Ideal way to improve a non-quant person's chances for a top MPA?

[selfnonself]

Hi everyone,

 

I'm hoping to apply to Syracuse-Maxwell (MPA) (my top choice), NYU-Wagner (MPA) and Columbia-SIPA (MPA) for Summer/Fall 2014. My career goals involve working for iNGOs and/or IGOs on gender and human development programming. 

 

I think that I'm a strong candidate because:

 

1. I've worked for a national NGO (in India, but I'm from the US) for 3 years in total. I also have 6+ years of additional work experience. I've lived, worked and studied abroad several times.

2. I have an MA in Social Sciences/Global Studies (with a 3.9 GPA) from a top EU university.

3. I'll have a strong SOP and 3 great LOR (2 from my MA advisers; 1 from the NGO's director).

4. I expect that I'll do well on the V and A sections of the GRE.

 

I'm concerned about my chances because of the following factors:

 

1. My undergrad GPA, at a top private university, was a measly 3.2. I graduated in 2003.

2. I wasn't working for the last 12 months (although now I am again consulting for the aforementioned NGO) due to personal circumstances.  

3. Maybe 3 years with one NGO (in a management role, by the way) isn't enough experience.

4. I have no volunteer experience, at least not in the last 15 years.

5. I have not taken an economics, statistics or mathematics class since my freshman year of university, which was 14 years ago, and I think that my GRE quant score will be awful.

 

I've just moved back to the US and have a few options for how I can spend the next 6 months:

 

1. I could try to find a full-time job and/or internship in the US with an (i)NGO to solidify my work experience. I'd study for the GRE on the weekends.

2. I could just consult 20 hours/week (remotely) for the Indian NGO and try to find another 20 hours/week local NGO gig (pro-bono or internship) to solidify my work experience. I'd study for the GRE on the weekends. 

3.  I could just consult part-time (remotely) for the Indian NGO, volunteer locally a few hours a week with a non-profit, and dedicate more time to studying for the GRE and perfecting my applications. I'd also take a macroeconomics course ($) at a local university this summer, plus a microeconomics course and perhaps also an intro to statistics course (more $) this fall. 

 

I imagine that each path would help me move forward in the direction of the MPA, but I'm unsure as to which would be the smartest use of my time. So the ultimate question to anyone reason is: If you were me, which scenario would you choose? Or am I overlooking an even wiser path ahead, in order to get into a good MPA program? 

 

Many thanks in advance for reading and hopefully responding to this!

[Denisse]

If I were you, I would first take a practice GRE and see where your quant score actually lies. You're predicting it might be awful, but it might not be terrible. That will inform your decision about how much time to dedicate to the GREs a bit better.

 

I think your work experience is more than relevant and sufficient. You have 6 years in another field (I'm presuming) but the last three years in non-profit/NGO, in a management position at that. Also, because you're so far removed from undergrad your 3.2 won't affect you as much. For reference, I had a 3.2 and a 155 Quant (graduated 3 years ago) and still got into SAIS, SIPA, GWU, American, Fordham, and NYU. I would take the time to work on your apps. I worked on mine for months!

[mrgreen102]

Hey selfnonself,

I would not be concerned with 2.,3., and 4. on your list of problems.  Many people have gaps in work history.  Management experience at an NGO will definitely help you.  You probably have more work experience than a lot of people who apply for MPA programs.  You don't need to have volunteer experience to get an MPA.

You could take an online economics course or an economics class at your local community college.  You will have to pay money but it shouldn't be too expensive.

 

I recommend taking a practice GRE exam before you pursue one of your three options.  That will tell you how much time that you need to dedicate to study for the exam.

[selfnonself]

Hi guys,

 

Thank you so much for your suggestions and the reassurance. I won't stress too much about volunteer/job experience at this point. It seems that my time would be better spent on preparing my apps and really focusing on my (lack of) quant background. Per your recommendations, I'll torture myself tomorrow morning with a practice GRE exam.

 

As for online economics courses, do you think it's better to invest in a "live" course from a university, or is something like MIT OpenCourseWare okay?

 

Denisse, wow, that's an impressive list of acceptances. May I ask, which program did you end up choosing?

Edited June 3, 2013 by selfnonself

[Denisse]

I ended up choosing SIPA. It had the international focus I wanted for an MPA. It was a tough race between SAIS and SIPA, but at the end of the day, my SAIS acceptance wasn't into IDEV which made my decision a lot easier. Actually, that is something to consider. I'm sure my lower end quant had to do with not getting into IDEV. At SIPA, I'll be able to focus on the economic/emerging markets development that I'm interested in without having to worry about not being allowed into the courses because IDEV students are given preference (which is completely understandable). It also didn't make sense to have to chose from the other concentrations which didn't match my interests at all. I also think though the MA and MPA are technically very similar, the MPA options sounded better for what I'd like to do. Also, even though the coursework is the same, at SIPA there is a significant difference between the starting salaries of MIA and MPA grads. Not sure where that stems from, other than the MPA students might already have more work experience before entering for the MPA. Or that maybe they are the ones to pursue more private sector jobs than MIA, not sure.

 

 

Regarding online courses, it depends. Is this something you are doing for yourself to prepare for grad school, or something you are doing so schools can see that you are trying to up your economics skillset? I'd say if it's the former, go with a free course. It will give you everything you need and you don't have to pay for it. If it's for the latter, a course that could send an official transcript might be better. Of course, you could always let them know you are taking econ courses to better your background without needing a transcript.

[fenderpete]

Study really really hard for the GRE.  It's eminently learnable for the quant portion.  Then work damn hard on your quant skills.  Both statistics and economics are pretty much essential for policy/development and while I hated every second of it at the beginning but by the end I'm really glad I was taught it.  I really do think it's worthwhile pushing yourself out of your comfort zone with quant stuff, I feel like it's a very worthwhile skill to have in your toolbox.

[ridofme]

As for online economics courses, do you think it's better to invest in a "live" course from a university, or is something like MIT OpenCourseWare okay?

 

Based on your stated objectives - proving your economics/quant aptitude for applications - I would definitely go with a "live" course. This could be an online course through a community college. You don't have to shell out a ton of cash, but this way you can send a transcript, as noted. Also, a few applications had me fill out sections specifically detailing my previous economics/stats/math courses, by listing course names, the semester(s) taken, grade received, etc. This would, of course, be impossible if you did not officially enroll in a course. One could use this opportunity criticize the entire education accreditation system, in which a low-level online CC course is considered more "legit" than a free course from MIT, but for better or worse, this is the game that we have chosen to play. Good luck!

[selfnonself]

Hi again everyone - thanks for all of your insight and suggestions, especially Denisse for the additional info re: your SIPA decision. The feedback and ideas have been very much appreciated, and as such, I signed up for summer session algebra and microeconomics courses at a local community college. I hope to get into an introductory statistics course in the fall semester. And as I am *really* starting from the beginning when it comes to all things quant-related, I'm first working my way through Cliffs Notes and Manhattan Prep books in an attempt to re-learn arithmetic. Ouch!