Applying to Munk 2018

[lily22]

10 hours ago, simonhm said:

Has anyone been accepted to uOttawa’s GSPIA? I got in about a week ago, and I’m looking for others to who have also been accepted. I guess it’s still very early in the game. 

For those worried about getting in, don’t sweat too much, my profile isn’t too impressive;

-3.6 CGPA 3.8 final year GPA in a bilingual BA

- 5 years military experience, two overseas tours

- Lots of volunteer and student leadership experience in undergrad (Model UN and student governemnt)

 

Good luck to all applicants, hope to share in your success soon. 

Cheers,

I didn't apply to GSPIA but what are you talking about -- your profile is so impressive! Bilingual, military experience, model UN, student government, 3.8 final year GPA! That's awesome. Good luck to you and congrats on being accepted to GSPIA.

[mppmgaapplicant2018]

19 hours ago, lily22 said:

Phew - thank you!

 

18 hours ago, sunshine18 said:

Yes I have! Thank you sooo much. I was so worried!!!

 

No worries folks! We have at least a whole month and a half of waiting left  save up some of the anxiety for this time period. 

[limbsun]

11 hours ago, simonhm said:

Has anyone been accepted to uOttawa’s GSPIA? I got in about a week ago, and I’m looking for others to who have also been accepted. I guess it’s still very early in the game. 

For those worried about getting in, don’t sweat too much, my profile isn’t too impressive;

-3.6 CGPA 3.8 final year GPA in a bilingual BA

- 5 years military experience, two overseas tours

- Lots of volunteer and student leadership experience in undergrad (Model UN and student governemnt)

 

Good luck to all applicants, hope to share in your success soon. 

Cheers,

Hi @simonhm I have been accepted to GSPIA as an international student! Congratulations to you and no, your profile is indeed very impressive!

[limbsun]

On 1/30/2018 at 12:05 PM, mppmgaapplicant2018 said:

Can confirm this. I've spoken with the admissions officials and they've have stated that the final year GPA is weighted more heavily than the CGPA.  The CGPA's of previous admitted classes tends to vary to a great degree - it ranges anywhere from 2.9's - 4.0's. The average final year GPA (of the admitted batches), though, tends to be in and around the 3.7 mark.

 

Good luck to everyone applying!

Thank you @lily22 and @mppmgaapplicant2018 ! The wait is agonizing already, but fingers crossed! Good luck to you all! 

[newsjunkiechina]

Congrats to Simon and limbsun on the offer. That's great news! 

As the excruciating wait begins, I'd like to get your thoughts on an unrelated topic. ( yes, I'm also looking at those who are lurking...lol )

I think Munk is a great school, but I'm a bit concerned about the student life if I'm lucky enough to get in.  I'm somehow under the impression that it's hard to make friends in a big city like Toronto. And this CBC headline is not helping. Nearly 70% of university students battle loneliness during school year, survey says http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/manitoba/university-loneliness-back-to-school-1.3753653   According to one report,  56% of international students said they have no Canadian friends. Stunned! https://www.timeshighereducation.com/content/welcome-to-canada-but-dont-expect-to-make-friends

I already have a masters degree from China but I did not quite appreciate the rote learning approach. That's one reason why I am hoping to get a formative education at a good school in North America. An outstanding teaching faculty does matter, but I'm also hoping to build friendships with other fellow students in the program. I'd be very keen to learn from them and grow together as we pursue our academic and career goals.  

Before submitting my applications, I checked out a few schools and program options in Canada. At one point, I was pretty dead serious about applying to a PhD program at McGill. So I emailed about half dozen PhD students and professors there. To my surprise, EVERYONE I reached out to replied and was generous enough to offer their advice. I ended up meeting a potential supervisor who said she'd be happy to review my research proposal before the application deadline. Two PhD students there also offered to help edit my research paper. Long story short, I decided not to apply in the end because doing a PhD is a BIG commitment. I thanked them and said I'll apply elsewhere. 

