Cornell CIPA Admitted 2015 Thread

[applyingF15]

It is kind weird that I got ad via email on Jan 30th from CIPA but no official letter till now.

I sent an email to ask the Admission and got the response today. They said my application is currently still with the admission committee.

 

Am I the "lucky person" like 800+ CS master applicants of CMU??

 

Anyway, finger crossed....

Edited February 23, 2015 by applyingF15

[Cristianvb]

anyone got an official letter yet?

[dudeinspace]

@Critianvb 

 

Nope, I still haven't and I'm getting a bit restless.

[serwah]

@Cristianvb Not yet. I'm also getting restless. I am also not clear on if the official letter will be sent by mail or email? Do you guys know?

[the_northener]

Hi guys, I applied back in January 3rd, and I received my official letter 2 weeks ago. I also know a friendo who was sent an unofficial acceptance but has yet to receive his official letter, so I wouldn't worry.

[dudeinspace]

I got my official letter yesterday. However, it said that a decision on funding would be issued once a funding agency to which i will apply for financial aid gives me their results (im an international student). It sucks...

[Cristianvb]

@dudeinspace what funding agency? is CIPA related or is from your country?

[dudeinspace]

@Cristianvb Im from Mexico. I will apply to conacyt, a government agency that provides scholarships and loans.

The thing is CIPA wants to wait and hear how much conacyt is going to award me in order to make their funding offer. I understand their position but i still have to make a decision by april 15th and conacyt has not even started to accept applications for scholarships yet. I guess ill talk to jennifer and explain the situation.

[--jawn--]

@dudeinspace that is a real pain. From what I've heard, CIPA staff have been pretty receptive to difficult situations such as that. Hopefully it all works out!

 

 

Is anyone planning on attending the admitted students day on 3/20?

[arbitist]

Hello everyone,

 

I am current student at CIPA, and I also work for admissions. The funding decisions will start going out by the second week of March for those of you who haven't heard about fellowships yet. I hope this helps, and we hope to see you guys at the Open House on March 20th: http://www.cipa.cornell.edu/admissions/openhouse.cfm

 

Let me know if you have any more questions!

 

Cheers,

A

[dudeinspace]

Hi @arbitist!! 

 

I'm considering CIPA very seriously (the admissions team has been incredible) but I have some questions about the program.

 

a) How quantitative do you consider the program to be? (I'm particularly interested in impact evaluation)

Where are you going to do your internship or where did you do it? Are there good options on the DC - NY area?

c) How would you grade the networking of CIPA?

d) How closely do you work with the Professor who is assigned to you as a mentor?

 

Thanks!!

[LYJ]

Hi, everyone. Congrats!

 

I applied without any work experience...but got accepted with 10K a year (less hopeful about $$$ scenario..)

Can I ask is this a great offer? How much did you guys get? 

 

 

Did any of u guys get full tuition coverage(or similar to that amount)? If so, can I ask how many years of work experience you had?

 

Thanks!

Edited February 28, 2015 by LYJ

[--jawn--]

Hi @LYJ

 

I don't think CIPA gives full tuition coverage to anyone. The most they do is usually ~50%, so I would think that $10k is nothing to shake a stick at! My experience & gift aid are already in the thread, so I'll spare you the repetition. Where else have you applied?

[arbitist]

Hi @arbitist!! 

 

I'm considering CIPA very seriously (the admissions team has been incredible) but I have some questions about the program.

 

a) How quantitative do you consider the program to be? (I'm particularly interested in impact evaluation)

Where are you going to do your internship or where did you do it? Are there good options on the DC - NY area?

c) How would you grade the networking of CIPA?

d) How closely do you work with the Professor who is assigned to you as a mentor?

 

Thanks!!

 

 

Hello dudeinspace,

 

1) quant skills: Besides the quant requirements, you can take classes to suit your quant capacities and skills. There's classes for people who are at various levels of quant proficiencxy across the campus that you can take to suit your MPA degree. For eg, i took public systems modelling, stats for social sciences last semester and this semester, I am taking econometrics which is helps me in the kind of quant analysis I want to get into. There is also an evaluation class you can take, as well as a mixed methods class.  

2) We are all in the process of looking and finalizing our internships right now. I'm choosing between working in impact evaluation for a large non-profit in DC and looking at communications impact for an organization in india. There's quite a few in NYC. Some of my peers are going to be working for the UN. So things are looking good

3) Networking in CIPA has really helped me so far to understand how what we do translates into the job market. Some of my peers found internships from the people they met at the DC and NYC networking events. I have found CIPA alumni to be open and happy to help!

4) Being mentored/ advised is an important part of your life as a CIPA fellow. That said, you have the freedom to evaluate if the Prof assigned to you suits your needs. I have been really lucky in this regard. My advisor is Gary Fields, who is really well known in his filed of labor economics. He is very invested in his role as an advisor, and has given me critical feedback about my courses and other professional choices that I have had to make here. It's been a great relationship. and i have benefited largely from it!

