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The Cornell Institute of Public Affairs know as CIPA is two years masters degree program at Cornell University. CIPA is a part of the College of Human Ecology of Cornell University. It is diverse, multidisciplinary program requires fellow to complete minimum 16 courses, where 12 courses are core, and left 4 are concentration. As a first-year student, you can gain introductory consulting experience through the Public Service Exchange. During your second year of study, the Capstone offers you the option... Read More of completing a rigorous, semester-long consulting project for either a domestic or international client.

Cornell's MPA is what you make of it. If you want to have an amazing time and build a portfolio of applied projects and challenging coursework, it is up to you to connect with professors and seek out those opportunities. There are many of them and everyone has been willing to help. Cornell is also a great university, and you get perks of being connected to a global network. That said, if you are not as focused or directed, you can easily take all the required classes, coasting through the program... Read More without truly challenging yourself. Don't come here if you're looking for guidance or not sure why you want to go to graduate school. You will feel lost and disorganized. But come here if you know how Cornell can help you learn and work on projects that you value. Look at all the Cornell research institutes and organizations, faculty projects, and programs and start networking!

Pros, getting your foot in the door at CIPA before it becomes it's own school will allow you smaller competitiveness, all the academic resources of Cornell, and some seriously quick degree appreciation. We partner with the Maxwell School for a spring conference. There are tons of ways to get involved in leadership positions in the program. The diversity is incredible. Cons, Ithaca is nice, but it is the middle of nowhere. Getting to places where there are internships and not having that natural network... Read More is the biggest drawback when compared to programs like Columbia, American, and Georgetown. The decentralization of class selection is frustrating, even though it provides great variety.