In comparison, folks at Munk can be a bit hard to get hold of, though I must say most people I reached out to did get back to me. Still, I never heard back from some students after emailing them. Some promised to chat but failed to follow through. I am a journalist and that means I'm always ready to network and make new friends, but I worry people in Toronto ( including UofT graduate students) are so caught up in their busy life that making meaningful connections would be hard. I've never studied abroad so I'd be curious to learn more about international students' life on campus. I love classroom learning as much as networking! 

Anyways, I'm getting way ahead of myself because my application is still being reviewed, but I'd be really grateful if you could share your thoughts. 

Good luck to all and hope our paths will cross in Toronto this fall. 

Cheers, 
Owen

[mppmgaapplicant2018]

1 hour ago, newsjunkiechina said:

Congrats to Simon and limbsun on the offer. That's great news! 

As the excruciating wait begins, I'd like to get your thoughts on an unrelated topic. ( yes, I'm also looking at those who are lurking...lol )

I think Munk is a great school, but I'm a bit concerned about the student life if I'm lucky enough to get in.  I'm somehow under the impression that it's hard to make friends in a big city like Toronto. And this CBC headline is not helping. Nearly 70% of university students battle loneliness during school year, survey says http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/manitoba/university-loneliness-back-to-school-1.3753653   According to one report,  56% of international students said they have no Canadian friends. Stunned! https://www.timeshighereducation.com/content/welcome-to-canada-but-dont-expect-to-make-friends

I already have a masters degree from China but I did not quite appreciate the rote learning approach. That's one reason why I am hoping to get a formative education at a good school in North America. An outstanding teaching faculty does matter, but I'm also hoping to build friendships with other fellow students in the program. I'd be very keen to learn from them and grow together as we pursue our academic and career goals.  

Before submitting my applications, I checked out a few schools and program options in Canada. At one point, I was pretty dead serious about applying to a PhD program at McGill. So I emailed about half dozen PhD students and professors there. To my surprise, EVERYONE I reached out to replied and was generous enough to offer their advice. I ended up meeting a potential supervisor who said she'd be happy to review my research proposal before the application deadline. Two PhD students there also offered to help edit my research paper. Long story short, I decided not to apply in the end because doing a PhD is a BIG commitment. I thanked them and said I'll apply elsewhere. 

In comparison, folks at Munk can be a bit hard to get hold of, though I must say most people I reached out to did get back to me. Still, I never heard back from some students after emailing them. Some promised to chat but failed to follow through. I am a journalist and that means I'm always ready to network and make new friends, but I worry people in Toronto ( including UofT graduate students) are so caught up in their busy life that making meaningful connections would be hard. I've never studied abroad so I'd be curious to learn more about international students' life on campus. I love classroom learning as much as networking! 

Anyways, I'm getting way ahead of myself because my application is still being reviewed, but I'd be really grateful if you could share your thoughts. 

Good luck to all and hope our paths will cross in Toronto this fall. 

Cheers, 
Owen

Hey Owen!

Yeah, so I think that study, while true, is partly skewed. It's more than likely that majority of the data set in that study comprised of undergraduate students - and undergraduate studies here can get isolating for many (large classes, adjustment to university life, commuting, etc.). It's unlikely that you'd face a similar scenario in graduate school - people are required to work in groups,  the class sizes are significantly smaller, and the interests of students intersect far more (greater probability of bonding). If anything, I've heard the repeated use of the word "close-knit community" by virtually every MGA student I've spoken to, and there seems a great degree of sincerity in that sentiment. In fact, most of them state that they've formed some of the most formative friendships of their life at Munk. So I highly doubt anyone would face much trouble in making friends with their classmates. 

As for the international student bit; again, I think that's more prevalent at the undergraduate level. Undoubtedly, I suspect some graduate students would gravitate toward Canadians only at first, but I don't think any of them would preclude themselves from forming deep, meaningful friendships with an international student. On that note, I just wanna say that I honestly don't feel you have anything to worry about! You seem articulate and a have very interesting background, I'm positive you'd have no trouble making friends  
 

Edited February 1, 2018 by mppmgaapplicant2018

[newsjunkiechina]

6 minutes ago, mppmgaapplicant2018 said:

Hey Owen!

