It makes sense to me how a policy analyst would be needed in the government to help policymakers draft new legislation. But what do you do in the non-profit and corporate sectors? Do you lobby on their behalf? I'm trying to get a feel for what these jobs are like. How do these jobs function from day to day?

Hi all, any insight is helpful here. I tossed a very wide net for possible grad schools - looking to focus in environmental/climate policy if possible - and I've ended up with quite a few choices. I'm going to open houses and scouring the internet for info on these universities, but was wondering if there are things I'm missing. Are some of these schools significantly better than others and I'm just being blinded by admissions advertisements?

As a note: I currently live in Washington State, so while I will keep options open, I would prefer to live and work here after grad school,

University of Washington, Evans School of Public Policy - Master in Public Administration (MPA)

University of Minnesota, Humphrey School of Public Policy - Master of Science in Science, Technology, Environment, Policy (MS-STEP)

University of California San Diego, Scripps Institute of Oceanography - Master of Advanced Studies in Climate Science and Policy (MAS-CSP)

Victoria University of Wellington (New Zealand) - Master of Climate Science and Policy (MCCSP)

Hello I am looking to career change from operations management at Amazon (logistics) to a career in trust and safety. I believe an mpp would enable me to do it. Although as I am researching it seems highly dependent on the school to give me the best chance for success.I am wondering what schools would best enable me to do that and give me the best chance of success in my career change? I do not mind schools out of state (California) but I would ultimately would like to return and work within California after graduation. Ultimate goal is to work at a tech/media company on the trust and safety team in some capacity. Any advice is welcome.

My background is ba economics from UCSB 3.2 overall gpa. Honors Transfer student from cc to UCSB. High performance review within Amazon (data driven, process improvement, million dollar cost savings projects etc). Have not taken gre. Landed at Amazon due to graduating in 2020 not many places were hiring, I enjoy my job, on track for promotion etc but not my passion.

Anyone else felt that their policy school lacked rigorous debate about policy? Key word being rigorous.

What is your perception? What created or stifled policy debate?

Most people I talk don’t mention political leanings, but more about this go along to get along culture.

Hey! (International student over here) Which and why would you choose? Thanks for your help, really I’m struggling a lot to make my decision.

Hello. I will be applying for an MPP this fall. I am first generation and go to an incredibly small unknown private school so few resources. I am open to any advice. Here are my stats:

- 3.6 GPA

- Various internships and fellowships from companies like CSIS, UCLA Labor Center, AFSC etc. I will have a publised op-ed in one.

- I have research experience, I will be presenting at 2 conferences and at my school's research week. Hoping to get published by this summer.

- I am undocumented so no access to federal aid/loans

- Strong relationship with 2 professors

- VP of student club, hoping to be President of another club and get involved in Student Governement.

What programs are out there? Do I have a shot at funding? Should I just give up already haha? Please any advice is welcome! Thanks

Stuck deciding between HKS and Berkeley Goldman for an MPP. Given that HKS has offered a huge fellowship, the price tags are roughly the same (around 60k) for both programs. Living expenses seem similar in Boston and the Bay Area. Background is in social & urban policy with an emphasis on issues of racial justice, and future goals include public sector consulting or working at an IGO. I currently live in Los Angeles and after school I’d hope to land a job and settle my family either back in California or somewhere in Europe, depending on job opportunities. What do y’all think is a better investment?

Hi all,

I have recently been selected to interview for a fellowship alongside one of the graduate programs I’ve applied to. I’m fairly comfortable with internship and job interviews though I don’t know how much a fellowship interview differs from those. I’ve attached some quick snippets about the fellowship below and would appreciate and advice you can give. Thank you all!

Fellowship Info:

• Would revive partial tuition scholarship (plus stipend)
• would be a research assistant working to support a fellow (department/policy area is tba) at a notable public policy Think Tank.
• notable areas of research include economics, defense policy, tech/innovation, legal and constitutional studies & politics and public opinion.
• within my initial application, I cited interest towards Foreign and Defense Policy, Politics and Public Opinion, Technology and Innovation and Energy Policy.

Once again, any and all help/suggestions/resources you can point me towards to help prepare for a stellar fellowship interview, would be much appreciated.

Good luck to anyone else applying for funding or waiting of fellowship/internship responses ! :)

What are some good (and specific) external avenues (I’m thinking vis-a-vis publishing and such) for presenting and developing public policy proposals. Are there specific journals/publications that folks would recommend for submitting ideas and designs and if so, how flushed out do they typically have to be? I’m based (and work with public policy) in Canada but am open to all suggestions and input. Really just looking to collect ideas.

