The rush of reunions and graduation celebrations are behind us, and as the summer shifts our attention turns to our incoming students – with lots of excitement and anticipation for all they will add to our community. Our mid-career program begins today!

As we reflect on the past year, all of us at SPIA want to sincerely thank everyone who applied for your interest in our community – those admitted and those who were not successful this year. The work each of you does on behalf of your communities in the United States and around the world is important and inspiring. Keep up the good work. Keep serving!

We are excited to be enrolling 70 MPA, 25 MPP and 10 Ph.D. students this fall chosen from an applicant pool that was historic in many significant and important ways. Not least, this year we had the highest number of applications ever and by significant margins to the MPP and PhD programs, respectively, and had a strong increase in MPA applications over last year. We also expanded the range of countries from which we received applications and are proud to welcome students from new countries, new professional backgrounds, and new organizations to the Princeton SPIA family.  

Of incoming students, nearly 40% are international and come from 30 countries. We have gender parity with 50% women. A quarter of enrolling students are first generation college students. 15% of the class are Pell grant recipients and 12% identify as a part of the LGBTQ+ community. We have 81 different undergraduate institutions represented and the class collectively speaks 46 different languages. We have six PPIA Fellows and six members of the military. We are welcoming three Truman Scholars, two Pickering Fellows, and one Rangel Fellow to the MPA. The incoming class is strong and special in myriad other ways and dimensions. We look forward to having them make their mark on Princeton SPIA and with each other.

Our application for the next cycle will open in September and our deadline is December 15, 2024. We look forward to meeting many of you on the road this year, on campus, and online. 

Best wishes for a great rest of the summer!