Yeah, so I think that study, while true, is partly skewed. It's more than likely that majority of the data set in that study comprised of undergraduate students - and undergraduate studies here can get isolating for many (large classes, adjustment to university life, commuting, etc.). It's unlikely that you'd face a similar scenario in graduate school - people are required to work in groups,  the class sizes are significantly smaller, and the interests of students intersect far more (greater probability of bonding). If anything, I've heard the repeated use of the word "close-knit community" by virtually every MGA student I've spoken to, and there seems a great degree of sincerity in that sentiment. In fact, most of them state that they've formed some of the most formative friendships of their life at Munk. So I highly doubt anyone would face much trouble in making friends with their classmates. 

As for the international student bit; again, I think that's more prevalent at the undergraduate level. Undoubtedly, I suspect some graduate students would gravitate toward Canadians only at first, but I don't think any of them would preclude themselves from forming deep, meaningful friendships with an international student. On that note, I just wanna say that I honestly don't feel you have anything to worry about! You seem articulate and have very interesting background, I'm positive you'd have no trouble making friends  
 

Thanks for your feedback! I didn't think class size would be a factor. That totally makes sense. My fingers are crossed! 

[mppmgaapplicant2018]

11 minutes ago, newsjunkiechina said:

Thanks for your feedback! I didn't think class size would be a factor. That totally makes sense. My fingers are crossed! 

Of course! If we're both lucky to get accepted to and end up attending Munk, you can be sure that you've already got a friend in me!  

[newsjunkiechina]

17 minutes ago, mppmgaapplicant2018 said:

Of course! If we're both lucky to get accepted to and end up attending Munk, you can be sure that you've already got a friend in me!  

Alrighty! Mr. or Ms. night owl. 

[A2018]

19 hours ago, newsjunkiechina said:

Congrats to Simon and limbsun on the offer. That's great news! 

As the excruciating wait begins, I'd like to get your thoughts on an unrelated topic. ( yes, I'm also looking at those who are lurking...lol )

I think Munk is a great school, but I'm a bit concerned about the student life if I'm lucky enough to get in.  I'm somehow under the impression that it's hard to make friends in a big city like Toronto. And this CBC headline is not helping. Nearly 70% of university students battle loneliness during school year, survey says http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/manitoba/university-loneliness-back-to-school-1.3753653   According to one report,  56% of international students said they have no Canadian friends. Stunned! https://www.timeshighereducation.com/content/welcome-to-canada-but-dont-expect-to-make-friends

I already have a masters degree from China but I did not quite appreciate the rote learning approach. That's one reason why I am hoping to get a formative education at a good school in North America. An outstanding teaching faculty does matter, but I'm also hoping to build friendships with other fellow students in the program. I'd be very keen to learn from them and grow together as we pursue our academic and career goals.  

Before submitting my applications, I checked out a few schools and program options in Canada. At one point, I was pretty dead serious about applying to a PhD program at McGill. So I emailed about half dozen PhD students and professors there. To my surprise, EVERYONE I reached out to replied and was generous enough to offer their advice. I ended up meeting a potential supervisor who said she'd be happy to review my research proposal before the application deadline. Two PhD students there also offered to help edit my research paper. Long story short, I decided not to apply in the end because doing a PhD is a BIG commitment. I thanked them and said I'll apply elsewhere. 

In comparison, folks at Munk can be a bit hard to get hold of, though I must say most people I reached out to did get back to me. Still, I never heard back from some students after emailing them. Some promised to chat but failed to follow through. I am a journalist and that means I'm always ready to network and make new friends, but I worry people in Toronto ( including UofT graduate students) are so caught up in their busy life that making meaningful connections would be hard. I've never studied abroad so I'd be curious to learn more about international students' life on campus. I love classroom learning as much as networking! 

Anyways, I'm getting way ahead of myself because my application is still being reviewed, but I'd be really grateful if you could share your thoughts. 

