SPEA Admitted Thread

[MPAallday]

So I didn't see a thread for admitted students for SPEA yet -- which surprised me. Feel free to correct me if there's already a thread on this!

 

Anyway, I got in just now! They just sent me an email, albeit with no info on funding. Does anyone know when they will send this information out?

 

Hopefully this thread isn't a duplicate! 

[Etownenviro]

I'm in! And visiting next weekend! I don't think there is an admitted students yet. I don't think SPEA gets a lot of love on this board.

[MPAallday]

I'm in! And visiting next weekend! I don't think there is an admitted students yet. I don't think SPEA gets a lot of love on this board.

Yea I don't think it does either -- mostly because a lot of the posters here are looking for IR programs.

 

They didn't offer me funding after all, at least during the first round, but apparently they extend more offers once the mid-April deadline passes.

 

I wanted to visit next weekend but it seemed like they offered little financial help to out-of-state visitors.

[Etownenviro]

I think you can get $300 back from them for your travel plans.

[Etownenviro]

bump. 

 

Is anyone else considering SPEA?

[uncgrad2009]

I am!  Is anyone going to the admitted students event on Friday?

[Etownenviro]

I'll be there for the MPA/MSES group on Friday! 

[uncgrad2009]

I will be there as well. Looking forward to it!

[RicardoBello]

Hello guys. I was admitted to MPA. I was in Bloomington last year, studying English. Since I am still living in Colombia, I am not going to this Friday's event; but I hope you enjoy the visit and we meet in August.

[Etownenviro]

What did you think of the program?

I really enjoyed it and think there is a good chance I may end up there in the fall. I received a large stipend & tuition remission and hope to work for the government afterwards so this program is a pretty good ft for me financially and seemingly career wise.

Edited April 6, 2014 by Etownenviro

[uncgrad2009]

I really enjoyed my time at SPEA Experience Day. There is also a very good chance that I may end up there in the fall. I felt very comfortable and at home on the campus.

[awex]

Hi everyone,

 

I was at admitted students day Friday, too! I wish the weather was a little better (drove out there on Thursday from PA in pouring rain .. ugh!), but I did enjoy the day. I was pretty tired Friday evening after the jam packed day they had planned for us. I found all the sessions to be worthwhile and informative though.

 

 

I will be paying my deposit this week for SPEA  I received a small stipend and a small portion of tuition remission from the school, so that was a big part of my decision making. Also, I have prior work experience and I learned on Friday that they do waive a few credits for related professional work experience. I stayed behind to talk to them about it and they said that I can probably have about 3 credits waived based on my history. That is a pro to me, too - not so much that I could save money by not taking one class, but more so that I can take advantage of an extra class that suits my interests! I did get a Graduate Student handbook previously mailed to me (I asked for one) and it outlines all the available classes. There are so many I am interested in taking!

 

 

I will be an MPA (Nonprofit Mgt. concentration) and Master of Arts Administration dual degree candidate (MPA/MAAA). I have not seen that sort of track at any other schools. I was planning on just pursuing the MPA degree, but with just a few more classes I can leave with the Arts Admin one, too! That is more suited for what I want to do (museum management, etc) so I figure why not?!

 

I am really excited about the program/curriculum. I am a little concerned about the area though. I liked the downtown for sure -- it seems like there are a lot of restaurant and little shops, but it also seems kind of secluded. I've never lived in a college town before, so I think it may take a bit to get used to, but I'm sure my schoolwork will keep me busy enough! Plus, the campus was really beautiful! I got to see it in the sun on Saturday and it was great!!

Edited April 6, 2014 by awex

[awex]

Question -- are you all coming straight from undergrad or from the work force?

 

I will have just shy of 3 years work experience in a nonprofit by the time I go in the Fall. Most of the people I talked to on Friday were coming straight from undergrad. I'm a little nervous about getting back into the school mode (but excited! I love school and homework and all that stuff). I'm not concerned about an age difference (some people have pointed this out to me?) because I'm still in my early (I guess mid ..) 20s and my friends are all of ages, but just looking to see where you are all at.

 

Thanks!

[uncgrad2009]

I personally have 5 years of work experience.  I also noticed that quite a few people will be attending SPEA with no professional work experience.  I also noticed that some people were making a really big deal out of it.   I'm not sure where I'm going to end up yet as I have a very difficult decision to make.

[RicardoBello]

I am completing my 6th year of work experience in private sector. I think is important to have at least 2-3 yrs of experience, since you can take more advantage of the classes, cases, etc.

 

I lived 2 months in Bloomington and think the town has plenty of restaurants, bars and cultural scenarios. However, if you get bored, you are just 1hr from Indianapolis.

