MSPP-MPP admissions acceptance 2014

[martinet25]

@nandanroom25: What is the aid package offered to you. 

[nandanroom]

My financial aid package came.  It has some for the first year, but it doesn't say anything for the second.  Anybody know if that means that I won't get anything for the second year or do they decide that later?

I had a relook at the email which said

"...awarded you merit-based financial aid for the Masters of Public Policy full time (M.P.P.) program for the Fall 2014 term"

This to me most likely means that second year awards are considered separately. However, I might be wrong.

 

@all : On a separate note, do any of you have any idea about TA/RA ship opportunities at Georgetown? Thanks!

[nandanroom]

@nandanroom25: What is the aid package offered to you. 

$7500 for Fall'14 & Spring'15 (so $15k in all for year 1)...not much considering how expensive the school is

[jct329]

same here jct329. I wrote them an email regarding this. Would you mind sharing your profile?

 

Sorry, what do you mean?  Stats?  3.88 Econ/PoliSci from a big10 public, 170v/158q/5.5, 5 years military for WE

[adrianmane]

Notice by e-mail, then they add the details into the acceptance letter at the bottom of the application page.  Just got it like 10 minutes ago.

I received an email about an hour ago, but it was just another "MSPP Admitted Student Events" notification (same as a few weeks back). I can't imagine this is the email you're referencing, right? 

[mwbnova]

I had a relook at the email which said

"...awarded you merit-based financial aid for the Masters of Public Policy full time (M.P.P.) program for the Fall 2014 term"

This to me most likely means that second year awards are considered separately. However, I might be wrong.

 

@all : On a separate note, do any of you have any idea about TA/RA ship opportunities at Georgetown? Thanks!

 

Hi nandanroom.

 

I'm a graduate of the MPP program at GU.  Did a bit of TA'ing while I was there.

 

There are TA opportunities for students, but they are not available for first year students.  This is because you would TA for classes within the public policy program.  There are a few RA opportunities as well, but I don't know as much about them.  Most students find paid internships in the many government or non-profit organizations in DC.   I'd be happy to talk more about the program if you'd like.

Edited March 14, 2014 by mwbnova

[paladin_av]

Just found out I'm on the waitlist. Not so sure how the process works but if there are folks out there who will decline their acceptance I hope you do so as soon as you can! Thanks!

 

I just got put on the wait list too. Where else did you apply Gwaalumn4mpp? 

 

[martinet25]

^{@mwbnova: I have an offer from GTOWN for the MPP program.}

 

^{For me, the choice might boil down to choosing between GTOWN (MPP) and SAIS (IDEV). What is your take on choosing between GTOWN and SAIS given one wants to make a career in International development.}

 

^{Please share how GTOWN compares in comparison with SAIS when it comes down to reputation Multilateral organizations.}

[martinet25]

I received an email from mspp admissions regarding renewal of aid for the second year. The email mentions as long as I am in a good academic standing aid will be renewed.

[uncgrad2009]

I am also an international student. My decision to attend/not attend would primarily hinge on the $$ they are offering. The school has a high tution and even the cost of living in DC are would be high. So in short, I need to know the aid-package before I start debating my choices.

I'm not looking at any policy schools in the DC area primarily for this reason. I also am not necessarily interested in working in DC long-term so I am factoring this in as well. I currently work/live in the DC area and it is very expensive. I would think you would have to get some good funding from Georgetown to be able to make it work. 

[mwbnova]

^{@mwbnova: I have an offer from GTOWN for the MPP program.}

 

^{For me, the choice might boil down to choosing between GTOWN (MPP) and SAIS (IDEV). What is your take on choosing between GTOWN and SAIS given one wants to make a career in International development.}

 

^{Please share how GTOWN compares in comparison with SAIS when it comes down to reputation Multilateral organizations.}

 

Basically, your decision is going to boil down to want you want to get out of the master's program.

 

GU's MPP is a quantitative analysis driven approach to policy that addresses aspects of international development in a similar fashion to how local policies would be formed and implemented.  It is not an international relations program and does really focus on diplomacy or state-based foreign relations organizations. In both you'll get some economics, although SAIS has more in international trade and macroeconomics.  GU offers courses in macro, but it is not part of the core curriculum.  Georgetown does have the School of Foreign Service with which MPP students can take courses, although it is sometimes difficult to get into the better ones (they have their Madeline Albright, we have our EJ Dionne/Paul Begala).

 

As far as post-graduation situation, I have friends from GU that now work for the World Bank, USAID, and several private not-for-profit groups. You'll be well positioned to work for NGOs at either school.  If you are more interested in finance development vis-a-vis IMF work, probably SAIS would be better, likewise if you wanted to do development work through the State Department/Foreign Service, SAIS may be the better option.

Edited March 14, 2014 by mwbnova

[innana]

I have received an admit from Ford school with Full tuition waiver for both years, awaiting Heinz's decision and Wait-listed in SIPA Since I am international applicant, it's important for me to factor in brand recognition in my country.I am considering to re-apply next-year with better essays! Any pointers?

[karaya]

Hi,

 

Just got an admit from the MSPP but without any financial support. My admit letter does however say that I should "contact the Office of Student Financial Aid directly to learn about need-based financing."

 

Is this only meant for US-citizens or do int'l students also qualify for need-based financing? Asking because I'm the latter.

 

Also, any other avenues open for funding? Can you, say, apply for Grad Assitantships on your own? With no funding, my chances of being able to go look pretty dim.

 

Thanks for the help!