Good luck to all and hope our paths will cross in Toronto this fall. 

Cheers, 
Owen

For international students, Toronto is a much better city to live than Montreal and imo much more ethnically diverse. More than 51% people living in Toronto were born outside of Canada. You'll have plenty of opportunities to blend in and network with both domestic students and other international students. UofT campus is also located in the downtown core, close to all sorts of fun things to eat and do. 

UofT also (infamously) has a large number of international students from Asia  

 

[newsjunkiechina]

Thanks A2018!  I am aware that Toronto is a much more culturally diverse city:) I was just a bit worried that the busy life people lead might fray social relations. I guess I’ll have to see for myself...if I made it there. 

[lily22]

19 hours ago, newsjunkiechina said:

Congrats to Simon and limbsun on the offer. That's great news! 

As the excruciating wait begins, I'd like to get your thoughts on an unrelated topic. ( yes, I'm also looking at those who are lurking...lol )

I think Munk is a great school, but I'm a bit concerned about the student life if I'm lucky enough to get in.  I'm somehow under the impression that it's hard to make friends in a big city like Toronto. And this CBC headline is not helping. Nearly 70% of university students battle loneliness during school year, survey says http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/manitoba/university-loneliness-back-to-school-1.3753653   According to one report,  56% of international students said they have no Canadian friends. Stunned! https://www.timeshighereducation.com/content/welcome-to-canada-but-dont-expect-to-make-friends

I already have a masters degree from China but I did not quite appreciate the rote learning approach. That's one reason why I am hoping to get a formative education at a good school in North America. An outstanding teaching faculty does matter, but I'm also hoping to build friendships with other fellow students in the program. I'd be very keen to learn from them and grow together as we pursue our academic and career goals.  

Before submitting my applications, I checked out a few schools and program options in Canada. At one point, I was pretty dead serious about applying to a PhD program at McGill. So I emailed about half dozen PhD students and professors there. To my surprise, EVERYONE I reached out to replied and was generous enough to offer their advice. I ended up meeting a potential supervisor who said she'd be happy to review my research proposal before the application deadline. Two PhD students there also offered to help edit my research paper. Long story short, I decided not to apply in the end because doing a PhD is a BIG commitment. I thanked them and said I'll apply elsewhere. 

In comparison, folks at Munk can be a bit hard to get hold of, though I must say most people I reached out to did get back to me. Still, I never heard back from some students after emailing them. Some promised to chat but failed to follow through. I am a journalist and that means I'm always ready to network and make new friends, but I worry people in Toronto ( including UofT graduate students) are so caught up in their busy life that making meaningful connections would be hard. I've never studied abroad so I'd be curious to learn more about international students' life on campus. I love classroom learning as much as networking! 

Anyways, I'm getting way ahead of myself because my application is still being reviewed, but I'd be really grateful if you could share your thoughts. 

Good luck to all and hope our paths will cross in Toronto this fall. 

Cheers, 
Owen

Going off what others have said: I spoke to an admissions person at Munk and she told me that 80 students are accepted (out of 550 applicants). 80! That is tiny. You are bound to make friends. My brother is doing his MBA at Rotman (~300 students) and he has made tons of friends in his section alone. If I got into Munk, I wouldn't know a soul entering the year either (I don't know anyone who applied) and I would hope to make friends within my class as well!

 Yes, Toronto is a big city and if you are starting out from scratch, it can be hard to make friends. But as others have said, it's a masters program. If you moved to Toronto to do nothing, then yes the hustle-and-bustle of the city would make it really hard for you to make friends. However, it's for a program where you will be joining likeminded individuals who are all there for the same reason as you. It's much smaller program, more interactive, and all about networking. I know one person in his second year there and when I reached out to him about the program, he was beyond friendly about it! I specifically asked him about the students (is it easy to make friends, is it competitive), and he said the networking is unbelievable and he's made friends and professional connections alike. Not really a lot of competition as it's not like law school where students are pitted against each other competing for internships. There are more internship opportunities than there are students at Munk and often everyone gets a fair shot. Sounds like a pretty incredible place! I

I'm from Toronto and while the reputation of Torontonians being kind of cold can be true, it doesn't really apply to students at school. Plus, we don't know the circumstances of those surveys that you've linked. Did those students report being lonely actively try to surround themselves with friends (i.e. joining a club, attending a professor's seminar)? I certainly did not make any friends in undergrad just by sitting in class listening to the professor. It was an active process to seek out friends by either chatting up people beside me in class, joining my department's club, joining clubs of causes that were important to me, getting on student council with likeminded individuals, etc.

