan, LBJ, Columbia, Cornell, CM and Duke and for sure you will get in GMU, syracuse, indiana, Wagner.

[Tabris]

So here's my present situation:

 

I'm aiming for Master's Degrees in IR or maybe China Studies or Security Studies. I'm wondering if I have a shot at some of these more competitive places despite a sub-par GPA.

 

Schools I'm interested in so far: JHU-SAIS, Georgetown-SFS, Columbia-SIPA, Tufts-Fletcher, Princeton-WW, Michigan-Ford, GW-Eliot, Harvard-Kennedy (MPP).  I'm probably leaning towards SAIS or SFS at this point.  

 

Undergraduate institution: Johns Hopkins

Undergraduate GPA: 3.3. Major GPA: 3.7.

Undergraduate Majors: B.A. International Studies (mix of Economics, History, and Polisci), with a focus on China Studies.

 

I do have quant experience: micro and macro economics, and math I took when I was in high school. Calc III, Lin Alg, DiffEq, and Stats (with help from a local community college).

 

GRE Quantitative Score: 164

GRE Verbal Score: 164

GRE AW Score: 5.0

 

Languages: Spanish (fluent), and some Cebuano (conversational). No Chinese though.

 

Activities:

Diverse Gender and Sexuality Alliance

Model UN

Wrote several editorial articles for school's political journal.

Honors Society for the International Studies

Founding member of university quiz bowl team, we won 2nd place last year and 1st in regional tournaments

 

Letters of rec: At least three professors at school so far, one state senator, and one Senator.

 

So the reason I'm posting all this is that I had a terrible freshman year. Depressed, nearly flunked out, etc. It really shows on my GPA and Transcript. I'm wondering if all the stuff I posted here would be able to balance that out, or whether I have to set my sights a bit lower.

[UTLonghorn]

Hi All,

I am not sure if this is the appropriate thread to post this in, but I am looking to go to graduate school for Education Policy. I plan to apply to some MPP programs and some programs located in the education departments. I am worried about my GRE scores, particularly my AW Score. Am I competitive for these schools?

 

Potential Schools: Vanderbilt (Peabody MPP in Education Policy), Georgetown (MPP), Teacher’s College Columbia (M.A. in Politics and Education), LSE Msc in Social Policy, Harvard (M.Ed. in Education Policy), Chicago (Harris), USC (Price), UT Austin (LBJ)

 

Undergraduate Institution: The University of Texas at Austin

 

Undergraduate GPA: 3.55 at UT Austin. Major GPA: 3.7 overall GPA 3.67—One year at Texas Tech University

 

Undergraduate Major: B.A. in Government minor in history

 

GRE Quantitative Score: 159

GRE Verbal Score: 161

GRE AW Score: 4.0

 

Languages: Spanish (conversational)

 

Study Abroad: One summer studying in Rome

 

Activities: Volunteered at local library for over a year, member of a Political Science Honors Society,  awarded a fellowship to study and intern in D.C. and now I am on the scholarship committee of that program.

 

Work Experience: Worked for a state Representative as a Legislative Aide/Director. Interned for a campaign committee in DC for four months, and interned for a State Senator for one year. Worker/Manager of a local business while interning.

 

Letters of rec: At least two professors at school and one state representative

[inforitnow]

Programs: MPP/MPA (I want to focus on socioeconomic policy, and possibly regional economic integration)
Potential Schools: UW Evans School, UC Berkeley Goldman School, UT Austin LBJ School, American University

 

Undergraduate institution: University of Washington, Seattle
Undergraduate Major: Political Science; Economics

Undergraduate GPA:  3.67 last 90 credits; 3.43 UW cumulative; 3.48 cumulative if including transfer credits (went to UNL my freshman year); 3.72 political science; 3.49 economics

 

GRE: 164 V / 160 Q / 5 AW

Years Out of grad school (if applicable): 2+ years

Years of Work Experience: 1.5 years experience (nearly irrelevant in nature)

Describe Relevant Work Experience: 

