SAIS Bologna

[scholl43]

Go away. You add nothing to a discussion you've already derailed once. 

 

 

You do realize this thread was started specifically because you ruined the other one, right? You made your choice, now please have the courtesy to not post in here, thank you.

 

Just want to be clear that I don't want to play into that douche-tastic troll's game.  Just expressing my opinion.  I will add that for anyone that was waitlisted and would die if they didn't get in, SAIS may offer you admission during the summer. I was waitlisted in 2010 and they were willing to let me in if I wanted to pay full price.  Again, pretty debt averse so that's not going to happen at SAIS or any other school.  Good luck with your decisions everyone.

[Kadisha]

Just want to be clear that I don't want to play into that douche-tastic troll's game.  Just expressing my opinion.  I will add that for anyone that was waitlisted and would die if they didn't get in, SAIS may offer you admission during the summer. I was waitlisted in 2010 and they were willing to let me in if I wanted to pay full price.  Again, pretty debt averse so that's not going to happen at SAIS or any other school.  Good luck with your decisions everyone.

 

That's one of the biggest reasons that I'm not considering SAIS. Not only do I have to accumulate a significant amount of debt, but the location in Bologna for two yeas since I was accepted into the MAIA program is way more than I can afford. Had they given me some financial aid it would have been a different story.

 

Either way I looked deeper into the program and found it to be very challenging and I would have loved to be part of it. I was an Econ major in college so the quant aspect of it does not bother me at all. That's decision we face though, whether the program is worth the cost or not, and that's a very subjective issue. 

[MPPgal]

Preciselly, I spoke to one of the most famous IR professors in my country, to be honest he knew little about SAIS, I think for such an IR centric school it could build more of a name outside the US! Plus honestly, I simpky cannot understand how a school in Italy can be as expensive as the US one...

[Goose1459]

Has anyone committed to SAIS Bologna yet? If so, what were the factors guiding your decision?

[rhodeislander]

Preciselly, I spoke to one of the most famous IR professors in my country, to be honest he knew little about SAIS, I think for such an IR centric school it could build more of a name outside the US! Plus honestly, I simpky cannot understand how a school in Italy can be as expensive as the US one...

Out of curiosity, what schools did he most recommend?

[riverguide]

Preciselly, I spoke to one of the most famous IR professors in my country, to be honest he knew little about SAIS, I think for such an IR centric school it could build more of a name outside the US! Plus honestly, I simpky cannot understand how a school in Italy can be as expensive as the US one...

 

I am currently attending a top twenty (as in top twenty in the world) graduate school in diplomacy and international commerce (with special permission as an undergrad senior) and ALL three of my professors (former ambassador, former charge d'affairs in Iran during the embassy takeover, and former FBI CTC SA) recommended SAIS as THE best. They all said: "Go to SAIS." My American Foreign Policy professor said the same. I worked in the Senate and my boss (28 years in the Senate, a Harvard grad and former or present chairman of every key/important committee in the Senate) and his foreign affairs/defense staffer (I/R MA from Yale, regional studies AM from Harvard, former state dept. officer), who I reported to, both said "SAIS is the best." SAIS is not well known at Wal-Mart or along the Promenade de la Croisette in Cannes but amongst the pros, its considered the best. I've made my decision. I'm going to SAIS, albeit in DC.

Edited March 24, 2013 by riverguide

[MPPgal]

I am currently attending a top twenty (as in top twenty in the world) graduate school in diplomacy and international commerce (with special permission as an undergrad senior) and ALL three of my professors (former ambassador, former charge d'affairs in Iran during the embassy takeover, and former FBI CTC SA) recommended SAIS as THE best. They all said: "Go to SAIS." My American Foreign Policy professor said the same. I worked in the Senate and my boss (28 years in the Senate, a Harvard grad and former or present chairman of every key/important committee in the Senate) and his foreign affairs/defense staffer (I/R MA from Yale, regional studies AM from Harvard, former state dept. officer), who I reported to, both said "SAIS is the best." SAIS is not well known at Wal-Mart or along the Promenade de la Croisette in Cannes but amongst the pros, its considered the best. I've made my decision. I'm going to SAIS, albeit in DC.

Yeah my american professors said the same, my Mexican knew little to nothing about it....hence my point... In the US or people who lived in the US is well known, outside not so much.

[riverguide]

Yeah my american professors said the same, my Mexican knew little to nothing about it....hence my point... In the US or people who lived in the US is well known, outside not so much.

 

Five years out of school, the only thing people will recognize is what you did last year or what you're working on now. For entry level jobs, it may be another story but I am interested in public service employment and SAIS is well recognized in that arena. If you can, I would choose SAIS over UT. I turned down Harvard and Georgetown to attend SAIS and I'm willing to go into debt, with my eyes open, to do so. In the US, 10 years of public service employment will erase your student loan debt.

Edited March 24, 2013 by riverguide

[MPPgal]

True, but sadly I am not a US citizen so Im in a complete different boat! In my country one school is very well known, the other not so much, and I am not eligible for loans and Sais unlike GT does not offer international students loans, good luck your decision makes perfect sense, and if I was to work for the US government I would do the same

[Goose1459]

Mentally committed to SAIS with my first year in Bologna. Will be turning down SIPA soon. 

 

Had to go with my gut on this one.

[deadhead47]

Going to SAIS Bologna.

 

I'm excited to meet you all there or in DC

[riverguide]

Going to SAIS Bologna.

 

I'm excited to meet you all there or in DC

 

Good luck in Bologna. See you in DC!

[flyingjellyfish]

Going to SAIS Bologna unless I get off the WWS waitlist. Happy about my options

[JFactor]

Very close to committing to SAIS Bologna. It's also interesting to see how many of us (the people who post on the board) seem to end up going to SAIS.

