International Student FAQ
Contact person for international applicants
All questions and concerns regarding the status of international applications should be directed to:
Mr. Emmett R. Griffin, Jr.
Office of Admissions - MPP Program
Georgetown Public Policy Institute
3520 Prospect St., NW, Suite 400
Washington, DC 20007
E-mail: gppiadmissions@georgetown.edu
Phone: (202) 687-0615
Fax: (202) 687-9187
Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) or IELTS Results
International students are required to demonstrate a level of competence in English sufficient to meet Georgetown Graduate School and U.S. F-1 student visa requirements. All applicants who received an academic degree from a college or university where English is not the primary language spoken are required to submit TOEFL or IELT scores taken within the past 2 years. The minimum required TOEFL score is 550 on the paper exam or 213 on the computer-based test, and IELTS 7.0. Please arrange for official score reports to be sent directly from the test agency to the GPPI Office of Admission. Enclose a photocopy of your results with your supplemental application materials. The Georgetown University TOEFL code is 5335. TOEFL information and registration forms can be obtained at many colleges and international educational organizations or directly from the Educational Testing Service (ETS), P.O. Box 6051, Princeton, NJ 08541, USA, (609) 771-7100
http://www.toefl.org. The IELTS web site is
http://www.ielts.org.
Letters of recommendation
The MPP program requires three letters of recommendation including at least one academic reference and at least one professional reference. The third letter of recommendation can be either an academic or a professional reference. These recommendations must be written in English and must be submitted online with other supplemental admissions information.
Transcripts
The GPPI requires applicants to submit official transcripts from all post-secondary educational institutions attended. Official transcripts are transcripts issued by the institution in a signed and sealed envelope. Some international transcripts, particularly those from Mexican universities, do not explicitly state that a degree was conferred or the date of graduation. If your transcript does not include this information, you should obtain an official letter from your university indicating the date of your graduation and the degree conferred. This letter should be enclosed in a signed, sealed envelope and included with your transcript.
We require that all transcripts be submitted in English. Most major foreign universities will issue official transcripts in English themselves. However, if your institution is unable to do this, you are responsible for providing the GPPI Office of Admissions with an English translation of your transcript. Your translator must certify that the original documentation was received in a sealed envelope from the school or evaluator. After translating, your translator should enclose both the original and the certified translation in an envelope and seal and sign the envelope. You should enclose this signed, sealed envelope in your application.
Financial Aid
Unfortunately, international students are not eligible for United States federal loans, and so the GPPI is unable to offer need-based financial aid to international candidates. However, we do consider international candidates for merit-based aid. The merit scholarship selection process takes place in February, independently of the international admissions process. As a result, you will be notified of your admission before we have made any determinations about scholarships. If you are selected for a merit-based scholarship, you will be notified in February or by mid-March.
Because study in the United States is so expensive, and because we are unable to guarantee financial aid for international applicants, we strongly suggest that you begin looking for funding sources in your home country as soon as possible. International organizations like the International Monetary Fund, the World Bank, and the Inter-American Development Bank also sometimes offer financial assistance to international students wishing to study in the United States. We will be happy to support your search for alternative funding in any way possible.
Three websites that you might find helpful in your search
Preparing for Arrival
Finding a place to live in Washington, DC is difficult to do from abroad. We strongly recommend that you conduct your search after your arrival. Every year, the Office of International Programs (OIP) arranges to provide inexpensive housing on campus for the first two weeks of August. This gives international students time to find adequate housing before the school year begins. For more information about international student orientation, as well as questions regarding startup living expenses, banking suggestions, travel information, and visa requirements, please visit the OIP website,
http://oip.georgetown.edu.