• 1.5 years as a "customer advocate" - worked with public officials and government agencies to help people save their homes from foreclosure, essentially glorified customer service
• 4 months intern for U.S. Senator
• 2 months intern for internet startup - project/database administration
• 6 months intern for improvisational comedy theater - theater management
• 5 months a community organizer

 

Other Experience (mentioned in resume or SOP): 

• Graduated from 1-year improvisational comedy program - this is kind of unique and is actually very useful (I hope schools agree ha ha)
• About to do a 3-month improvised backpacking trip in Central and South America
• President of my residence hall and senator of association of residence halls during my freshman year of college

Languages: 

English: Fluent

Spanish: Beginner/intermediate (hopefully conversationally fluent by the time I finish my aforementioned trip)

SOP: Very well-written (a huge strength of mine)...possibly less impressive than those of people with wow-stories, but pretty good overall (I hope)

 

LOR:

• 1 from current employer (strong, but experience is not directly related to public policy)
• 1 from former professor (strong)
• 1 from US Senator (not sure how strong, but will be decent at least)

Questions: 

• Am I competitive?
• What other schools should I apply to and why?
• Do you have any other advice for me?
• Do you think admissions committees read this forum (ha)?

[excusemyfrench]

 

Programs: MPP/MPA (I want to focus on socioeconomic policy, and possibly regional economic integration)

Potential Schools: UW Evans School, UC Berkeley Goldman School, UT Austin LBJ School, American University

 

Undergraduate institution: University of Washington, Seattle

Undergraduate Major: Political Science; Economics

Undergraduate GPA:  3.67 last 90 credits; 3.43 UW cumulative; 3.48 cumulative if including transfer credits (went to UNL my freshman year); 3.72 political science; 3.49 economics

 

GRE: 164 V / 160 Q / 5 AW

Years Out of grad school (if applicable): 2+ years

Years of Work Experience: 1.5 years experience (nearly irrelevant in nature)

Describe Relevant Work Experience: 

• 1.5 years as a "customer advocate" - worked with public officials and government agencies to help people save their homes from foreclosure, essentially glorified customer service
• 4 months intern for U.S. Senator
• 2 months intern for internet startup - project/database administration
• 6 months intern for improvisational comedy theater - theater management
• 5 months a community organizer

 

Other Experience (mentioned in resume or SOP): 

• Graduated from 1-year improvisational comedy program - this is kind of unique and is actually very useful (I hope schools agree ha ha)
• About to do a 3-month improvised backpacking trip in Central and South America
• President of my residence hall and senator of association of residence halls during my freshman year of college

Languages: 

English: Fluent

Spanish: Beginner/intermediate (hopefully conversationally fluent by the time I finish my aforementioned trip)

SOP: Very well-written (a huge strength of mine)...possibly less impressive than those of people with wow-stories, but pretty good overall (I hope)

 

LOR:

• 1 from current employer (strong, but experience is not directly related to public policy)
• 1 from former professor (strong)
• 1 from US Senator (not sure how strong, but will be decent at least)

Questions: 

• Am I competitive?
• What other schools should I apply to and why?
• Do you have any other advice for me?
• Do you think admissions committees read this forum (ha)?

 

I think you're pretty competitive. The one thing I heard about UW grad programs (as a fellow Husky grad) is that they sometimes don't like UW undergrads. The other piece of advice that was helpful to me: you should only apply to programs in locations that you're willing to live in for awhile. Networking and community connections are key in the MPA/MPP world so if you go to American for example then come back to Seattle, it may be hard for you to get your foot in the door (especially when competing with Evans grads - it's a tight-knit circle from what I can tell). In the end, it's really about what adcomm is looking to build re: the incoming class but overall I'd say you'd have a great chance of getting past the grades/scores hurdle at least. Good luck!

[inforitnow]

Thanks, excusemyfrench, I appreciate it. That's great advice--something I hadn't thought too much about.

Congrats on NYU Wagner.