I've heard MPP or JD is unnecessary because you can get a policy role without those.

I've also heard that the policy job market is very, very competitive.

I'm a few years into my career and am trying to get closer to policy.

Some LinkedIn stalking shows that the people who were able to go into policy out of college without grad school majored in Political Science or something similar in undergrad. That's not my case.

Am I doomed? Do I need to get a graduate degree for a policy analyst / legislative analyst entry-level role?

Context: I want to work at a national or international nonprofit for gender policy.

Thank you!

I'm posting this on a throwaway because it contains potentially identifiable information.

For a little bit of context on my background: I'm currently a junior studying public policy with a minor in sociology at Vanderbilt, after transferring at the start of this year from UChicago. The one thing that I haven't been struggling with is my classes, as I have a 4.0 GPA here and had a 3.9 at UChi. However, despite my success at having a good-looking transcript, I don't have much else to show for the last three years. I haven't had a single internship, instead having worked retail customer service over the last few summers. I haven't been in a single extracurricular since my freshman year, so I have no leadership experience to speak of. I haven't done any academic research either. And now I'm staring down the belly of my last summer before graduation, feeling incredibly lost and defeated by my own choices.

I've been trying to apply for internships over the last few months, and while I'm going to continue to do so for as long as I can, I feel the weight of my past inaction hanging over me every time I submit an application. I'm most interested in social policy, and have been applying to legislative offices, think tanks, and advocacy groups, though I've been having a lot of trouble finding positions to apply for before the deadline has already passed. Needless to say, I've gotten nowhere close to getting through the door for any of them. I'm all too conscious of the fact that I don't have all too much time left to submit applications, yet I feel like my utter lack of a network means I have no idea where to even look.

This semester, I've been trying to step up my efforts to speak with my professors and career advisors, but I keep feeling like I've already dug a hole so deep that I don't know how to find my way back out of it. Even thinking about what I want to do after graduation sends a pang through my chest given how stressed I already am about this summer. What would you all do if you were in my situation? Do you have any suggestions for places where I can find internships to send last-minute applications to? What options do I have to get my path back on track?

Hello, there is a chance I could get a lower level felony involving no jail time. I got accepted in a graduate school MPP program and really want to pursue it. However, I'm worried that I won't be able to get a job afterwards due to my record. I've already been turned away from jobs just for having a charge on my record (no conviction yet). I'm not going to get into specifics about the alleged crime. How often do places both in government and non-profit do background checks? What advice do you have for someone wanting to pursue a career in public policy that has a criminal record?

Five years into into its existence, and I've been able to find very little on it. It strikes me that this isn't something that would be taken very seriously, even in the DC policy bubble, and even notwithstanding the brand. Still, it seems like it might be useful if used correctly.

Hey, I am currently deciding between McCourt and Ford. Does anybody have some insights into the two programs and can help me decide?

Any thoughts on which to pick for someone looking to get into tech governance/policy? Also, does it rlly matter what concentration you choose?

It seems like 90% of the people asking questions here are international students who want to immigrate to the US afterwards.

I want to understand your reasoning. There are very few sponsored jobs out there. Most of them that are available are quant based.

I am an international student who has never been to the US.

I would like to know how hard is studying at HKS MPP program. I planned to get married this summer, but some people are advising to postpone it till next year when I myself will get used to the study load and american life. They are saying that I will have heavy and intense study and this may be burdensome for a new family since it will be difficult to spend sufficient time and give attention to my wife. Also, my future wife's english is not very good. Your advise will be extremely helpful!

Hi all,

It's been really interesting to read everyone's inputs on the Policy programs so far. I'm also facing a little dilemma right now and thought I'd get some opinions here.

I'm an international student from India and I'm currently weighing my options between two offers -

1. HKS: 20k USD/annum scholarship
2. Harris: 30k USD/annum scholarship

Either way, I'll be looking at a sizeable loan for my postgrad. So, which school has better job opportunities, specially organisations that might assist with VISA sponsorship (at least for the 3 years of OPT/STEM), and would overall pay well to support the financial debt?

From my understanding so far, Harris's program is more quant, economics focus? While HKS's program is not as rigorous but carries a better brand-name? Given the US market and the type of roles I'm looking for (not considering government/public roles for myself as those would be v tough to secure as an international student), which school makes better sense?

