January 2014 – Elliott School Graduate Student Services

Spotlight on: Thomas Gratowski 1

GradAdvisorJanuary 31, 20141 Comment

Exif_JPEG_PICTURE J. Thomas Gratowski is a German student from Dresden and a second year master student in International Affairs with concentrations in International Economic Affairs and Middle East Studies. His academic interests include international finance, energy, and Arab-Western relations. After graduation, he seeks to join a political risk and strategy consulting company, and eventually the German foreign service.

Thomas holds a Bachelor in Political Science with a Minor in Economics from Freie Universität Berlin. During the heights of the Arab Spring, he studied for a year at the American University of Beirut in Lebanon and traveled throughout the Levant. He also got to know the Persian Gulf region while interning with the German Chamber of Commerce in Abu Dhabi. Prior to joining the Elliott School, he worked at the parliamentary office of German Minister of Defense Dr. Thomas de Maizière and was part of the German delegation to the G8 and G20 Youth Summits in 2012. Currently, he works as a Carlo Schmidt Fellow at the World Bank's Middle East and North Africa department, where he is part of the country management team for Egypt Yemen, and Djibouti. His main projects include the drafting of the new World Bank strategy towards Egypt.

Thomas also serves as the president of the Transatlantic Society at the George Washington University. He is passionate about foreign policy debates and cultural exchange, and would be happy if more students were to join.

Apply for Graduation by February 1

GradAdvisorJanuary 16, 2014Leave a comment

If you intend to graduate in Spring 2014 or participate in commencement as a Summer 2014 walk-through your application for graduation is due February 1 to the Elliott School Office of Academic Advising and Student Services.

You can drop off your application in person (1957 E Street NW, Suite 302) between 9am- 6pm; scan/e-mail your form directly to your academic advisor; or, fax your form to 202-994-9537.

As stated on the form, late applications are subject to a $35 late fee assessed by the Office of the Registrar. Students who submit late applications are not guaranteed to have their names printed in the graduation program.

Trending Question: I still need to make changes to my Spring 2014 schedule. Will I be charged fees?

GradAdvisorJanuary 13, 2014Leave a comment

Spring 2014 classes started today. If you still need to make changes to your schedule, you should read this post first.

Beginning on the first day of classes of each term, the Office of the Registrar’s late drop tuition penalty policy goes into effect. Essentially, if you drop a course (without adding the same number of credits in the same transaction) you will incur a late drop fee. The fee is based on when you drop the course(s):

If you drop a course…	The % of tuition you’ll be refunded is…
Before the end of the first week of classes(by 10pm Sunday)	90%
Before the end of the second week of classes(by 10pm Sunday)	60%
Before the end of the third week of classes(by 5pm Friday)	40%
Before the end of the fourth week of classes(by 5pm Friday)	25%
After the fourth week of classes	None

If you need to drop a course and add a course (courses must be an even exchange of credits), you’ll need to do so in the same registration transaction during the first 2 weeks of classes to avoid the late drop fees. We encourage students in this situation to consider using a Registration Transaction Form (RTF) to avoid technical glitches that may be experienced on GWeb. Here’s an example of how to complete the RTF for an even exchange of credits:

rtf sample