Admissions Blog

At Harris, we are committed to the success of our international students. We want to make sure that our students not only engage in the culture of Harris, but have confidence in their ability to navigate their new surroundings. One of the ways we support our international students is by helping them build English proficiency and navigate campus resources through the Academic English Pre-Matriculation Program (AEPP), often referred to as Language Camp.

Diversity Week is a time to both celebrate and recommit to fostering a diverse and inclusive environment for the Harris Community. It is a time to reflect within and across all areas of public policy. This year, our focus is on the role of storytelling in public policy. Storytelling and public narratives play a large role in shaping public policy, how it is received by society, and implemented by all. Join the Harris Office of Diversity and Inclusion as we convene a week full of events led by Chicago experts, activists, artists, and our Harris Student Organizations, where we will learn how to understand our roles and others as policymakers and policy consumers.

We interviewed Nigerian health policy and gender equality advocate and activist Chinasa Ude Imo, MAIDP Class of 2021, to learn more about her background, what drew her to Harris, and her involvement with the Graduate Program in Health Administration and Policy (GPHAP).

We have one session left in our special Health Policy Living Room series for admitted students interested in health policy. These sessions will be hosted by Ellen Cohen, Executive Director of the Center for Health and Social Sciences. Admitted students are welcome to register for this session, and view the recordings from previous sessions in this blog.

We interviewed David Chrisinger, Associate Director of the Writing Program at Harris and instructor for the Writing Persuasive Public Policy Credential Program. In his role, David works with faculty to develop and evaluate writing-focused assignments, assist students in improving their writing skills, and train and manage the Writing Program Teaching Assistants. We asked him about the Writing Program, what he looks for in a TA, and his advice for students.

We heard from Luz Stephanie Ramos Gomez, MSCAPP Class of 2021, and Manvi Seth, MPP Class of 2021, about the internships they had this past summer. They told us about their summer projects, how their first year at Harris prepared them for the work that they did, and how their internships will propel their future careers in public policy. 

Some of our networking events will be held in GatherTown, a unique video-conferencing platform that simulates an in-person environment (similar to a role playing game or “RPG”) where you can move around and interact with different people and even play games. The layout of the virtual building was designed by Bradley McCandless, MPP'22, to replicate the layout of the Keller Center and The Pub at UChicago. In this blog post, McCandless reflects on building the virtual Keller Center, and we share some instructions to use the platform.

At UChicago, you’ll join a global network of alumni. During Virtual Admitted Student Week, admitted students are invited to join alumni across sectors to see what the trajectory of a Harris Student looks like.

We heard from three Master of Public Policy (MPP) students from the class of 2021—Julia Friedberg, James Miotto, and Varada Shrotri—about the internships they had this past summer.  They told us about their summer projects, how their first year at Harris prepared them for the work that they did, and how their internships will propel their future careers in public policy. 

We are excited to meet admitted students online at our Virtual Admitted Student Week (Virtual ASW) from April 5-9. All sessions will be hosted in the online meeting platform Zoom. In preparation for Virtual ASW, we have a few helpful tips for Zoom.

We asked our Graduate Assistants and Harris Ambassadors about the highlights of their Admitted Student Day last year and what students should look forward to about Virtual Admitted Student Week April 5–9.

We heard from three Master of Public Policy (MPP) students from the Class of 2021—Steven Gingold, Fumike Agboola, and Edem Isliamov—about the internships they had this past summer. They told us about their summer projects, how their first year at Harris prepared them for the work that they did, and how their internships will propel their future careers in public policy. This blog post is the first of our series on student internship experiences. Keep an eye out for upcoming posts.

Last week, the University of Chicago Harris School of Public Policy's Dean Katherine Baicker bestowed the 2020 Dean’s Award upon Dr. Anthony Fauci for his lifetime commitment to public service and contributions to evidence-based policy.
 

Each year we place a number of students on the waitlist for a variety of reasons, and many students reach out to our office to learn what they can do to strengthen their application. Read this blog to learn more about the waitlist process and some frequently asked questions.

Enrollment in Public Policy/Public Administration programs has grown steadily in the US over the last ten years. And for the Harris School of Public Policy—a graduate school that believes developing effective public policy is a science, based on data and measurable impact—that has certainly rung true. This growth is spurred in part by a shift in attitudes. The 2020 Deloitte Millennial Survey shows the importance of organizations taking intentional measures to drive positive societal outcomes, as well as being a place for talented employees to thrive in an impactful role. Read more...

At UChicago, you’ll join a global network of alumni. During Virtual Admitted Student Week, join alumni across sectors to see what the trajectory of a Harris Student looks like.

David Kanos, MPP Class of 2021, discusses his summer internship with the Brookings Institute’s Africa Growth Initiative, and how Harris equipped him with the tools he needed to succeed.

Last summer, amid a global pandemic and from their own homes, two students in the University of Chicago’s MS in Computational Analysis and Public Policy (MSCAPP) program rolled up their sleeves and got to work helping federal agencies better leverage data and technology. Eric Son and Launa Greer (both MSCAPP class of 2021) participated in the 10-week Civic Digital Fellowship, which promotes itself as a “first-of-its-kind internship for mission-driven, student software engineers, data scientists, product managers, and designers to innovate at the intersection of technology and public service.” Although neither had previous experience working in government, each recognized this as a unique opportunity to put their hard-earned computer science and data science skills gained through their first year in the MSCAPP program to the test.

We are excited to be hosting meet and greet sessions for admitted students with current students from our Harris Ambassadors program January 25–29. These sessions will be a great opportunity for newly admitted Harris students to ask questions, learn firsthand about the Harris student experience, and connect with current students as well as other admits.

2020 brought new challenges for all of us. But throughout the year, the Harris community showed impressive resilience and a sustained passion for social impact. Watch our 2020 Year in Review video and read our top highlights of the past year. Please note, Harris will be closed December 23, 2020—January 3, 2021, and your Admissions team will have limited access to email during that time. There may be a delay in response time until Monday, January 4. Happy Holidays!