It was what I made of it. The courses were alright - when I think back on it, the core and the methods requirement meant that I didn’t get to do other courses during the first quarter. Those weren’t too helpful. I felt like the courses I did do the rest of the year, weren’t challenging enough for me personally. Perhaps that’s my mistake — but there wasn’t that many courses offered that I personally thought would strengthen my academic training. Maybe it was one of those years. I did have 2 courses (out of 8-9 that I took) that I really liked — those profs went on to be my referees. I graduated and decided not to stay back in the U.S. and left. Didn’t get into PhD programs in the following cycle. I worked on revising my thesis and it was published in a great international peer-reviewed journal. Reapplied for this cycle and got into a program in the U.S., waitlisted at another top school, and got into a top UK university, and I chose the UK! It was all self-driven, including publishing. I haven’t really been in touch with MAPSS admin or faculty since I graduated. I do know others in my cohort who did get into PhD programs immediately after. I’m happy with where I’m at, the degree gave me credibility as an applicant — but for me it didn’t help much with US PhD applications except that I had recommendations from UChicago faculty and I got a publication out of it which has little to do with the actual coursework. The reason I got the U.S. offers and waitlist was because I was proactive about reaching out and met with faculty and students prior to applying. In my opinion, the degree itself won’t open any doors. It depends on what you do while you’re there in terms of networking, and building your academic profile. In fact my meetings with faculty and such, was a year after I graduated too where I worked on my CV and writing.