[HerrDBoo]

Programs: MA in Security Studies/an IR MA that is focused on something of that nature
Potential Schools: GW, Georgetown, American, Fletcher, NYU, BU, Seton Hall (really down on the list), Maryland, Texas A&M, UTexas, Fordham (more business/finance oriented, however) 

 

Undergraduate institution: Rutgers 
Undergraduate Major: Political Science; Minor in Spanish and Philosophy 

Undergraduate GPA:  3.81

 

GRE: 162 V / 152 Q / 4.5 AW

Years of Work Experience: by the date at which I apply, 7 months

Describe Relevant Work Experience: Not relevant at all

• 5 months interning at an environmental consultancy firm
• 4 months as a business development intern at an environmental education firm
• 3 months as an executive recuriter 
• currently working as an executive assistant/real estate consultant in a commercial real estate firm since September

Other Experience (mentioned in resume or SOP): 

• traveled abroad in Europe for a month after I graduated in May 2012
• Rowed 2 years on the varsity heavyweight rowing team at Rutgers (probably irrelevant)

Languages: 

English: Fluent

Spanish: Conversational and comprehensional (need some refreshers though)

Romanian: Fluent 

SOP: Work in progress, but I think I am putting very good effort into it and I hope that it will show

 

LOR:

• Two professors 
• My supervisor at the environmental consultancy firm 

Questions: 

• Am I competitive?
• What other schools should I apply to and why?
• Do you have any other advice for me?
• Does my GRE quant score hold me back?
• How much weight is put on the language requirement?
• I haven't taken an econ class, but I am trying to apply to take one at a local college, however, I won't finish the class before applicaitons are due...any advice on how to notify the adcomm of this? Maybe in the SOP? Ideas?

Edited November 7, 2013 by HerrDBoo

[a_c_e000]

Programs: MPP/MPA, MA in IR
Schools: HKS, SIPA, SAIS, Yale Jackson, possibly SFS

Admission round: Fall 2014

 

Undergraduate institution: Top 30 national university in the US
Undergraduate Major: International Relations/Poli Sci with minor in Economics

Undergraduate GPA:  around 3.75

 

 

GRE: 164 V 162 Q.

Years of Work Experience: straight out of undergrad with 4 internships

Describe Relevant Work Experience: 

INTERNSHIPS:

1.5 years (full and part time) researcher at a humanitarian organization

3 months at a professional services company in China

4 months at a DC think tank

3 months at a policy research firm in China

 

International Experiences :

Canadian citizen, lived in China for 8 years, 2 internships in China. extensive travel abroad.

 

Languages: 

English fluent, Mandarin Chinese fluent, French intermediate, Japanese intermediate, Swahili beginner

 

Quantitative: Intermediate micro and macro, basic calculus, will take stats next semester

SOP: Pretty strong writer.

 

LOR:

1 from professor/thesis advisor

1 from former internship supervisor affiliated with HKS

1 from another former internship supervisor

 

Other remarks:

I will be applying to several year long fellowships as well as grad school. My preference is to wait a year before attending grad school, but if i get admitted to a great school or not get into my preferred fellowships I can always be flexible.

Questions:

• What are my chances of getting into these schools straight out of undergrad? i have pretty extensive internship experiences but would i be better off waiting a year?
•  

Edited November 12, 2013 by a_c_e000

[estrauss]

This is a nice thread. I'm afraid I don't know enough about the programs to respond intelligently to others, but I'd appreciate any thoughts on my competitiveness. My info is below:

 

Programs: MPP/MPA (interests are in urban policy and municipal finance)
Potential Schools: Woodrow Wilson, HKS, Berkeley Goldman, Chicago Harris, and Carnegie Mellon

Admissions Season: For Fall 2014

 

Undergraduate institution: Top liberal arts school (rankings are such a waste of time, but school is grouped with Swarthmore, Pomona, Middlebury, etcetera)
Undergraduate Major: English, Anthropology

Undergraduate GPA:  3.67

 

GRE: V: 170 / Q: 163 / AW: ?

Years Out of Undergraduate: 2-3

Years of Work Experience: 2

Describe Relevant Work Experience: 

• 1.5 years as a legal assistant at a government-focused law firm; worked with lots of municipalities, counties, and public agencies on labor issue (negotiations, pension stuff, etcetera)
• 7 months at the same place as a compensation consultant; lots of stats

 

Other Stuff: 

• Have coursework in stats and am good with Stata, but didn't take calculus in college, only in high school; very little econ coursework, although I know the material
• Volunteered with tutoring organizations and job training organizations for past several years (6+, all through college and since)
• Wrote for the university paper as an undergrad and as a talk show host for a politics talk show on the undergrad news station, for what that's worth.

