The 2019 Application: Details and Q&A

Welcome everyone to today's virtual session on the application process at the Kennedy school. We like to start off. Just checking that are audio is working correctly. So if you can hear me. If you wouldn't mind confirming by typing into the chat box and then we'll get started.

Perfect wonderful thank you for confirming so we're going to walk you through the required elements of the application for Masters degree programs here at the Kennedy School for perspective. Students who are interested in entering the Canadian school next fall. The fall of 2020.

Will also show you a preview of the online application. We received questions in advance regarding financial aid in a few questions on the individual Masters programs so these questions are best answered by visiting our website or viewing. Our other previously recorded virtual sessions. We offer virtual sessions on the individual Masters degree programs as well as sessions on financial aid at HKS. This session will focus on the Kennedy school application what we expect of successful applicants and what you can expect.

As you go through the application process.

So I will like to introduce ourselves my name is Olivia Waylon. I'm the assistant director of admissions here at the Kennedy School and I'm Mary Downs. I'm admissions and recruitment coordinator also here. Obviously at the Kennedy School and we might also be joined by our associate director of admissions morning, Mitchell for the QNA section.

So before we end by answering the future questions. I will go over the admissions process and give you some tips regarding your age cast application. Some of you are probably applying this year. While some of you are perhaps a year or 2 away from applying regardless of where you are in your application process. It's a good idea to reflect on what the Admissions Committee is looking for and compare it to your profile 1st and foremost. We have a holistic application review process. This means that there is no rank order of application materials or characteristics. We're looking at every part of your application an each part is.

Equally important while poor grades or a strong recommendation could influence the missions committee decision in general. We are focused on the entire picture.

One of the most important qualities. We look for is a commitment to public service and making the world a better place. Our students are very diverse. They come from a variety of academic background sectors and locations around the world are classrooms are filled with economists teachers engineers and politicians and entrepreneurs while their professional goals may differ. They all share one common idea, which is a commitment to something bigger than themselves. We're training. The world's next leaders. So we're looking for leadership ability and leadership potential we understand leadership is defined in many ways.

For example, we do not expect someone with 2 years of work experience to have the same leadership profile as someone with 10 years of work experience. We want to hear about times when you have shown leadership or taken initiative.

We are looking for a strong record of academic achievement, including strong quantitative skills. All of our programs have some quantitative component. Some more than others. We want to see you can think Quantitatively and Analytically as demonstrated by your academic record Jerry or gmat scores and professional experience. Lastly, we're looking for diverse experiences and backgrounds what makes you unique.

So now let's talk about the deadlines. If you want to apply this year for the class that will enter HKS in the fall of 2020 this year's deadline is Tuesday. December 3rd at 5:00 PM. Eastern Standard Time. The application will shut off at 5:00 PM. Eastern Standard Time so please keep that in mind. If you are in a different time zone. You should give yourself plenty of time to submit the most competitive application possible.

Then within 48 hours of submitting an admissions application applicants will receive an email from the HKS student Financial Services office with instructions on applying for Harvard Kennedy School and Harvard University scholarship and fellowship funding, applying for such funding requires the submission of a financial aid application, which is separate from the admissions application.

The financial aid application is due by February, 3rd, 2020, so you should have a couple months to submit a financial aid application after you apply for admission.

All application decisions are released in mid March and we host in new at midday on campus every April.

We also um host new admin receptions in cities all over the world for any admitted student who cannot attend our new at midday on campus and finally you should be planning ahead for orientation dates in the beginning of the fall semester as orientation is mandatory for all of our students.

It is the responsibility of the applicant to ensure that all application materials reached the office of admissions by the deadline. We will not accept updates to your application after submission, including test scores so planet advance. You need to get everything in and submitted by the application deadline.

We're going to go into more detail on most of these items based on questions. We receive regarding application materials. The application required materials can vary by program so please make sure to review the specific requirements of the specific Masters program you are applying to.