Secondly, that survey seems to focus on first year undergraduate students who are entering a giant class in a foreign place for the first time - and coming out of high school is a huge culture shock. If you are pursuing your masters, it's safe to assume you aren't a 17 year old inexperienced teenager anymore. You are an adult, likely with work experience (who knows what it's like to live away from home or be in a situation outside of your comfort zone), who would not be as adversely affected as the respondents in that survey.

Lastly, yes it is more difficult as an international student. However, as I'm sure many can agree, the international students who are the most isolated are the ones who speak little English or who have difficulty assimilating to a foreign culture. You do not seem to be such a person. There were usually two types of international students that I noticed at my university: the types who only spoke their native tongue and hung out with other students from their country who they met through clubs (and they speak their native tongue together), or the types who spoke English and were less exclusive about what they could and couldn't do. There was one hip hop dancing club at my university and I wanted to join but it was an unspoken understanding that the entire club was made up of Chinese international students who only spoke Mandarin in the club. Obviously, native students had a hard time making friends with anyone from that club and vice versa.  If that's the type of student you choose to be, then that's awesome and you do you. However, there are students from Canada that would be happy to meet you as well -- but you also have to be open to the possibility and put yourself out there. Now of course, the responsibility does not solely lay on you either. I'm just hoping/banking on the fact that people in Munk's Class of 2018 are also nice lol!

Don't worry - this thread already speaks volumes about the support and love coming from students who have applied to the program. If any of us get in together, it'll be an awesome year! 

[newsjunkiechina]

1 hour ago, lily22 said:

Going off what others have said: I spoke to an admissions person at Munk and she told me that 80 students are accepted (out of 550 applicants). 80! That is tiny. You are bound to make friends. My brother is doing his MBA at Rotman (~300 students) and he has made tons of friends in his section alone. If I got into Munk, I wouldn't know a soul entering the year either (I don't know anyone who applied) and I would hope to make friends within my class as well!

 Yes, Toronto is a big city and if you are starting out from scratch, it can be hard to make friends. But as others have said, it's a masters program. If you moved to Toronto to do nothing, then yes the hustle-and-bustle of the city would make it really hard for you to make friends. However, it's for a program where you will be joining likeminded individuals who are all there for the same reason as you. It's much smaller program, more interactive, and all about networking. I know one person in his second year there and when I reached out to him about the program, he was beyond friendly about it! I specifically asked him about the students (is it easy to make friends, is it competitive), and he said the networking is unbelievable and he's made friends and professional connections alike. Not really a lot of competition as it's not like law school where students are pitted against each other competing for internships. There are more internship opportunities than there are students at Munk and often everyone gets a fair shot. Sounds like a pretty incredible place! I

I'm from Toronto and while the reputation of Torontonians being kind of cold can be true, it doesn't really apply to students at school. Plus, we don't know the circumstances of those surveys that you've linked. Did those students report being lonely actively try to surround themselves with friends (i.e. joining a club, attending a professor's seminar)? I certainly did not make any friends in undergrad just by sitting in class listening to the professor. It was an active process to seek out friends by either chatting up people beside me in class, joining my department's club, joining clubs of causes that were important to me, getting on student council with likeminded individuals, etc.

Secondly, that survey seems to focus on first year undergraduate students who are entering a giant class in a foreign place for the first time - and coming out of high school is a huge culture shock. If you are pursuing your masters, it's safe to assume you aren't a 17 year old inexperienced teenager anymore. You are an adult, likely with work experience (who knows what it's like to live away from home or be in a situation outside of your comfort zone), who would not be as adversely affected as the respondents in that survey.