[Clay Made]

I'm either SAIS or Fletcher. Still debating. I guess I will figure it out further once i come back from open days

[rhodeislander]

True, but sadly I am not a US citizen so Im in a complete different boat! In my country one school is very well known, the other not so much, and I am not eligible for loans and Sais unlike GT does not offer international students loans, good luck your decision makes perfect sense, and if I was to work for the US government I would do the same

This is just an educated guess, but UT might be really good for Latin American stuff (assuming that's what you're looking to study). I know their history department is arguably the best in the country for Latin America, and its not too far-fetched to assume that carries over into other departments as well...

[MPPgal]

This is just an educated guess, but UT might be really good for Latin American stuff (assuming that's what you're looking to study). I know their history department is arguably the best in the country for Latin America, and its not too far-fetched to assume that carries over into other departments as well...

Yep, their department even in environmental policy is very LatAm centric hehehe. And BTW SAIS is great I think it's problem in LatAm is that Johns Hopkins even though a great school is not very well known in here, and thus SAIS is just known as a program without the institutional backup of Harris or SIPA (even though It is a much better program).

[123seekay123]

I'm either SAIS or Fletcher. Still debating. I guess I will figure it out further once i come back from open days

Same boat as me!

[DaniCM]

Took the words out of my mouth - your reasoning is exactly the same as mine. Italy/quant/language are SAIS's main selling points for me, whereas Fletcher's are price/flexibility.

I would argue that Fletcher would probably be more than 38k cheaper for you, since SAIS's tuition is a little bit more to begin with, and cost of living will be much higher. Fletcher is probably closer to 50k cheaper for you once you crunch all the numbers...

I hate to be a downer, but I don't think SAIS does a second round of funding, as per a poster in another thread who asked. I also hinted strongly at it in an email to Nelson to no avail, haha. It seems what you see if what you get.

That's a really good point. It will be more than a $38K difference, particularly bc SAIS isn't known for giving out much second year funding, cost of living will be more, and I would likely get second year funding at Fletcher. Telling myself it would be a $38K difference was merely the result of cognitive dissonance. ( :

 

I don't think things happen for a reason, but maybe trying to force SAIS on myself isn't the best thing for me, not just fiscally, but content-wise as well. While I want to strengthen and hone my economic skills, I don't necessarily want to be a quasi economist, either. If I exercise some self control, I can get the econ and language training I want from Fletcher while keeping my focus international security and conflict resolution.

 

Also, in a slightly unrelated note, for those banking on the fed loan forgivenss program, I suggest you research it a bit more. It's definitely not as easy as 10 years in the public sector and your debt disappears. For those 10 years, you must be on a payment plan that, theoretically, would allow you to pay your debt off in that 10 year time span. In other words, the debt forgiveness program requires you to be on the most expensive loan repayment program for those 10 years. Essentially, at the end of the 10 years you'll likely have very little debt to repay, anyway.  I've worked in the public sector for 2 years now, and I've had a few colleagues who've looked into the program and found that most of their previous payments don't qualify. Just FYI.

[Vans12]

Guys, a question: I'm either SAIS or Georgetown. Any advice? I went to the open day (7th december) in Bologna and the vibe were good... 

[JFactor]

Guys, a question: I'm either SAIS or Georgetown. Any advice? I went to the open day (7th december) in Bologna and the vibe were good... 

 

You were at an open house in Bologna? Can you tell us a little bit more about your experience?

 

And I wish I could give any advice about your situation but I really can't without knowing how much money each school offered you and what's the focus of your studies.

[123seekay123]

What do people think about the political vibe at SAIS? I've heard references to neoconservatism, which is a bit worrying to me. I'm left of center, fine with debating/studying with people with different viewpoints. I'm just worried that if it's more of an econ, right-wing school, there might not be as much of a humanitarian focus.

Edited March 25, 2013 by seekay22

[riverguide]

At SAIS DC today. I am attending classes. PM me if you have any questions. I'll be here for another day.

[Clay Made]

At SAIS DC today. I am attending classes. PM me if you have any questions. I'll be here for another day.

 

NOthing specific but definitely post your thoughts on the admitted forum. I'm heading up sometime int he next few weeks.

[ivydreams3]

Going to SAIS Bologna.

 

I'm excited to meet you all there or in DC

 

About 95% sure that I will go to SAIS Bologna too! My main contender against SAIS is GWU ITIP but the more I think about it, the more my heart tells me to go to Bologna. Some reasons for this tentative decisions are:

 

The quant/econ focus is exactly what I want and the abiltiy to specialize in quant methods and/or international finance while still concentrating in ERE (if I play my cards right) is really ideal for me. My short term career aspiration is to work in trade policy but in the long-term would like to be involved with an investment project to build/redesign cities for sustainability. The curriculum at SAIS combines these two things really well and I think I will be able to develop my aspirations and gain a better understanding of how they could be made possible while at SAIS.

 

As someone who has never even been out of the US and who has been taking Italian for 3 years, the opportunity to study in Italy is hard to pass up. The idea of a smaller cohort in Bologna is a huge draw for me because I really want there to be a community feel to my graduate education. You really get the best of both worlds because you also inherit the large SAIS network and still get to experience SAIS DC in the 2nd year.

 

I can imagine that traveling through Europe will be alot easier if you're stationed in Bologna. It could be a life-changing experience for someone who has been couped up in the same state their whole life (me).

 

There are a few things about Bologna that I am still curious about such as what types of professional skills clinics might be offered in Bologna during the school year? How approachable and available are the faculty at Bologna? How difficult is it to secure internships or part time work in Bologna at the CCSDD or the Bologna Institute for Policy Research and could you work there for only one semester?

Edited March 25, 2013 by ivydreams3