Letters:

• 1 from former supervisor, founding partner at the law firm, should be very strong
• 1 from former anthropology professor, should be pretty strong
• 1 from former client, executive director of a public agency, should be very strong

Questions: 

• What are your impressions of my chances? Obviously I know how to do math, although I was hoping my GRE score would be higher, and the public sector work is there, as is some volunteer experience (I could have done more, but I have other interests, too). My concern is that I didn't take econ or calc in college. If it isn't obvious, I thought I was bound for law-school, but had a change of heart. Any thoughts would be great, and thank you very much.

Edited November 15, 2013 by estrauss

[arbitist]

Hey guys,

 

So how bad is this GRE score for MPP programs: Verbal 156, Quant 152. AW don't know yet, but i think it'll be 4.5-5. Should i retake the test? I might be able to do better if i prepare for another month or so, and still make it in time for application deadlines. 

 

Thanks!

[NPRjunkie]

I suggest doing a Master's degree and write a thesis. Try to publish it in a peer-reviewed journal and showcase this when you start applying for a PhD. You have substantial work experience in the government, but your academic background in IT and business might not be viewed as good theoretical foundations in public administration to be qualified for pursuing a PhD.

 

Also, strongly consider Fletcher. I met someone who finished a PhD there, and she said it is doable in 3 years. So this reduces expenses out of your own pocket if you have limited funding.

 

Good luck!

 

A PhD is not doable in three years, not even outside the U.S. (typically). The average length of a PhD in poli/sci is 6-7 years. The only exceptions are programs that are dual-degree that reduce the PhD length to a minimum of 4 years. and (obviously abroad) PhDs or DPhils may involve 3 taught/research years and 1 year for dissertation. 

[NPRjunkie]

 

Guys, have been reading the cafe for a while now. Your inputs on my profile will be really helpful. I am planning to apply for Fall 2014

 

Programs: MPA / PhD (considering whether I should do an MPA first and then try a PhD or go for PhD directly)

Schools: MPA - Fletcher, WWS, Maxwell; PhD - HKS, MIT, BU, Georgetown, Rutgers, George Mason (the area I am considering for research is at cross roads between political science and public admin)

 

Undergraduate institution: A good engineering college in India

Undergraduate Major: Information Technology

Undergraduate GPA:  70% (which corresponds to top 5% in the University

 

Graduate institution:  IIM Ahmedabad (Premier B School in Asia)

Graduate Major: Business Administration

Undergraduate GPA:  2.9 (it is a percentile system...corresponds to top 30% in the batch)

 

GRE: 158 V 164 Q. 4 AW

TOEFL: 111/120

Years Out of grad school (if applicable): 5+ years

Years of Work Experience: 5+ years of strategy consulting

Describe Relevant Work Experience: 

During the 5 years as a strategy consultant, worked on several nation building consulting projects which include

- Conceptualization and pre-feasibility of a new economic city to be developed in Bahrain (the project has been approved by The Parliament of Bahrain)

- Master Planning and Governance study for one of the largest global petrochemical complex to be developed in Malaysia

- Innovation Policy workshop for Emirates Competitiveness Council in UAE

- Investment strategy in renewable energy for Saudia Arabia

- Multiple projects for private sector clients in steel, turbine manufacturing, telecommunications, real estate and energy

 

Also worked for 4 months with the Performance Management Division in the Prime Ministers Office in India for setting up India's government performance management system. This was a voluntary project that I undertook taking a sabbatical from my consulting company

 

Study Abroad Experiences :

4 months in an international exchange program at University of Mannheim, Germany

Languages: 

English: Fluent

Hindi (and 2 other Indian languages): Native

Spanish: Beginner

 

Quantitative: Been good at Quant. Was selected for Indian National Mathematical Olympiad. Have scored very well in advanced statistical courses taken during my engineering. Have done Micro (with poor grades) and Macro (with good grades) at my B School