[Etownenviro]

I only have one year of work experience but I worked nearly full time throughout my time in undergrad so I feel like that counts for something extra. I was speaking to a student at the gala about that actually and she said that there is a really wide age range that is more dependent on the program someone is in. For example the MSES seemed to be mostly coming straight from undergrad but many of the MPA and MPA/MSES people seemed to have at least 1 if not 2-3 years or work experience. That was just who I bumped into though and what the person I was talking to thought (they were also in the MPA/MSES program so I don't have any info on arts admin). 

 

I thought Bloomington was surprisingly nice! It was a wayyy nicer college town than I expected because I was also worried about living in a small city/town but everyone seemed to really enjoy Bloomington and a few people I spoke with said they had never even been to Indie because they just felt like Bloomington had plenty to offer. I stayed around for a while on Saturday and checked out more of the downtown and found it really cute! They have just about everything in walking distance and there is a free campus bus that takes you just about everywhere you could want to go. This is a big plus for me since I'm hoping to not do a lot of driving and wanted to either go to grad school in a city or in a college town where this wouldn't be an issue. 

 

I will also likely be paying my deposit for SPEA sometime this week! I think they did a good job with the experience day and that really pushed me over the edge along with seeing all the awesome classes they offer and how they seem to do a really good job of integrating science, policy, and decision making.

[uncgrad2009]

Yea I don't think it does either -- mostly because a lot of the posters here are looking for IR programs.

 

They didn't offer me funding after all, at least during the first round, but apparently they extend more offers once the mid-April deadline passes.

 

I wanted to visit next weekend but it seemed like they offered little financial help to out-of-state visitors.

 

 

Hey MPAallday!  I would be more than willing to answer any questions you might have about Bloomington or my experience at the SPEA Experience Day.  

[uncgrad2009]

What did you think of the program?

I really enjoyed it and think there is a good chance I may end up there in the fall. I received a large stipend & tuition remission and hope to work for the government afterwards so this program is a pretty good ft for me financially and seemingly career wise.

 

 

I agree.  It is definitely an underrated program on here and I have a lot of personal connections to the school/program.  

[Etownenviro]

@ awex I think I will also be paying my deposit this week baring some crazy offer from another school. 

 

The other schools I was accepted to are a good bit more well known on this board and generally considered more prestigious due to their undergraduate reputations so I was struggling choosing SPEA over them but after visiting and seeing the school, talking to students and professors, and seeing that Bloomington has the potential to be a pretty good place to live for a few years helped make my choice a LOT easier. 

 

Slightly off topic but does anyone know how early we need to find housing to be able to live somewhere relatively close to campus that is also dog friendly? 

Edited April 7, 2014 by Etownenviro

[RicardoBello]

@Etownenviro I have started to check housing offers, but 90% regard Summer, not so much about Fall-Spring by now. However, the options I have seen are very close to the campus.

[Etownenviro]

@RicardoBello 

 

Thanks! I just checked it out as well and it looks like housing isn't a problem in Bloomington which is good to know! I'm still in shock with how cheap it is, it is kind of amazing coming from somewhere where the COL is very high haha. 

[awex]

Thanks for answering my question! Nice to hear that others are coming in from the work force versus what I heard/saw at Experience Day. I agree that it's nice to have 2 - 3 years experience to take advantage of the program. In fact, if it wasn't for my current job, I would not have been going for this specific degree.

 

I paid my deposit last night and got an email from Megan today to set up my IU email. After this whole process of researching, applying, and waiting, I can't believe I've finally committed somewhere!

 

I've started looking for housing options, as well. Just peering around Craigslist to get an idea of what's out there. At this point, it looks like most posts are regarding summer subleases, with some other ones for Fall thrown in. I am hoping to live somewhere close to downtown. I live in the downtown of my city now and just love being able to walk to restaurants and bars and the like. It seems like Bloomington is all pretty centralized though so there are plenty of options of housing that are still close to things. I've been planning on buying a new bike, but I think I'm going to do it when I'm there instead of moving one across a few states. I figured the less amount of things to take, the better! Bloomington looks great for biking!

 

Are you all considering just getting off campus housing or trying for an on campus apartment? I was looking at the on campus housing options just to see what they offered and some seemed comparable in price to an off campus place. I wish I had taken the time to look at more places and neighborhoods when I was out there, but I had to make it a quick trip!

[MPAallday]

Congrats on your decision awex! I'd definitely look at Craig's List for some good off-the-market prices.

[awex]

Thanks! I've been practically stalking Craigslist since I've gotten home from Experience Day! hahahah

[RicardoBello]

Hey guys. I have found another interesting source of housing information. Since you have an IU account, please check the iStart site (istart.iu.edu) and look for the Classifieds section; there are a lot of leasing options, though most of them are about Summer by now.