We want to hear about all your previous academic experiences, so applicants are required to scan and upload Tran Scripps for all colleges and universities attended transcripts must include the following.

All courses attended in grades received.

Any proof of degree conferral and the date of degree conferral and a grading policy and scale.

This requirement includes institutions where courses have been taken but from which no degree was received if you received a degree from an institution but it is not explicitly stated on your transcript that you received a degree you will need to request a separate document from your University.

For purposes of this application, you may upload unofficial copies of transcripts, but Please note that if you are admitted to the Kennedy School. You will be required to have official signed and sealed transcripts sent to the office of admission prior to your enrollment.

So, just a few more tips on providing transcripts as part of your application.

First, if you are currently enrolled in classes or a degree granting program. You'll need to submit proof of enrollment, including a list of current classes. We do not require grades for classes taken during the application period. But we do require a list of current classes.

Separate transcripts are required for study abroad programs only if the home institution does not report grades courses and dates of attendance.

Also transcript should not be submitted for secondary schools and those schools should not be listed on the application form.

Lastly, transcripts and diplomas in languages other than English should be translated by the issuing institution or a certified translation service. Original document should be submitted to the translator and the translator should forward the originals, along with the translation to the applicant for uploading.

3 letters of recommendation are required and should be submitted by individuals, familiar with the applicant in their work recommendations provide the admissions committee with additional information relating to the applicant's ability to perform in an academic or work setting only 3 recommendations will be accepted applicants should not attempt to have any more than 3 letters submitted on their behalf. Our main goal is quality, not name recognition for applicants who are still in college or who or have fewer than 2 years of work experience.

2 recommendations from University faculty members are encouraged the 3rd maybe from an immediate supervisor in a work setting or an internship for applicants with 2 or more years of work experience two of the three recommendations should be from present or previous work colleagues. One of whom has been a supervisor 1. Academic references desirable. The Midcareer MPA Admissions Committee understands that some applicants may be unable to submit recommendations from college professors.

After adding on Line Recommenders, an email containing instructions a username and a password will be sent to each registered recommender. We will accept a recommendation letter composed in a language other than English only if the letter is translated into English and both the original letter an English translation should be submitted.

Lastly re applicants who choose to use recommendations submitted with the previous application will be able to select the recommendations they would like to reuse.

So all applicants will be required to submit a resume or CV.

Notice a couple of tips on your resume or CV, a longer resume that is easy to read is preferable to a shorter resume that is difficult to read a resume with content that is packed together and difficult to read is not easy to review.

There is also no magic number of pages, but include content. You believe will provide the committee with a solid understanding of both your background and development.

A good guide for resume length is between 2:00 and 4:00 pages.

Broad statements on a resume can be difficult for an admissions committee to interpret so if applicable, think of ways to quantify your accomplishments and include detailed information.

Jerry or gmat scores are required for all programs in order to apply with the exception of the Midcareer Mason applicants. An MPP candidates in her first year at Harvard Law School, or Harvard Medical School. There is no minimum score requirement for the Jerry are Gmat and we do not have a preference for which test you take.

Total or Ielts test scores for all sections are required of all applicants whose native language is not English or whose entire undergraduate degree program was not conducted in English applicants who transferred from a non English speaking institution must still submit a total or I'll test score an advanced degree like a Masters or PhD from a US institution or from an institution where English is the language of instruction does not fulfill the total or I'll its requirement.

The admissions committees require that applicants to all programs have a minimum. Toefl score of 100 on the Internet based test or 600 on the paper based test if submitting and I'll score the missions committee require that applicants have an overall band score of 7.

You can see here on the screen that there are additional requirements for our MPP candidates. Although does not require the missions committee strongly prefer that all applicants to all programs meet the MPP score minimums listed here.

So we understand that testing opportunities may be limited in some countries applicants should register for a test date well in advance of the HKS application deadline to ensure that scores can be entered on the online application by the deadline applicants must take all required test by the application deadline of December 3rd.

