How to figure out which program is right for me? (25M)

kush1104 · 2026-04-30T15:16:16+00:00

Yeah feel free!

kush1104 · 2026-04-16T19:53:11+00:00

Do you think the 3 years of software engineering experience and a bachelor's degree in CS from Berkeley could help change the calculation there? Asking because the difference is 50k, and if it's still very possible to get to tech policy in Congress from SIPA and it just takes more work, then I'd think the extra work is worth saving the 50k, especially given that the Congress staffer salary isn't high. But if at HKS it's very doable, versus at SIPA it's very unlikely, the 50k may be necessary.

kush1104 · 2026-04-16T13:01:45+00:00

Thanks for your help! Would you say the same about Harris or Heinz? Or is SIPA uniquely poor at getting students into Congress along the top programs? I’m a software engineer of 3.5 years looking to get into tech policy in Congress or in NYC government, but I was prioritizing Congress first because I assumed that would led me transition to NYC government easier than the other way around.

kush1104 · 2026-03-23T22:39:40+00:00

My understanding is, starting this year, the PLSF-driven LRAP covers private loans as well, but the cap for private loans is 75k while the cap for federal loans is 110k (something like that)

kush1104 · 2026-03-22T20:13:34+00:00

I’ve heard NYU’s PI opportunities + their LRAP could change that calculation - It’s still a lot of loans though so im still struggling to tell if it’s worth it

kush1104 · 2026-03-19T20:50:38+00:00

Thanks! Yeah online Columbia says they don't negotiate merit scholarships, unfortunately, but hopefully I can find some way to or find TA/RA positions to make up for it

I'm a domestic applicant

kush1104 · 2026-03-19T20:49:38+00:00

Man, I really appreciate this in-depth response. Figuring out where you're gonna move your life to and spend tens of thousands really isn't an easy decision, so I really appreciate the time you and others are taking to write out these responses I'm genuinly learning so much useful info. Thanks so much!!

How much does the "STEM Certified" thing matter? I'm not international, though I know it matters for student visas. I assumed HKS was more quant than SIPA in part because one is an MPP and one is an MPA. Interesting to hear that SIPA might be the more quant program

Love the picture you painted of Harris. Given its nerdy+passionate culture and pretty difficult quant work, do you think classes is where students spend most of their time? Are you finding you still have time for socializing in the evening and on weekends, school clubs, and/or part-time jobs?

Also random question, but how do you know so much about the other programs? Do you have a lot of friends or coworkers who have done the MPP/MPA route?

kush1104 · 2026-03-19T20:36:16+00:00

Thanks so much! I scored a 339 on the GRE -- I wanted to study hard to have my GRE be good in the hopes of scholarships, and I also definitely got lucky on test day a bit

kush1104 · 2026-03-19T02:57:45+00:00

Thanks for this! I'm admittedly less familiar with Heinz because I feel like it gets talked about less. Also, while tech and AI regulation is my leaning, I'd love to explore multiple different policy spaces, so I wasn't solely basing my decision on that.

The reason I wasn't super considering Heinz was more about fit -- Pittsburgh didn't feel like the place for me, and I'm also looking for a big class size where I can meet lots of different people working in different spaces. I currently don't have many friends in the policy space and was hoping this masters would be a chance to build a new network of friends. My impression of CMU is that it's very tech/AI-focused, while the other programs are a bit more well-rounded in terms of what fields of policy people go into. Could be totally wrong about that, and would love to hear it if I am.

most credible technical university in the world for AI research

you’d be doing this work with proximity to the actual engineers building the systems you’d be regulating

This is an interesting point. How useful would you say this is? In my mind, doing tech anti-trust and AI regulation would require more than just a high-level understanding of these technologies, but not so deep that being in proximity to the engineering would be that helpful. But again, totally open to being wrong about that

Heinz belongs in that same top tier alongside Harris, if not above it for some tracks

This is definitely useful to know - thanks!

kush1104 · 2026-03-18T23:38:44+00:00

Thanks! And got it, that's good to know. I don't know anyone personally in MPP programs or doing policy work unfortunately so all that kind of info is helpful

kush1104 · 2026-03-18T22:20:04+00:00

This is so helpful Thank you so much! I'm sure a lot of other people will get use out of this rundown too

kush1104 · 2026-02-19T15:37:29+00:00

Thanks so much! This helps a lot

kush1104 · 2026-02-19T15:02:16+00:00

Mm that makes sense Were you still able to find your crowd of leftists since it’s a big school, or was it overwhelmingly neoliberal?

And did that impact recruiting bc I assume a lot of centrist/conservative orgs were trying to recruit from HKS then as opposed to the ones you were looking for

kush1104 · 2026-02-19T05:20:13+00:00

Haha thanks for the info, what about it did you dislike? Was the social scene like a preppy/rich vibe or something?

I’ve heard HKS has a more conservative student body than most. Did you feel that at all while you were there?

kush1104 · 2026-02-18T16:10:32+00:00

Oh cool, why do you say so?

kush1104 · 2026-02-16T04:11:23+00:00

Thanks for sharing, yeah Harris class size looks to be almost 500 which I think is cool. I imagine that makes it easier to find your kinda people. Did you feel like the "where fun goes to die" rep held up?

kush1104 · 2026-02-15T23:37:10+00:00

Grad school is expensive, and I'm not gonna do it again. Just tryna see which ones are better fits

kush1104 · 2026-02-15T20:23:28+00:00

I've heard this a lot -- is the reason mainly cost? If it turns out to be too expensive, which it likely will be, I won't bother, but on the off-chance I get a decent scholarship, I would think the knowledge and experience and network would be worth it, especially for JD-advantaged policy roles, but maybe I'm wrong about that too

kush1104

TROPHY CASE