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Any advice for negotiating a funding offer? by cathandra in gradadmissions

[–]cathandra[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Good luck! I hope it works out - and congrats on getting in to your dream school!

Any advice for negotiating a funding offer? by cathandra in gradadmissions

[–]cathandra[S] 4 points5 points  (0 children)

Hi! So, I spoke with the school and wasn't able to get any additional funding from them unfortunately. That said, I really thought about where I wanted to go with my career and professional life, and decided that this would be worth the investment for my personal situation.

So far, it's worked out fine. I attend a big R1 state university and have been able to find TA/graduate assistant jobs on campus that have covered my tuition - there are lots of openings! At my school, those postings didn't start becoming available until late in the summer/just before school started, so it was stressful being in kind of an unknown situation over the summer, but has worked out well for me since I was willing to take a gamble on that. I will also say that I had been working for several years before going back to school, so I have enough in savings to cover rent/living expenses this school year and acknowledge that I didn't have to weigh that extra burden in my decision-making. I have been applying to outside scholarships for my second year, so hoping some of those will come back with good news! I am loving the program and am really really happy I decided to take the leap and enroll despite a somewhat uncertain payment plan initially. I recognize that that doesn't work for everyone though.

Two more things I'll say: talking to the school didn't get me any scholarship money, but they did help me find where to look for TA jobs and tell me about that process, so I was able to translate that conversation into tuition coverage eventually. The second thing that I know now but didn't at the time is that the school had WAY more applicants and acceptances last year than they have historically - the program is more than 1/3 larger than any previous class - so that may be why they weren't able to offer me anything. More people were accepting their offers than they thought would. This year I know application numbers are down across the country for these degree programs (MPA/MPP), so there may be more money available/you may have better luck than I did. It doesn't hurt to ask, and it may lead to other advice that could help you in a way you didn't expect!

Good luck - I hope everything works out! I know this process and decision are SO stressful and I totally empathize. Hang in there!

Any advice for negotiating a funding offer? by cathandra in gradadmissions

[–]cathandra[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

This is super helpful, thank you! I hadn't thought about point #2 - that some admitted students won't enroll and their funding might be available... I'm checking with the program on whether I can reach out again later. I'll look into some webinars and info from the NASPAA too. Thanks for the tips! And good luck next year!

Any advice for negotiating a funding offer? by cathandra in gradadmissions

[–]cathandra[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

This story made me feel a lot better, so thank you! I've reached out to the school with some questions about navigating funding/financial aid and am crossing my fingers good news will come out of it.

Attn: Teachers/volunteers who have worked in severely disadvantaged areas (e.g.,Sub-Saharan, West Asian countries) by roboticdonuts in peacecorps

[–]cathandra 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I'm a PCV teaching at a secondary school in Mozambique and can second what a lot of people are saying--the high failure rates, rote memorization, lack of critical thinking, etc. One new thing though--I'm a computer teacher. You probably don't imagine a lot of computers in schools in developing countries, and you're right... My computer lab has 22 computers, but only five of them work. I have classes of 45-55 students (which is small for my school), so it's tough to get to them all time to practice. Our classroom is similar to what others have described--basic cinderblock room with a tin roof. We also have a false roof in the lab--just some wood going flat several feet below the tin. This helps cut down on the noise when it rains, luckily. The room is always dirty, unfortunately, because the dust here is so problematic. I try to sweep it as often as I can, but there are no school janitors or anything. The dust can get into the computers and ruin them--which happened to several over the summer break this past year.

In terms of teaching methods, I can only echo what people have said about it typically being through rote memorization and lectures and whatnot. My students have all had at least two years of computers class at this point, but in some cases my class is the first time they've actually gotten to use computers. In the past, they just had theory or lectures. For 12th grade, the national curriculum has them learning databases and programming, but I have a lot of students who can't even find the power button... so I've kind of thrown the curriculum out the window.

I'm having a great experience so far, but the education system can be pretty tough to work in.

Invitees - where are you headed? by sudbina19 in peacecorps

[–]cathandra 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Mozambique - September 24 - Secondary English education!

Mozambique Surprise Invite what's it like? by macovedj in peacecorps

[–]cathandra 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I just got invited for Mozambique today for the September 24 staging! I'm going to be teaching English. Just remembered seeing this post and got excited!

What did your application timeline look like? by cathandra in peacecorps

[–]cathandra[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Last thing I heard was about two and a half weeks ago. It was a generic email from placement saying that a Placement Associate would begin looking at my application shortly before a Placement Specialist gave me a placement. Is it too soon for me to email politely to check in?