SOP: Have a story. Still formulating it

 

LOR:

1 from my faculty at IIM who I worked closely and published a case study on Government Performance Management

2 from Managers at my consulting company

Questions: 

• I have been away from academics for a while and I do not have sufficient academic papers to showcase my ability for a PhD
• Do you guys think my profile is good enough to get into Political Economy PhD programs at places like Harvard, MIT, etc. (still researching schools with my research interests) or do you think I should try to get into a MPA program and try from there (the advantage of the latter is that I can pull out in case I dont feel I am cut out for PhD)
• What do you think are my chances with the MPA programs at Fletcher, WWS and Maxwell
• Do I need to retake the GRE...how much is the 158 in Verbal and 4 in AW going to hurt me
• If I am to do an MPA, I would like to do it from institutions which provide a lot of scholarships and are either a 1 yr program or allow for transfering credits from the Masters to a PhD program - which are the other institutions that I should look up?
• Any suggestions on how I can put across that my GPA at grad school isnt bad (it is nowhere similar to the 2.9 you get on a US grade scale) without sounding like giving excuses

Will really appreciate your frank inputs

 

 

I'll be blunt: your stats are pretty bad for a PhD program in the States. Consider the MPA first if you really want a public policy PhD and get a stellar GPA.

Edited November 15, 2013 by NPRjunkie

[hedong123]

I disagree with NPRJunkie.  

 

You have an excellent chance. Just explain to them how your undergrad's GPA system works.

[NPRjunkie]

I disagree with NPRJunkie.  

 

You have an excellent chance. Just explain to them how your undergrad's GPA system works.

 

Yeah, possibly. Sorry, for some reason I mixed up that post with the one by devly.

[HerrDBoo]

I'm going to be pushy. If anyone could go back a page and look over my profile, it would be much appreciated. Never got any responses (not sure if that is a good thing or a bad thing! haha).

[NPRjunkie]

I'm going to be pushy. If anyone could go back a page and look over my profile, it would be much appreciated. Never got any responses (not sure if that is a good thing or a bad thing! haha).

 

Fletcher and definitely GTown are a stretch. You should get more work experience. If you go to one of those programs with your current profile, it won't really enhance your resume to go to one of the lower tiered schools. These programs are really intended to augment work experience, not substitute it.

Edited November 19, 2013 by NPRjunkie

[HerrDBoo]

Fletcher and definitely GTown are a stretch. You should get more work experience. If you go to one of those programs with your current profile, it won't really enhance your resume to go to one of the lower tiered schools. These programs are really intended to augment work experience, not substitute it.

 

I have heard that, but then there is a good chunk of people going to some of these programs straight from undergrad. This is not to discredit your point, it is well taken. 

 

So if I do go to the lower tiered schools, you are saying, in essence, that it is not worth the time? I've always subscribed to the notion that it is what you make of it. In other words, if you bust your ass at a lower tiered school you could just as easily succeed (or have the chance to succeed) than if you coast through at a higher tiered school (of course, within reason).

 

If you can't tell, I have a hard time just saying thanks. I'm always up for discussion.

[NPRjunkie]

I have heard that, but then there is a good chunk of people going to some of these programs straight from undergrad. This is not to discredit your point, it is well taken. 

 

So if I do go to the lower tiered schools, you are saying, in essence, that it is not worth the time? I've always subscribed to the notion that it is what you make of it. In other words, if you bust your ass at a lower tiered school you could just as easily succeed (or have the chance to succeed) than if you coast through at a higher tiered school (of course, within reason).

 

If you can't tell, I have a hard time just saying thanks. I'm always up for discussion.

 

Yeah I know there are a good chunk of people straight from undergrad, fewer of whom will be at Fletcher and GTown than at GWU, American, and so on. You have 7 months of unrelated work experience, a low quant score, and haven't completed econ yet. Internships will not put you at the top of the pile; everyone and their mother has internships. Both schools are a stretch, in my opinion, but Fletcher is the more likely of the two. Maybe you're fine for Fletcher, actually. It's not all that competitive. 