Lastly, yes it is more difficult as an international student. However, as I'm sure many can agree, the international students who are the most isolated are the ones who speak little English or who have difficulty assimilating to a foreign culture. You do not seem to be such a person. There were usually two types of international students that I noticed at my university: the types who only spoke their native tongue and hung out with other students from their country who they met through clubs (and they speak their native tongue together), or the types who spoke English and were less exclusive about what they could and couldn't do. There was one hip hop dancing club at my university and I wanted to join but it was an unspoken understanding that the entire club was made up of Chinese international students who only spoke Mandarin in the club. Obviously, native students had a hard time making friends with anyone from that club and vice versa.  If that's the type of student you choose to be, then that's awesome and you do you. However, there are students from Canada that would be happy to meet you as well -- but you also have to be open to the possibility and put yourself out there. Now of course, the responsibility does not solely lay on you either. I'm just hoping/banking on the fact that people in Munk's Class of 2018 are also nice lol!

Don't worry - this thread already speaks volumes about the support and love coming from students who have applied to the program. If any of us get in together, it'll be an awesome year! 

Thanks Lily for sharing your thoughts. Sorry about your experience at the hip hop club.I've heard similar stories before.

Echoing what Lily said about the acceptance rate... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aNAUT_sGr9o&t=455s Janice Stein, the founding Director of the Munk School, said in 2015 that the MGA was the most competitive graduate program to get into in Canada.  

Edited February 2, 2018 by newsjunkiechina

[sunshine18]

2 hours ago, newsjunkiechina said:

Thanks Lily for sharing your thoughts. Sorry about your experience at the hip hop club.I've heard similar stories before.

Echoing what Lily said about the acceptance rate... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aNAUT_sGr9o&t=455s Janice Stein, the founding Director of the Munk School, said in 2015 that the MGA was the most competitive graduate program to get into in Canada.  

In all honesty, I'm kind of shocked it's so competitive. NPSIA accepts more people and it is older and has a 'better' reputation than Munk. Not to mention they give out more funding. Obviously, I hope to get into Munk, but I'm still surprised it's considered the most competitive program to get into in Canada, 

Edited February 2, 2018 by sunshine18

[newsjunkiechina]

15 minutes ago, sunshine18 said:

In all honesty, I'm kind of shocked it's so competitive. NPSIA accepts more people and it is older and has a 'better' reputation than Munk. Not to mention they give out more funding. Obviously, I hope to get into Munk, but I'm still surprised it's considered the most competitive program to get into in Canada, 

I doubt that it's really the MOST competitive graduate program in Canada. Munk doesn't publish admissions figures but UBC's Computer Science masters is just as competitive, if not more. See their enrollment data. https://www.grad.ubc.ca/prospective-students/graduate-degree-programs/master-of-science-computer-science

More shocking to me is Munk's astronomical tuition fees for international students...I wish I had some sort of magic power to change all my RMB into USD...

[sunshine18]

6 minutes ago, newsjunkiechina said:

I doubt that it's really the MOST competitive graduate program in Canada. Munk doesn't publish admissions figures but UBC's Computer Science masters is just as competitive, if not more. See their enrollment data. https://www.grad.ubc.ca/prospective-students/graduate-degree-programs/master-of-science-computer-science

More shocking to me is Munk's astronomical tuition fees for international students...I wish I had some sort of magic power to change all my RMB into USD...

It's very expensive! I don't know why funding is so limited  I heard the max they give out is $5,000-10,000 but it's not common. At the open house I went to in the Fall an administrator there told a few people that if they want to go somewhere less expensive then NPSIA or GSPIA would be the right choice for them :/ 

Edited February 2, 2018 by sunshine18

[newsjunkiechina]

17 minutes ago, sunshine18 said:

It's very expensive! I don't know why funding is so limited  I heard the max they give out is $5,000-10,000 but it's not common. At the open house I went to in the Fall an administrator there told a few people that if they want to go somewhere less expensive then NPSIA or GSPIA would be the right choice for them :/ 

Ugh! I need to go rob a bank if I get accepted into the program...