Hey everyone,

I'm currently exploring options for pursuing a Master of Arts (MA) in Global Public Policy at the University of Birmingham in the UK. Before enrolling, I wanted to reach out to this community to gather some insights and advice from anyone familiar with this specific program or the university in general.

I've done some initial research on the curriculum, faculty, and overall reputation of the University of Birmingham, but I believe firsthand experiences and opinions from current or past students could provide invaluable insights.

Here are a few specific questions I have:

1. Quality of Education: How rigorous and comprehensive is the MA Global Public Policy program at the University of Birmingham? Did you find the coursework challenging and relevant to real-world issues?
2. Faculty Expertise: Can anyone speak to the expertise and accessibility of the faculty members within the program? Did you feel supported in your academic pursuits?
3. Career Opportunities: What are the career prospects like for graduates of this program? Did you find the university's career services helpful in securing internships or job placements? What is the job market like??
4. Any Regrets or Concerns: Looking back, is there anything you wish you had known before joining this program? Are there any drawbacks or challenges that prospective students should be aware of?
5. Is it a good investment?

Feel free to share any additional thoughts, advice, or anecdotes that might help me make an informed decision about whether this program is the right fit for me. Should I....

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I’m pursuing my MPP right after undergrad to make me a stronger candidate for careers in private political consulting and lobbying. I applied to and was accepted to both UVA and AU’s programs with pretty comparable scholarships for each. I’m having a hard time deciding between the two programs, even though they’re so different.

Things I’m considering the most while weighing my options are costs of living, alumni networks, career outcomes, and content and flexibility of curriculum. Social scenes around the school and the general experience of living in the area is also important to me.

I would really appreciate anyone with input: current students, alumni, anyone in the field of public policy!!

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Hello!

So, I’m a law grad bout to join a MPP programme in the fall. Meanwhile I got quite some time on my hand and I was planning on picking up data analytics as I think it would help me upskill myself in the policy space.

I looked up online and came across many courses and I zeroed in on these two. Anyone familiar with this field please recommend one?

https://www.coursera.org/specializations/data-analytics-in-the-public-sector-with-r#testimonials

https://www.udemy.com/course/the-data-science-course-complete-data-science-bootcamp/?couponCode=ST14MT32124

https://ocw.mit.edu/courses/14-310x-data-analysis-for-social-scientists-spring-2023/

And additionally, I would love some perspective on whether acquainting myself with data analytics would make me more valuable/employable to an organization?

which program would you recommend for tech policy + international affairs? thank you all so much!

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Does anyone here have experience of changing career after being a policy professional? Or know anyone who has?

If so, what did you/they move to instead, and how did you/they manage the move?

What were the experiences, skills or knowledge that made the move possible? And what were the drivers that prompted the move?

ETA: I'm a mid-career policy professional.

Hi all, I graduated with an MPH in Health Policy from Maryland and am working in Government Affairs for a non-profit. I need to move back to my home town in NJ/NYC area for personal reasons. I feel like my skills are transferable to a public policy role. Kindly asking what some of you/what kind of roles do at the state level?

Hi redditors!

I've recently received offers from The New School, The University of Chicago, and the University of Erfurt towards their Masters of Policy programs and I would like some guidance as to which place I should be attending.

I am not sure of the career prospects from either of these institutions and the environment/culture there

Are there any redditors who have attended or have had any experience with these places? It would be great to have your advice!

Undergrad student majoring in Public Health with a minor in Public Administration looking to go into Health Policy & develop policy.

Would the best route be getting a JD and then being a policymaker? Or getting a Masters in Health Policy or a MPP (and then possibly a PhD)? Not quite sure what route to take.

Looking and open to suggestions.

In 2013, I attained a Bachelor's degree in Computer Science from India. Subsequently, I ventured into the professional realm, spending two years as a Technical/Data Migration Specialist with a U.S.-based company. Following this, I transitioned to a role in government as an Information Technology Manager. Here, my responsibilities spanned various domains including budgeting, legal affairs, administrative services, disaster management, and grievance handling for local governmental bodies.

Upon relocating to Canada, I pursued a Postgraduate Certificate in Project Management, seeking to augment my skills and knowledge. However, despite these experiences and qualifications, I find myself at a crossroads. Uncertain of the optimal career trajectory, I am confronted with a sense of disorientation. The prospect of embarking on further academic pursuits, particularly in the realm of public policy, holds appeal. Yet, I am beset by indecision and lack a clear path forward.

In this state of flux, I earnestly seek guidance and assistance. Any insights or advice would be immensely appreciated as I endeavour

to navigate this pivotal juncture in my professional journey.

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