 

My opinion is none of these programs are worth going to without work experience, and the top programs have a higher threshold for work experience anyway. Even while I was at SAIS, where there was a good chunk of people straight from undergrad., I (and others) marveled at how many were naive/unfocused how they were devaluing our degrees/experience.

 

I'm not doubting the ability of people to succeed from lower tiered schools; I'm doubting the value added to an already thin resume by a public policy degree (lower tiered or not). My advice is to get work experience, even if you get into Fletcher or GTown. 

Edited November 20, 2013 by NPRjunkie

[HerrDBoo]

Yeah I know there are a good chunk of people straight from undergrad, fewer of whom will be at Fletcher and GTown than at GWU, American, and so on. You have 7 months of unrelated work experience, a low quant score, and haven't completed econ yet. Internships will not put you at the top of the pile; everyone and their mother has internships. Both schools are a stretch, in my opinion, but Fletcher is the more likely of the two. Maybe you're fine for Fletcher, actually. It's not all that competitive. 

 

My opinion is none of these programs are worth going to without work experience, and the top programs have a higher threshold for work experience anyway. Even while I was at SAIS, where there was a good chunk of people straight from undergrad., I (and others) marveled at how many were naive/unfocused how they were devaluing our degrees/experience.

 

I'm not doubting the ability of people to succeed from lower tiered schools; I'm doubting the value added to an already thin resume by a public policy degree (lower tiered or not). My advice is to get work experience, even if you get into Fletcher or GTown. 

 

Well I do appreciate the insight. I have heard many more experienced professionals lament about how their classes are full of professionally inexperienced students. I guess it would be quite frustrating.

 

Well I will weight what you said and think about it going forward. I'll probably apply this cycle anyway and see how it goes.  

[DreamTeam03]

I've been reading over this board for a while as I've been exploring my options and you guys have been a ton of help. Even though I haven't posted anything until now, I wanted to let you guys know how awesome you are! Anyway, just wondering if I'm a mid tier candidate and if I have a chance in hell at the upper tier schools.

 

Programs: MPA, MPP
Schools: Georgetown, Maryland, Princeton, Berkeley, SAIS (MA), NYU

 

Undergraduate institution: University of Maryland

Undergraduate Major: English

Undergraduate GPA:  3.65 overall; 3.81 major

 

 

GRE: Verbal: 170; Quant: 164 (waiting on AW, but I'm confident)

Years Out of Undergrad: 1.5 years

Years of Work Experience: 1.5 years

Describe Relevant Work Experience: 

(This is one of two sections I'm worried about)

6 months teaching English in Korea

 

Languages: 

English: Fluent

Spanish: Took it for 9 years (currently conversational; proficient after I dust it off)

Urdu: Converational

Quantitative: (This is the other section I'm worried about)

Calc 1 (B+), Intro to Microeconomics ( B ) 

SOP: I'm going to ask this board for some tips on organizing it, but between my experiences and background, I think I have a few things that I can say distinguish me from other candidates (I'll just have to pick a few strong ones) and I am confident in my writing abilities.

 

LOR: Honestly, these are probably weak. I do not have strong relations with my professors at this point and my supervisor at my last job (teaching English overseas) has a tenuous command of the English language. So, I picked the director of the writing center where I tutored in college and my assistant director, with whom I helped develop a course and acted as her Teaching Assistant. They are strong writers and have awesome things to say about me, but these are not necessarily research-/academic-related references. The last recommendation is my weakest--it's from the CEO of my non-profit. I work closely with her, but I do not think she is the strongest writer and, again, she cannot say anything about my academic abilities

 

Questions:

-Do I have a chance in hell at a top tier school (Princeton, Berkeley) or should I try for the mid-tier ones?

-I've been reading SoPs for PhD programs and more research-oriented programs. Should I say what I want to study/what I want to do when I get out of school? Or should I focus on my life story for MPP/MPA applciations? Currently, my draft opens with an experience I believe distinguishes me from my candidates (cliche, I know) and I segue into a pretty personal reason why I want to get involved in PP/development work, and then end with the "I want to go to your program because...". Thoughts? (I know this is tough without actually reading the draft, but I'd love to hear thoughts)

Edited November 20, 2013 by DreamTeam03