[pavlik]

Hi,

 

Just got an admit from the MSPP but without any financial support. My admit letter does however say that I should "contact the Office of Student Financial Aid directly to learn about need-based financing."

 

Is this only meant for US-citizens or do int'l students also qualify for need-based financing? Asking because I'm the latter.

 

Also, any other avenues open for funding? Can you, say, apply for Grad Assitantships on your own? With no funding, my chances of being able to go look pretty dim.

 

Thanks for the help!

I can't comment on the need-based financing (it's just federal loans) for international students, but I'm sure that's been mentioned before. I understand that there are some TA/RA opportunities, which you can apply for in August for the coming academic year. I'd try to contact someone in the admissions office at McCourt to directly answer these. It never hurts to state your case and concerns and ask if they'll reconsider your funding offer.

 

Edit: they also link on their website scholarships for international students specifically. Most of them are limited to a certain demographic (i.e. there's a scholarship that only citizens of Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania can apply for), but you may find one that you're eligible for.

Edited March 25, 2014 by pavlik

[levo111p]

Hi, I was just wondering how generous MSPP is with funding. I'm assuming they can be more generous this year because of the $100million gift (I thought they received it last year, correct me if I'm wrong)...  just wondering what are levels of funding offered to students.   

[pavlik]

Hi, I was just wondering how generous MSPP is with funding. I'm assuming they can be more generous this year because of the $100million gift (I thought they received it last year, correct me if I'm wrong)...  just wondering what are levels of funding offered to students.   

From what I've seen, McCourt does give out a lot of merit-based scholarship, but rarely do they cover 100% of tuition, which is admittedly high to begin with. The $100m gift certainly doesn't hurt their ability to dole out aid. I've seen a lot of students with offers of $15k-30k. I was offered a $30,000 scholarship, which brings the cost of tuition down, but $16,000 per year is still considerable.

[levo111p]

Hi, thanks for the reply. I was offered $30K as well, and am so grateful for that. But with other indirect expenses (which they estimate to be ~$25,000), it's ~$80,000 for two years..... do you think $25,000 is a fair estimate of living expenses, etc.? 

[pavlik]

Hi, thanks for the reply. I was offered $30K as well, and am so grateful for that. But with other indirect expenses (which they estimate to be ~$25,000), it's ~$80,000 for two years..... do you think $25,000 is a fair estimate of living expenses, etc.? 

I actually live in DC now, so I am somewhat qualified to answer this. Rent and groceries are much higher here than most of the US, so the cost of living is high. That being said, it is certainly not that hard to live for less than $25,000 per year (that would be $2083 per month). If you're willing to potentially live further from campus in a less-than-glamorous apartment/house with roommates, then you could find a room for less than $1000. Not much less, unless you're willing to share a bedroom dorm-style, but you could easily pay $800 or less for a room in Glover Park or Rosslyn, which aren't even that far from campus. I think you could set a reasonable budget at $1700 per month if you can score decently priced housing. $25,000 isn't that extravagant, but it's probably on the high end. However, a lot of current students have said they have part-time internships throughout the year, and it probably wouldn't be hard to find a part-time job in DC to offset living expenses. 

[ohmyohme]

Hi guys - since this thread exists and only one other person responded on the MIDP thread, just wondering if any of you here are planning to attend for the MIDP program, or are all of you for MPP?

[Azrou]

$30k means they have a new cap for merit aid, because the highest offers used to be $20k.  They mentioned wanting to increase the scholarship pool and I am pleasantly surprised that it's really happened.  Most of the $100MM donation is highly structured (it's $10MM per year for 10 years, and much of it is earmarked to support certain initiatives).  One of those initiatives is offering some admits a McCourt Fellowship each year, which covers full tuition and includes a living stipend, and is the first time that MSPP/GPPI has offered that kind of full ride.  But I'm pleased to see that people receiving regular merit aid are also benefiting.

[alexarg]

When have you received your aid responses? Has somebody in the Gradcafe been awarded the MSPP full ride fellowship? Thanks!

[jerbear]

When have you received your aid responses? Has somebody in the Gradcafe been awarded the MSPP full ride fellowship? Thanks!

 

I haven't but the McCourt Fellowship is awarded to four students a year, according to the admissions staff.

 

I asked Georgetown for more than the 30k they offered me (I asked for 40k a year) and they came back to me with 35k. So it can be negotiated. I'm not planning on going to Georgetown so anyone who is should definitely email admissions around April 15th asking for more money. I bet they'll have at least a little bit more.

[alexarg]

Thanks jerbear for your reply! I have a full ride fellowship from GW and nothing from MSPP.

I think I should start to picture myself in GW next semester. MSPP was my top choice... but I feel it'd be crazy to go for it with such a debt. I'd appreciate any insights.

[klaulett]

Congrats to everyone who was admitted! I'm currently on the waitlist for this program and it's my top choice. If any of you know you won't be accepting your offer, please decline so you can create some movement on the waitlist

 

Best of luck to everyone!

[pavlik]

Thanks jerbear for your reply! I have a full ride fellowship from GW and nothing from MSPP.

I think I should start to picture myself in GW next semester. MSPP was my top choice... but I feel it'd be crazy to go for it with such a debt. I'd appreciate any insights.

I agree with that. Turning down a full fellowship versus nothing wouldn't be the best move. You could always try negotiating, but if MSPP didn't give you anything to start, then I doubt they'll come close to matching GW, even if they do give you something. You'll be well-placed at either MSPP or Trachtenberg to get internships/work-experience in DC while you're in school (and obviously it goes without saying you'll be well-placed for summer work).