Also pay attention to when your test scores expire Jerian Gmat scores are valid for 5 years. While the total an island scores are valid for only 2 years.

Lastly, your test scores need to be sent by the testing agency to the Kennedy school. We cannot retrieve score reports into the other schools at Harvard your submitted application will not be reviewed by the Admissions Committee until our office receives official score reports to match your self reported scores.

So here is a preview of the on line application for this year. We will say that all re applicants who applied in fall 2013 or later should use the same credentials that you used in your previous application.

And so we just wanted to show you a preview of the online application. Especially this page. The preliminary questions page. So know in advance that the online application is dynamic, which means that requirements and questions will change, according to the program. You select if after beginning an application you decide to apply to a different program be sure to start from the beginning, so that you do not miss any questions specific to the program to which you are applying for instance, the screenshot here this application is.

Populated for an applicant to the MPP program specifically.

Descriptions of the programs can be found on the Kennedy School website and know that candidates may apply to only one Harvard Kennedy School Masters program per admission cycle.

So our 2 biggest pieces of advice are to sign up for the admissions login plan ahead. The admissions blog is updated every day with student and alumni interviews? What's going on around campus and the admissions and application tips.

Our online application will be available very soon simply creating an account and opening the application is one of the easiest ways to prepare even if you are not sure if you are applying to grad school this year, opening the application can be helpful. You can look through the required application elements and get a sense of the necessary time commitment required to put together a strong application. You can take the required tests up until the deadline. But we strongly recommend giving yourself at least a month to plan ahead start thinking about what transcripts you need to collect.

Recommenders also appreciate as much time as possible so it never hurts to reach out early.

So now we have about 13 minutes to answer your questions. We received some questions in advance when you all registered. We're going to start with those questions. But this is really your time to get your questions answered so feel free to submit any other questions that have come up as we've gone through the presentation just submit those into the chat box.

So the 1st question will go over is.

Is it advantageous to submit an application earlier so we really won't start reviewing applications until after the December 3rd deadline, so there is no advantage to submitting the application as early as possible. We do not review applications on a rolling basis and we wait until after that December, 3rd deadline to begin evaluating candidates.

So we've also received questions about the quantitative requirements does HKS recommend any on line or courses for those whose quantitative proficiency is not as strong as it should be when it's flying to the MPP program so we will say that MPP program is our most introductory program. The first year is focused around core curriculum that is specifically quantitative in nature. So, we don't assume that you have familiarity necessarily with quantitative background.

If you've taken you know, an economics course in undergrad or a statistics course. We generally like to see that, but it's not a requirement that you've majored in a quantitative field of study. You'll also be able to expand on that in your quantitative resume.

If we are applying to join or dual degree that other institutions is there a specific format. We should use to apply to the MPP program so if you're interested in a joint or concurrent degree program. There is a question on your application where you can indicate that you would like to be joint or concurrent degree student. But the application will be the same, so we are evaluating you as a potential student at the Kennedy School.

Not as a joint or concurrent student.

The other question, we use received in advance. How is GPA way into the application package particularly if my GPA was relatively low again our entire application review? Is very holistic. So, your undergraduate transcript is just one piece of the application. Most of our programs do have students coming in, who have some degree of full time work experience as well. So will also be looking closely at your professional experience In addition to your academic record.

Rated I'm seeing a few more questions on the English language requirements and the tests. So, just to kind of go over it again? So there are minimum requirements for both the total and Isles.

For the tufal Internet based test we need a minimum score of 100 for the paper based test a minimum score of 600 and for the yotes core. We are looking for overall band score of 7.

And definitely look back on the website or go back through these slides as candidates for the MPP program do have more specific total an Isles requirements.

I see a question about the video essay section. This is a section specifically for students whose language is not whose native language is not English. It is an optional essay, which you can submit essentially you're asked a question and then asked to respond within a minute using your English skills is just another way to get a sense of your familiarity with the language in your speaking ability.