[newsjunkiechina]

5 minutes ago, newsjunkiechina said:

Ugh! I need to go rob a bank if I get accepted into the program...

Btw, someone posted in 2017 that he/ she received $ 17,000 in funding...  https://thegradcafe.com/survey/index.php?q=Toronto+Global&t=a&o= A Chinese student who started school at Munk in 2016 told me she got around $ 12,000.

Funding would be good. That said, I'd be all over the moon if I were accepted. But then I'd have to juggle part-time gigs and school. That's no fun. 

[A2018]

16 hours ago, newsjunkiechina said:

Btw, someone posted in 2017 that he/ she received $ 17,000 in funding...  https://thegradcafe.com/survey/index.php?q=Toronto+Global&t=a&o= A Chinese student who started school at Munk in 2016 told me she got around $ 12,000.

Funding would be good. That said, I'd be all over the moon if I were accepted. But then I'd have to juggle part-time gigs and school. That's no fun. 

UofT is committed to min $15000 funding on top of a tuition waiver. I don't think they have unfunded acceptances 

That being said, each program typically admits one or two international students... 

[newsjunkiechina]

3 hours ago, A2018 said:

UofT is committed to min $15000 funding on top of a tuition waiver. I don't think they have unfunded acceptances 

That being said, each program typically admits one or two international students... 

That’s for their PhD programs. MGA is a professional masters degree, so funding is limited. I am not sure how many international students they accept each year, but I doubt it’s just one or two. After all,  it’s called Masters of Global Affairs... 

[FT1994]

Hi all, 

I am currently a student of the MGA and I was a frequent poster in the 2017 MGA gradcafe forum. The application deadline has now passed but if you are lucky enough to recieve an offer I would encourage you to seriously consider Munk, it’s an incredibly exciting program. Remember that the MGA is a professional degree. While the classes are important, getting involved with the professional skills workshops and Munk events is perhaps more important. 

I’ve been reading through your posts and thought I could give you some insider info:

For the 2017 admissions there were ~750 applications for 80 places.

Dr Stein is referring to a kind of inter IR schools admissions monitoring study. IDK, but we were told about it during our introduction to Munk and she said something to the effect of the MGA being the second most competitive IR related program in N America (after Harvard).

The students do tend to have high GPAs, mostly >3.7. But if you have something else on your resume that is exceptional, some people get in that way too.

Everyone gets really cool internships. It’s internship applications season right now and people already have places at the World Bank, UN, UNICEF. 

I would encourage people to seriously look at the joint program with Science Po, especially if you’re interested in public policy. However, MGA students have the option to study abroad during Fall Semester in year 2 and the list of foreign universities includes Science Po (look at the UofT CIE website for the full list).

I am the student someone was referring  to with the $17,000 funding. However, I am international and Munk seems to be more generous to international students for scholarships. That said, there are some internal funding applications only available to Canadians, which you can apply for during first year.

All the MGA students are really busy right now but I will try and check this forum every now and again. 

The best of luck to you all!

Edited February 3, 2018 by FT1994

[sunshine18]

1 hour ago, FT1994 said:

Hi all, 

I am currently a student of the MGA and I was a frequent poster in the 2017 MGA gradcafe forum. The application deadline has now passed but if you are lucky enough to recieve an offer I would encourage you to seriously consider Munk, it’s an incredibly exciting program. Remember that the MGA is a professional degree. While the classes are important, getting involved with the professional skills workshops and Munk events is perhaps more important. 

I’ve been reading through your posts and thought I could give you some insider info:

For the 2017 admissions there were ~750 applications for 80 places.

Dr Stein is referring to a kind of inter IR schools admissions monitoring study. IDK, but we were told about it during our introduction to Munk and she said something to the effect of the MGA being the second most competitive IR related program in N America (after Harvard).

The students do tend to have high GPAs, mostly >3.7. But if you have something else on your resume that is exceptional, some people get in that way too.

