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MPA at the LSE

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Reply 20
Fiddler - to your first question, the MPA is a pretty young program (founded within last ten yrs I believe) but that's part of the excitement - be a part of something just starting to take off.

If you look at the places MPA's go after graduation (http://www.lse.ac.uk/collections/MPA/MPA_FAQs.htm) you can see it's quite a list. The reputation of LSE as a whole fully backstops any risk of the "newness" factor, be that PEP, ID, EPP, PPM track etc, and the fact you spend two years at LSE (vs. most LSE MSc prgms which are 1 yr) I'm sure is appealing from any recruiter's standpoint. I'm thinking if it a little bit as an MBA program focusing on global/economic policy rather than individual business/corporate policy - private or public sectors are both open options post graduation.

For the second year prgms, the site is pretty vague but they estimate in 2010 that between 12-15 people will go abroad and there are about 80 people in each class - so assuming 1/4 of the class (probably a high estimate) would be applying for abroad prgms, that's a pretty good hit rate at ~75%. Of course that could vary among institutions.
Reply 21
Hey guys,
I'm a first year MPA PPM student at LSE, just send me an email if you have any questions :-)
Concerning the Dual Degree: We just got our decisions this month SIPA and Sciences Po took 7 people each, Hertie and NUS took 3 to 5 people each. I'd say that more than half of the people in my year applied for a dual degree.
Best of luck to all of you!
Thanks rmx! am looking at the link you sent.

LSE2011, thanks for your insights...
So, what were the qualifying criteria for the students who were selected to go to SIPA and the other unis? I think that SIPA places a lot of emphasis on prior relevant work ex...

also, how does the market view the dual degree? it is considered better to do both years at the same institution or the one year in two emminent schools is generally well received after graduating?

thanks again!

cheers!
Reply 23
Lolo123
Hello Everyone,

Unfortunately, I was rejected from both the public management and international development track. I'm actually very surprised by the "ding". So, application received notice on 22-Jan and rejected on 15-Feb from both choices--very fast turn around.

Best of luck to everyone out there waiting!
lolo

@Lolo,

I'm in a similar situation as you in terms of background but will be applying for entry in 2011. I was just curious what you have in terms of work experience? I'm wondering how much of an impact mine will have (been out of school since 2001).

Thanks for your help!
hey!
is the GSS no longer available? any idea about it? coz I just submitted my application and it said that we cannot provide you with any finding :frown:
Reply 25
FiddlerOnTheRoof

LSE2011, thanks for your insights...
So, what were the qualifying criteria for the students who were selected to go to SIPA and the other unis? I think that SIPA places a lot of emphasis on prior relevant work ex...

also, how does the market view the dual degree? it is considered better to do both years at the same institution or the one year in two emminent schools is generally well received after graduating?
!


You're welcome :-) Concerning your questions -

Qualifying criteria: I do not know what emphasis was given to which criteria, but work experience is definitely very important for SIPA. The people who were offered places all have quite some years of work experience. That being said, they must have taken other things into consideration as some of the people with really amazing work experience were not offered a place or not even put on the waiting list. Why don't you send the MPA office a message and ask them? They are all very friendly and helpful and will give you better answers than I can provide ;-)

Market view: That is something you have to decide for yourself since it depends on the path you want to take after graduating. While the dual degree does add something extra to your CV, it might eliminate the Capstone (as some partner institutions do not offer this module) - however, this part of the MPA could set you up with your future employer. My recommendation is to not worry as much about the market view but to have a good look at the second year curriculum at the different institutions and decide which one best fits yours interests. Again, this is something that the MPA office could help you with.

Good luck!
Reply 26
mikimiki25

I was just curious what you have in terms of work experience? I'm wondering how much of an impact mine will have (been out of school since 2001).


Hi,
work experience is very very important for the LSE MPA programme. However, do not underestimate the importance of your statement, your references, and your previous degree(s). Everything will be taken into consideration. You can find people on the MPA who only did internships and graduated just before starting the MPA and you can find people with more than ten years of work experience. The age range is from early 20s to mid/late 30s.
Anyone here actually went to SIPA? Because I have questions! I decided to defer entry to 2011 for work.
drive like june, I'm sure here (http://forum.thegradcafe.com/forum/11-government-affairs/) you'll find many who can help you!
LSE2011
Hey guys,
I'm a first year MPA PPM student at LSE, just send me an email if you have any questions :-)
Concerning the Dual Degree: We just got our decisions this month SIPA and Sciences Po took 7 people each, Hertie and NUS took 3 to 5 people each. I'd say that more than half of the people in my year applied for a dual degree.
Best of luck to all of you!