Yeah, there's a good question. If I did my graduate degree in the United States does that mean I'm still required to take the total or Isles. Yes, so a graduate degree from a English speaking University does not waive your requirement to take the total or yotes in certain circumstances. There is an option where we can review your experiences, especially for those who have been living in the US for let's say a decade.

Or, more you can apply to have that waved but that is in circumstances where it is very obvious based on your work experience normally that you, your English is excellent.

Question. When does the 2020 applications start great question, we are looking forward to launching the application very soon. There will be an announcement both on the admissions blog and it will also become live on our general how to apply page on the HKS website. So just stay posted the best resource for the most up-to-date information again is the admissions blog.

Yeah, there's a question is there a way to confirm receipt of all the Tran Scripps. According to your requirements, so this is a great question so once you submit your online application.

And after that December 3rd deadline, the admissions office actually goes through each application by hand to make sure that you have submitted all the correct materials and that we don't require any other documents for you so that will happen after December 3rd and if for some reason your transcript doesn't have all the required elements. We will let you know, and ask for more documentation.

1 question how does each cast demonstrator commit? How do I demonstrate a commitment to public service if I'm a student and lack work experience will again we do generally prefer students that have some degree of work experience. The average for the MPP class for example, is 2 to 3 years of full-time work experience upon entering the program. But if you are a student and you're planning on applying right out of undergrad. You could also demonstrate commitment to public service through both your internship experience.

As well as your letters of recommendation asking your recommenders to really highlight that commitment in their letters of reference. You can also discuss it in your essays and again. The essay topics will become available. Once we launch the application this year, you can always go back through the admissions blog to see what previous essay prompts have been required in past years and what they might ask about public service.

Another question, saying that if you are re applicant and you received a waiver in the past year. Will that waiver be automatic this year or do you have to resubmit the answer is that you need to re apply for a waiver with each re application?

So there's a question on applicants who have work experience.

In mainly the private sector is this considered a negative sense. It is not public service oriented. Uh no so we definitely get students coming in, who have worked exclusively in the private sector what you just need to make sure to do within your online application is make sure that we understand and that you explain in your application basically why the Kennedy School and why public service. But we understand if your work experience has only been in the public so I mean in the private sector.

There is a question from a perspective Midcareer student about coming into the mid career program from having just completed a another degree so that's not that's not too abnormal. We definitely have Metro students were coming in already having Masters or other Masters or PhD degrees, so as long as that fits into your career trajectory that should be fun.

There's another question just asking generally about letters of recommendation as they relate to your with years of work experience again. If you've been out of school for less than 2 years we would like to see 2 academic letters of reference for longer. One is is preferable. But we understand you may no longer be in close communication with your college professors so professional recommendations might make more sense. Really, the most important thing for any program, one thinking about letters of recommendation.

Is picking people that know you very well a supervisor that's managed to directly someone that you've interned with for a long time or a client that you've worked with for a long time, definitely prioritize someone that knows you well over sort of a very fancy title.

It's a question on um the MPA ID class demographics, so information on general class demographics can be found on our website where you can look at average age work experience of our current students. I'd recommend looking at our website for some more information about that.

On Lastly a good question on the essay questions for this year. So our admissions director Matt Clemens has posted all of this year's essay prompts on the admissions blog that Olivia has been mentioning so I'd recommend if you want to look ahead and look at what essays will be required. Broken down by program. I'd recommend going to the admissions blog. An you can see, those prompts and those are the final prompts that you should expect in the online application.

All right, so we're going to wrap up so please. Feel free to contact us. If you have any other questions or once you get into the online application technical questions, especially reach out to us. We have our Phone number. An email address listed up here. So definitely throughout the fall were excited to get to know you guys a little bit better as I've mentioned we're offering other sessions throughout the fall semester for those interested in learning more about the individual Masters programs and you can always watch our previously recorded.

Sessions that include panels from current students and the program directores.