Texas A&M Bush School

[MPAallday]

Hi guys, it looks like I'm a little late to this conversation!

 

I'm an international student (UK), got my acceptance last week

Awesome, TokyoJCB! Where else did you apply?

[BushSchoolStudent]

I applied to South Carolina, North Carolina State, Florida State and Oklahoma alongside Texas A&M. All made me an offer except for Oklahoma (rejection). Texas A&M was always my first choice though! Are you accepting your offer from Bush, MPAallday?

[MPAallday]

I applied to South Carolina, North Carolina State, Florida State and Oklahoma alongside Texas A&M. All made me an offer except for Oklahoma (rejection). Texas A&M was always my first choice though! Are you accepting your offer from Bush, MPAallday?

I still have yet to decide that -- mostly because I've only heard two final decisions thus far (a rejection from Maryland and an acceptance from A&M). The rest of my schools either wait listed me or haven't decided yet.

 

The significant amount of funding from the Bush School also helps. Did you get an award?

[BushSchoolStudent]

Yeah I got 5K. At the other schools I'd be paying $20K+ per year as an international student. I'm still waiting on scholarship decisions from all 3 schools but I really doubt they'll be able to beat A&M, they'd have to give me a $14K scholarship!

[MPAallday]

Yeah I got 5K. At the other schools I'd be paying $20K+ per year as an international student. I'm still waiting on scholarship decisions from all 3 schools but I really doubt they'll be able to beat A&M, they'd have to give me a $14K scholarship!

That's awesome! Yea A&M appears to be quite generous with its funds. That's probably how it attracts so much talent with its policy program.

 

I'm interested in how much the assistanships would realistically be able to supplement my tuition. I'm trying to assess how much the degree would cost overall, and the website doesn't really specify how much assistantships usually award.

[BushSchoolStudent]

We don't have assistantships in the UK so I have absolutely no idea! Have you contacted the school to ask for clarification?

 

I was surprised that with the generosity to overseas students that only around 10% of the students are international. I thought there would be loads of applicants from overseas with the fee waiver! According to the professor who interviewed me, I'll be the first Brit on the program. Will have to make a good impression...

[dctalk13]

Haha congrats! Maybe I finally found someone I can watch Dr Who and Sherlock with! A Brit who lived in Tokyo coming to College Station, get ready for a culture shock.

[BushSchoolStudent]

Are you accepting the Bush school offer, dctalk13?

 

The interviewers asked me if I'd be okay with living in College Station and I told them I'd been 'driving' around on Googlemaps. Made them laugh! It's going to be a big change but I've heard good things about TX.

 

PS (Doctor Who is definitely a yes - only if it's David Tennant!)

[dctalk13]

Yeah I will be for the MPSA program. It's a great school.

 

When I went to College Station (lived in Austin 8 years), I was surprised how little there was to do. College Station is a small college town. Coming from any big city to College Station is definitely a challenge for anyone. But it's probably better for us since as graduate students, we should be spending most of our time studying anyways.

 

And my favorite Doctor is the 11th. He was my first =P.

[MPAallday]

We don't have assistantships in the UK so I have absolutely no idea! Have you contacted the school to ask for clarification?

 

I was surprised that with the generosity to overseas students that only around 10% of the students are international. I thought there would be loads of applicants from overseas with the fee waiver! According to the professor who interviewed me, I'll be the first Brit on the program. Will have to make a good impression...

Yea the Bush School is notable as being one of the most generous and affordable (if not the most generous and affordable) policy school out there. It's not super-prestigious yet, but I have a feeling it's getting there.

 

When I went to College Station (lived in Austin 8 years), I was surprised how little there was to do. College Station is a small college town. Coming from any big city to College Station is definitely a challenge for anyone. But it's probably better for us since as graduate students, we should be spending most of our time studying anyways.

Coming from a big city (San Antonio), I can vouch for this.

 

Most of my family members are Aggies though, so I was well indoctrinated as a kid. There's plenty to do if you immerse yourself in the campus culture, and the city is sizable enough (~230,000 people in the metro area) to provide you with all the amenities you want/need.

[BushSchoolStudent]

My hometown in England has a population of about 320,000 but for us that's considered to be a city... I was banking on making friends and having fun with them! If you guys ever get bored you could always be my tour guides

[MPAallday]

My hometown in England has a population of about 320,000 but for us that's considered to be a city... I was banking on making friends and having fun with them! If you guys ever get bored you could always be my tour guides

Of course! A&M is a fun school, and it's literally a couple of hours away from both Houston and Austin (and three hours from San Antonio and a little more from DFW). So you'll have access to lots of stuff to do.

[APBrown]

Hello everyone!

 

I am not an applicant for the Bush School but I am going to be attending A&M for the History PhD program. My emphasis is diplomatic history though and I expect to take classes in the Bush School as part of one of my minor fields. I would love to get to know a couple of you and have some familiarity with people in the program when I start there in the Fall. Message me if you would like to be in contact.