Hi,

@LSE2011: Firstly, I would like to thank you for offering help to prospective students on this forum. Hope you are still active on the thread.
Secondly, I have accepted the offer for MPA PPM stream at LSE and I am really excited about it. But there is one thing that I am clueless about: the total fees for 2 years. I know the fees for 2010-2011 at LSE , however I have not been able to find the second year fees for MPA at LSE (assuming I am not taking the dual-degree option).Is it the same as first year? Can you please guide?
Also, I had applied very late and I am a non-EU student, hence badly hunting for financing my education. Any tips that you can give about where to apply for scholarships? GSS is already closed :frown:(

I would appreciate any help on this front.

Cheers!
Reply 30
anastacia23
Hi,

@LSE2011: Firstly, I would like to thank you for offering help to prospective students on this forum. Hope you are still active on the thread.
Secondly, I have accepted the offer for MPA PPM stream at LSE and I am really excited about it. But there is one thing that I am clueless about: the total fees for 2 years. I know the fees for 2010-2011 at LSE , however I have not been able to find the second year fees for MPA at LSE (assuming I am not taking the dual-degree option).Is it the same as first year? Can you please guide?
Also, I had applied very late and I am a non-EU student, hence badly hunting for financing my education. Any tips that you can give about where to apply for scholarships? GSS is already closed :frown:(

I would appreciate any help on this front.

Cheers!

Hey Anastascia,
I guess we will be classmates for the MPA PPM stream :smile:
The fees for the 2nd year is higher than the first year, somewhere around 18k.
Are you planning to do the 2nd year at one of the GPPN schools?
BeeZ
Hey Anastascia,
I guess we will be classmates for the MPA PPM stream :smile:
The fees for the 2nd year is higher than the first year, somewhere around 18k.
Are you planning to do the 2nd year at one of the GPPN schools?



Hey Beez,
Thanks for replying. Nice to meet classmates here :smile:
I just got my result last friday and was looking into the fee structure. I am wondering what makes the second year fee higher than first year even when its more about industry project (capstone) and dissertation :rolleyes:
Btw, I am only thinking if its really worth to go for dual degree. How about you? Do we need to put our choices for GPPN at this stage or sthing?
Reply 32
Hey there,

still active - despite major exam preparation madness these days ;-)

@ Anastacia:
Second year costs: I'm guessing that BeeZ is right with her guess. Usually the second year is slightly more expensive than the first year. Please note that you cannot apply for GSS in your second year so don't rely on any LSE funding for year 2. Mail the MPA Office if you want a precise number, they're all really really nice and helpful.

Money: I'm sorry to say that I cannot help you with the funding question... I was in the same position last year and decided to fund myself by taking a very big loan - most people in the MPA do. The only exceptions are people who were lucky enough to receive a scholarship in their home country and people who simply earned enough in the past years.

Dual Degree: No need to make any decisions now. The schools give presentations in autumn. You apply around February and get your answer around March/April. This year, we were allowed to apply to as many Dual Degrees as we wanted. However, you are expected to rank the schools and stick to your ranking once your receive the answers. You can still change your mind and change the ranking but it's something that the MPA office really wants you to think about.

Have a great time in London! Maybe I'll see you around :-)
Reply 33
LSE2011
Hey there,

still active - despite major exam preparation madness these days ;-)

@ Anastacia:
Second year costs: I'm guessing that BeeZ is right with her guess. Usually the second year is slightly more expensive than the first year. Please note that you cannot apply for GSS in your second year so don't rely on any LSE funding for year 2. Mail the MPA Office if you want a precise number, they're all really really nice and helpful.

Money: I'm sorry to say that I cannot help you with the funding question... I was in the same position last year and decided to fund myself by taking a very big loan - most people in the MPA do. The only exceptions are people who were lucky enough to receive a scholarship in their home country and people who simply earned enough in the past years.

Dual Degree: No need to make any decisions now. The schools give presentations in autumn. You apply around February and get your answer around March/April. This year, we were allowed to apply to as many Dual Degrees as we wanted. However, you are expected to rank the schools and stick to your ranking once your receive the answers. You can still change your mind and change the ranking but it's something that the MPA office really wants you to think about.

Have a great time in London! Maybe I'll see you around :-)

LSE2011
Thank you so much for your insights! I am super nervous about the program. How demanding is it? I have a 3 year old daughter and I am just thinking about how can I balance it all.
Also for the second year abroad do we have to submit essays, recommendations etc to the partner schools?
Again thank you so much for sharing your experiences.
Reply 34
anastacia23
Hey Beez,
Thanks for replying. Nice to meet classmates here :smile:
I just got my result last friday and was looking into the fee structure. I am wondering what makes the second year fee higher than first year even when its more about industry project (capstone) and dissertation :rolleyes:
Btw, I am only thinking if its really worth to go for dual degree. How about you? Do we need to put our choices for GPPN at this stage or sthing?