Everyone gets really cool internships. It’s internship applications season right now and people already have places at the World Bank, UN, UNICEF. 

I would encourage people to seriously look at the joint program with Science Po, especially if you’re interested in public policy. However, MGA students have the option to study abroad during Fall Semester in year 2 and the list of foreign universities includes Science Po (look at the UofT CIE website for the full list).

I am the student someone was referring  to with the $17,000 funding. However, I am international and Munk seems to be more generous to international students for scholarships. That said, there are some internal funding applications only available to Canadians, which you can apply for during first year.

All the MGA students are really busy right now but I will try and check this forum every now and again. 

The best of luck to you all!

Wow! Thank you for the insight!! Do you by any chance know how they choose the 80 best out of those 750 applications? How easy is it to make friends and how are the courses?

Edited February 3, 2018 by sunshine18

[mppmgaapplicant2018]

1 hour ago, FT1994 said:

Hi all, 

I am currently a student of the MGA and I was a frequent poster in the 2017 MGA gradcafe forum. The application deadline has now passed but if you are lucky enough to recieve an offer I would encourage you to seriously consider Munk, it’s an incredibly exciting program. Remember that the MGA is a professional degree. While the classes are important, getting involved with the professional skills workshops and Munk events is perhaps more important. 

I’ve been reading through your posts and thought I could give you some insider info:

For the 2017 admissions there were ~750 applications for 80 places.

Dr Stein is referring to a kind of inter IR schools admissions monitoring study. IDK, but we were told about it during our introduction to Munk and she said something to the effect of the MGA being the second most competitive IR related program in N America (after Harvard).

The students do tend to have high GPAs, mostly >3.7. But if you have something else on your resume that is exceptional, some people get in that way too.

Everyone gets really cool internships. It’s internship applications season right now and people already have places at the World Bank, UN, UNICEF. 

I would encourage people to seriously look at the joint program with Science Po, especially if you’re interested in public policy. However, MGA students have the option to study abroad during Fall Semester in year 2 and the list of foreign universities includes Science Po (look at the UofT CIE website for the full list).

I am the student someone was referring  to with the $17,000 funding. However, I am international and Munk seems to be more generous to international students for scholarships. That said, there are some internal funding applications only available to Canadians, which you can apply for during first year.

All the MGA students are really busy right now but I will try and check this forum every now and again. 

The best of luck to you all!

Thanks for taking out the time to give us some insight!

Couple of questions: is the GPA that you cited cumulative or the final year's? 

Further, when I was at the open house they mentioned that the apps to the program tend to hover around the 500-550ish range. I believe 550 was the number that was mentioned for 2017. Would you have an idea if the information relayed to us is accurate? I ask because a 200+ bump in applicants makes it significantly more competitive than it already is. 

Finally, how have your first few months been? Was the course load difficult to handle? Multiple people tell me that grad school tends to take a pretty big toll on them, mentally. Did you or or classmates have a similar experience? 

[lily22]

On 2/3/2018 at 4:20 PM, mppmgaapplicant2018 said:

Thanks for taking out the time to give us some insight!

Couple of questions: is the GPA that you cited cumulative or the final year's? 

Further, when I was at the open house they mentioned that the apps to the program tend to hover around the 500-550ish range. I believe 550 was the number that was mentioned for 2017. Would you have an idea if the information relayed to us is accurate? I ask because a 200+ bump in applicants makes it significantly more competitive than it already is. 

Finally, how have your first few months been? Was the course load difficult to handle? Multiple people tell me that grad school tends to take a pretty big toll on them, mentally. Did you or or classmates have a similar experience? 

I would be surprised if the number given to me was inaccurate. I received the information directly from the program coordinator at Munk. Email was as follows:

"We receive around 500-550 applications a year."

[lily22]

Does anybody know the specific exchange opportunities available for Munk students? I am aware that there are a select few exchange programs available to MGA students due to the nature of the program, but I'm having a really hard time finding a concrete list of destinations (for the MGA) anywhere online. 

Edited February 5, 2018 by lily22