Uncategorized

Readying for the fall: your Pre-semester Preparatory Primer

August 2, 2019August 2, 2019 Daniel Birdsall 188 Views

It’s only early August, and there’s still a full month until the start of classes. Incoming students are hopefully enjoying some summer fun before getting back into school mode. Whether it’s been a brief or long while since you’ve last been a student, though, the transition to the academic year will involve a few adjustments to get re-acclimated to the rhythms of academic life in general, and the culture of Fletcher in particular.

Uncategorized

A word about online grad school forums

April 2, 2019April 5, 2019 Daniel Birdsall 270 Views Advice

Potential grad students are understandably eager to gather as much insight as possible into the programs they’re considering. Applicants want to demystify the admissions process, admitted candidates want to know more about the culture and community of particular schools, and enrolling students want to figure out how to start quickly to get everything they can out of their program. We do our best to provide as much useful information as we can, as transparently as possible, in a variety of formats (emails, newsletters, online chats, virtual info sessions, in-person events, FAQs, individual correspondence, and this blog, to name a fistful). It’s natural, though, for people to want more from time to time. In spite of our best efforts, we may not always provide the specific detail you’re looking for. Sometimes you may just want insight from an outsider; we’ll always be straight with you, but it’s true that we think Fletcher is a pretty special place, and we want you to think so, too.

Uncategorized

To DC or not to DC, that always seems to be the question

March 28, 2019March 28, 2019 Daniel Birdsall 283 Views

With admissions decisions now available from Fletcher and most peer institutions, an annual theme is beginning to bubble up in our conversations with many admitted applicants. The importance of location in the decision-making process varies some from applicant to applicant, but nearly all candidates will at some point read, hear, or otherwise come across the conventional wisdom that one simply must go to school in Washington, DC to have a chance at achieving career goals in any number of sectors. Let’s examine this a bit.

Uncategorized

2019 D-Prize winner

March 27, 2019 Daniel Birdsall 232 Views Cool stuff!, entrepreneurship, IBGC

Back in October, I mentioned the Fletcher D-Prize (formally the “Fletcher D-Prize Poverty Venture Solutions Competition,” if you’re not into the whole brevity thing). Administered by the Institute for Business in the Global Context (IBGC), the D-Prize awards up to $30,000 for a social entrepreneurship proposal to combat poverty in the developing world. It’s one of the coolest things at Fletcher, in my view.

Uncategorized

Snowman update, and a few signs of spring

March 14, 2019March 14, 2019 Daniel Birdsall 262 Views

With decisions out and many applicants in conversation with our team about enrollment logistics and financial planning, one unspoken but obvious reader query has been hovering over this blog for the past week or so: what’s the latest with the snowman?

Uncategorized

Who says grad school is all work?

March 6, 2019March 6, 2019 Daniel Birdsall 263 Views

Spring break is still over a week away, and the weather of late certainly hasn’t indicated that winter is leaving anytime soon, but that hasn’t stopped Fletcher students from taking a study break to make the best of our latest round of snow. This fellow showed up outside of Ginn Library this week, ready with a flimsy high five and general good cheer for passers-by, and even sporting a dash of Fletcher orange.

Uncategorized

Winter break updates from around the world

January 28, 2019 Daniel Birdsall 216 Views Break, Travel

Our students cover a lot of ground during winter break. It’s a long enough period to accommodate internships, field work, and general globetrotting, but also not so long to make treating it as something of a vacation seem unreasonable. For many, it’s a nice respite from the hectic pace of the academic year, and a chance to catch up with family and friends. I asked a bunch of our students what they got up to over winter break, and got some typically eclectic responses.