Hi!
I am thinking about the dual degree and SIPA would be great but I dont know if I can afford it. The MPA is gonna leave me broke! AN I am also looking for funding for my second year as I applied super late to be considered for the first year. Do you know anything about Chevening, The Aga Khan scholarships and whether they fund second years?
Btw whats your profile like? I am guessing from your previous posts you are international like me :smile:
Hi,

@LSE2011: Thanks so much for replying. It was really a lot of help.
Money: I believe I do not have much hopes for funding/scholarships in this case since I am already very late in applying. Thanks for explaining about GSS since I was hoping to apply in 2nd year. However, I am an international student and currently I am based in London. I might have to apply for a student loan in London itself though I do not know how easy it is to get a loan here for a foreign national :frown:. Does LSE help its students in securing study loans?

Thanks for the Dual degree information as well. I think it clears a lot of confusion. I hope to visit the Student services center soon for my visa related queries as well.

Hope to see you soon and ATB for your exams :smile:


@Beez: Yes, I am an overseas student from India. I completed my B.E. in Information Technology and post engg. my MBA from IIT in 2007. I was working as a Management Consultant with PwC and later with IBM. I have been also active in NGOs based in Delhi,India and also during my study term at IIT,kharagpur. Very recently I have shifted to London and I applied to universities here.
Well, as for scholarships I have no clue about the ones you have mentioned though I would try to find more about it. I am planning to visit the campus this week and will take some suggestions from students services center as well. If they have some useful advice, would defn pass it on to you.

It would be gr8 if you could share your profile with us as well.
Hope to meet you guys soon. Looks like, MPA at LSE defn. teaches about financial mgmt :biggrin: (with and without the course :smile: !
Reply 36
Anastacia23,
I am from Bangladesh with a BA in Accounting & Sociology from a small US liberal arts college. I graduated in 2003 and have since been working full time in myriad multinational corporate and non-profit companies in upper management positions.
I just hope I can handle the coursework and manage to look after my 3 year old. As far as I heard the MPA has one of the most demanding courseloads at the LSE.
Btw where are you staying? I applied for Grosvenor as well as Goodnenough.
BeeZ
Anastacia23,
I am from Bangladesh with a BA in Accounting & Sociology from a small US liberal arts college. I graduated in 2003 and have since been working full time in myriad multinational corporate and non-profit companies in upper management positions.
I just hope I can handle the coursework and manage to look after my 3 year old. As far as I heard the MPA has one of the most demanding courseloads at the LSE.
Btw where are you staying? I applied for Grosvenor as well as Goodnenough.


Hey Beez,
Nice to know abt you. Well, I havent applied for any accommodation yet since I am already staying with my hubby in a pvt rented accommodation. We are not yet sure if we would want to move from here . And for your daughter, well I havent been in your shoes though, but I am pretty sure all would end well :smile: . Maybe LSE2011 can throw some more light on the general workload .

@LSE2011: Can you please also tell what does a normal day in the term look like? Do you guys have to stay till late in the evening for group work etc? My accommodation is little far from central london and I was thinking if I should stay more closer to campus. Currently it takes me about 45-50 mins to reach the building and I am in zone 2.
Also, are you aware if theres any bank in London that can give student loans to foreign nationals. I know chances are slim, but still exploring if theres a possibility.
Wow can't believe all of you idiots applied to that course. I hope you are happy to throw away 40 000 pounds for some new course that no ones heard about lol.
anastacia23
Hi,

@LSE2011: Thanks so much for replying. It was really a lot of help.
Money: I believe I do not have much hopes for funding/scholarships in this case since I am already very late in applying. Thanks for explaining about GSS since I was hoping to apply in 2nd year. However, I am an international student and currently I am based in London. I might have to apply for a student loan in London itself though I do not know how easy it is to get a loan here for a foreign national :frown:. Does LSE help its students in securing study loans?

Thanks for the Dual degree information as well. I think it clears a lot of confusion. I hope to visit the Student services center soon for my visa related queries as well.

Hope to see you soon and ATB for your exams :smile:


@Beez: Yes, I am an overseas student from India. I completed my B.E. in Information Technology and post engg. my MBA from IIT in 2007. I was working as a Management Consultant with PwC and later with IBM. I have been also active in NGOs based in Delhi,India and also during my study term at IIT,kharagpur. Very recently I have shifted to London and I applied to universities here.
Well, as for scholarships I have no clue about the ones you have mentioned though I would try to find more about it. I am planning to visit the campus this week and will take some suggestions from students services center as well. If they have some useful advice, would defn pass it on to you.

It would be gr8 if you could share your profile with us as well.
Hope to meet you guys soon. Looks like, MPA at LSE defn. teaches about financial mgmt :biggrin: (with and without the course :smile: !


Wow. You must be the biggest tool i've met on the net. With two degree's from IIT you only managed to get into the super expensive rip off mpa? Oh dear so much for going to a top indian uni :frown:

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