 

Hope this helps, let me know if you have any extra questions.

 

Best,

A 

[dudeinspace]

Thanks @arbitist!! Seriously, I've only read good things about CIPA. It makes me wonder why it isn't considered by many people.

 

I was accepted into Duke too and I searched on the forum for threads that commented on the differences between the programs. I noticed that you were in a similar position last year and I was wondering if you could share the main reasons why you chose Cornell over Duke. 

 

So far, the opportunity of doing an internship at the UN has put CIPA a little bit ahead of Duke for me. 

 

Thanks again!!

[ashfaq_1988]

I am seriously considering CIPA. The admissions team is great, program is flexible and Cornell is Cornell. However, I am worried that I would not be able to cover my costs given they do not usually give funding for more than 50%. I got a good offer from UMD which is a very good school too but CIPA is my top choice. 

[arbitist]

Hey @dudeinspace,

 

I think many people just go for the rankings, and CIPA doesn't do too well on those because of some technical issues: it's a not a seperate 'school' like Sanford, SIPA etc, and because it's not involved in much research (CIPA core faculty who do reaserch are attched with other schools in Cornell)

 

And yes, i was accepted at Duke too. I chose Cornell because it's better known in India and i would like to go back after a few years. CIPA also gave me a better deal eventually. I was able to find an on-campus job before coming here, and that really sealed the deal for me.

 

Apart from the UN, I know that other fellows also work with the World Bank, various NYC city government offices, a range of international NGOs and quite a few private sector companies.

 

I hope this helps!

 

Cheers,

A

[serwah]

I'm a bit late in posting this, but I received my official letter with $10k two weeks ago! Very excited but I'm weighing all my options.  Did anyone else also get a scarf in the mail?

[--jawn--]

Congrats @serwah! Where else have you applied?

 

And yep, I got a scarf, too

[Bil87]

I am accepted to CIPA and I am thinking to join CIPA for fall. I have other offer from University of Maryland. I am inclining towards CIPA but my friends who studied MPA are advising me to join UMD. Anyone can shed some light why I should join CIPA over UMD.

[--jawn--]

I am accepted to CIPA and I am thinking to join CIPA for fall. I have other offer from University of Maryland. I am inclining towards CIPA but my friends who studied MPA are advising me to join UMD. Anyone can shed some light why I should join CIPA over UMD.

 

I know little about UMD's program, but on a surface level assessment, Cornell has the name brand that would do well internationally (I see you're from Pakistan). Additionally, the program allows for a lot of flexibility -- this could be a positive or negative depending on what you want to study. 

[Cags]

Hi, I am from El Salvador, nice to meet (or read) you all.

 

I applied around March 3, and send the video on March 12. The Admission Staff seen really nice and give me a good vibe.  I am still waiting for the results and funding information.

 

 

Wish me good luck!

[paladin_av]

Hey CIPA prospectus!

 

I'm a CIPA fellow, and I was on grad cafe around this period last year going through some of the similar things that you guys are probably going through right now. I'm an international student, and my concentration is Economic and Financial Policy. 

 

I would be happy to answer any questions you might have in regards to the program, life in Ithaca, or the best places for desserts. 

 

Good luck making your decisions!

 

K.

[paladin_av]

To the people comparing UMD/DUKE, here are my two cents: 

 

CIPA is not an everyday MPA program. Its geared more towards students who have a good understanding of the direction in which they would like to steer their career. The program is extremely flexible, apart from the 3 core faculty course requirements, you have a lot of options of which courses you would like to do. This can be both a strength and a weakness, depending on how well you know yourself and your career path. 

 

With CIPA, you can really make the program work for you, or you could get by not doing a ton of work. 

 

CIPA: 

Pros: 

- Strong Brandname

- Great Career Services Connections

- Generous with Stipend

- D.C Externship semester

 

Cons:

- Ithaca (removed from the action)

- Not a set course structure

- program itself is not top ranking (technical issues)

 

UMD:

Pros: 

- Location

- Placement to WB

- $$

 

Cons: 

- Not as much brand recog

- Program set in stone

 

I've enjoyed CIPA a lot so far. To get an unbiased option, I would suggest you write to students at other universities as well. 

 

Good luck!

[priyadino]

Hey CIPA prospectus!

 

I'm a CIPA fellow, and I was on grad cafe around this period last year going through some of the similar things that you guys are probably going through right now. I'm an international student, and my concentration is Economic and Financial Policy. 

 

I would be happy to answer any questions you might have in regards to the program, life in Ithaca, or the best places for desserts. 

 

Good luck making your decisions!

 

K.

 

Hi @paladin_av

 

I am interested in choosing the Economic and Finance Policy concentration in CIPA. I wanted to know, as a current student there, what are the job prospects like? I have read statistics posted on CIPA's website but I wasn't sure. I am between CIPA and Ford school, which is a lot more expensive and much better ranked. I am unsure about my decision because I do not know what future opportunities either of the schools can provide me. I am an international student so job opportunities in US government is very limited. 

 

Please let me know what you think