For many graduates of the Kennedy School of Government (KSG) in recent years, working for Uncle Sam was an intimidating prospect; high levels of debt from loans and low government salaries push many an aspiring public servant toward a career in consulting.

Facing this trend at a school devoted to promoting work in the public sector, KSG officials announced last week that they will offer a powerful financial incentive to graduates pursuing government work.

KSG Executive Dean Sheila P. Burke announced Wednesday to 30 finalists for the Presidential Management Internship (PMI) that any student accepting a PMI will have the first $10,000 of their student loan debt forgiven.

The PMIs are two-year, paid introductions to work for the federal government, sponsored by the federal government. There were 1,660 applicants nationwide for the PMIs, and 540 finalists.

KSG tuition tops $20,000 per year, and that cost added to room, board and living expenses can mean tens of thousands of dollars of debt for some graduates.

The loan-forgiveness program is aimed at easing the burden on those indebted students thinking of accepting PMI positions, where pay is usually near $30,000 for the first year. Burke said in a press release that the KSG realizes that "jobs in the public sector do not pay as well and education debt weighs heavily on the minds of our students."

"When you're accepting a job that pays in the low 30 [thousands], your friends are signing with consulting companies, and they will get signing bonuses that are more than your first five paychecks," said Josh Gibson, a PMI finalist. "You have to swallow hard, and this makes that swallowing go down easier."

The PMI uses the term "finalist" differently from other programs. In this case it means that all 30 students simply have to pick the area of government they wish to work in and find a specific internship opening. In practice, PMI finalists say, this means that any finalist who wants an internship should get one.

"I don't think it would have been impossible to have a job in public service," said Michelle A. Ganow, another PMI finalist. "But it would have been difficult to make in the low 30s with two years of student loans."

"I guess now I see [PMI] as a job that pays in the low 40s for the first two years," Ganow added. "And that difference in [Washington, D.C.] is significant."

KSG Dean Joseph S. Nye Jr. worked for the State Department and the National Security Council in the 1970s, and Burke ran Bob Dole's 1996 presidential campaign. Several PMI finalists cited the backgrounds of these KSG leaders as a possible impetus for the program.

"[The Deans] have come from government and they have seen how much respect people in government have for PMIs," Gibson said. "I think that experi- ence was probably very important in thisdecision."

KSG officials were unavailable for commentyesterday.

Finalists said the details of the loanforgiveness plan have not been ironed out yet. AKSG press release says the final go-ahead for theprogram is still awaiting government approval.

"[The KSG] is always looking for ways to seethe mission of the school supplemented by itsdeeds as well as its words," said Peter J. Sickle,another PMI finalist.

"Now they've put their money where their mouthis," he added