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J.Makarov

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    Tokyo/Moscow
  • Application Season
    2016 Fall
  • Program
    International Relations

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  1. Hello,, Elle473 I totally understand why you feel uneasy about going to study abroad, especially to Russia. I myself actually was born in Moscow and lived here for most of my life, including undergrad years. Perhaps, I've just been so lucky, but I've never got into any kind of trouble on the city streets in Moscow, not even once. Certainly, like in any big city (think NYC), there are places to avoid, but it is all about common sense. i can't tell much about St.Petersburg, though. Many foreigners are worried about homophobia and sexism in Russia. Certainly, media reports make an impresion that it is dangerous for LGBTQ individuals just to appear on Moscow streets. In reality, of course, it is not the case. I have to admit that most of Russian population still does not approve homosexuality, but most people also think it is unacceptable to interfere into affairs of others. So, homosexual behavior in public can be silently frowned upon, but no more than that. The situation keeps improving, especially among younger Russians. Concerning the recent homophobic legislature, it is important to understand that legal system in Russia is very subjective. It's a defeciency, but in this particular case it is a positive thing, Of course, Russian officials know that Western countries are sensitive about homophobia, so there is zero chance that any foreigner would be prosecuted for so called "homosexual propoganda" or staff like that. Sexism, unfortunately, is also a part of our life, but it is also pretty harmless. In majority of cases it shows itself as chivalrous behavior of men towards women, for instance opening doors for them. Many foreigners describe Russians as unfriendly, but that is also not the case. It is just that showing emotions in public makes many people here feel insecure. So, if someone does not smile back, that does not mean she is hostile toward you. In general, if you speak Russian, you will be fine in Moscow. If you do not, just ask some of fellow students, I am sure there'll be lots of people willing to help out a foreigner. If you have any questions, feel free to PM me.
  2. I know everyone at this forum downplays the importance of AWA score for the application, but I just can't help it. I did not bad on the rest of GRE - V 164 (93th) and Q 164 (88th), but the writing score of 3.5 (38th) is a real pain in the ass. The reason it bothers me is that my whole work experience is in media, and so I am afraid that adcomms would naturally expect me to be a great writer. But the thing is that I am an international student and obviously my writing in English is not perfect. How do you think they will look at my situation? Of course, the verbal score somehow offsets the weak AWA. I will also make sure to write a great SOP. Besides, I still have to take TOEFL and I could pay special attention to the writing section there. Will this be enough to cure this weakness? On a sidenote, my reach schools are WWS and Yale Jackson. I suppose, however, that my best shot would be IR/PS, given my experience in Asia (almost five years as a foreign correspondent in Japan).
  3. If you do not mention that the piece is authored by two people, then it is a breach of academic integrity. Of course, you can get away with it, but it is 100% wrong, period. You should rather use other samples of your writing. There are lots of online services where you can have your text translated and edited in a proper way and hopefully for a reasonable price.
  4. If you want a practical degree, you should look into policy programs, not polisci. I am talking about MPAs or MPPs. The applicants for these programs, however, usually have some work experience after college, so you might consider applying a couple years later. Political science is concerned with research. People with advanced degrees in this field typically get them to work in academia. If this is not your goal, then just don't bother. Getting only an MA, not a PhD, is a particularly strange idea, because MA will only get you qualified enough to teach political science in community colleges. Stand alone polisci MAs are good only for career changers who want to strengthen their profiles for doctoral programs, but don't have enough prior research experience.
  5. Not much. Jeff Colgan, mentioned in this thread above, got his PhD at Woodrow Wilson School of public and international affairs - not polisci department. This makes me think that the Government Affairs forum might be more useful, at least for me. Urpalainen, also mentioned here, currently in Columbia, got his degree from Michigan. They have a good environment/energy center. I think applying to Columbia also might be not a bad idea, as Urpalainen has at least one student working on this kind of research. There is also the Natural Resources and Armed Conflict Project at Penn State. They also have a decent program, as far as I know, so it''s worth to look into it.
  6. I am sorry to ask this again, I did not get any feedback, probably because my query was way too incoherent. I am an international student from a developing country and have a 4-year experience as a foreign correspondent (news) at a developed country. Is this considered a relevant international experience for MPA or MA IR adcomms, provided that I emphasize in the SOP my willingness to work at UN or another international organization? Furthermore, does this kind of experience limit me when it comes to choosing concentrations at the grad school? For instance, I have an interest in energy issues. If I state my intention to take this particular concentration (say, Energy and Environment at SIPA), won't the admissions get suspicious of me recklessly diving into the stuff I probably have little idea about? The thing I want to do is to look less like a career changer in the eyes of adcomms.
  7. This one, for example http://meli-lewis.github.io/GRE_Khan.html
  8. Take a look at Magoosh. I am preparing to GRE at that site now and so far it seems great. They have about 1000 exercises for both Q and V with a timer, so you can train your time management. There are also tutorials about strategies for particular types of problems on the test. You have to pay about 100 bucks, though. Other than that you can use Khan academy. They don't have official GRE prep track, but some users compiled study lists for this test.
  9. Thanks! He did his phd at Princeton WWS, though, so that proves my initial guess...
  10. Hello everyone, I am looking for doctoral programs to study a very specific subject - the implications of energy policies on international security. No much luck so far. It seems like energy issues are mostly discussed at public policy schools, while at polisci departments no one is working on them, at least in top-25 I am willing to work in academia rather than in policy. So, does this mean I should just aim at security studies programs and develop the energy aspect on my own? Or perhaps I\ll be fine doing a policy PhD with such specific interests? Thank you
  11. Hello everyone, I am seeking mainly advice, rather than evaluation of my profile, because I am going to apply in 2016 and some things may change by then. Here's my story. I am an international student from Russia with journalism background. Since graduation from j-school I've spent 4 years working as a news reporter stationed in Japan. Now I'm thinking about the further direction of my career, and there are several options on the table. The first thing is that after these years I realized that writing news is not quite my cup of tea. I am more interested in doing something research-oriented. At the same time after Fukushima, which was the biggest story so far in my journalism career, I developed a huge interest in energy security problems. Given all this and my international experience, I believe it is worth for me to consider jobs outside journalism. Ideally I see my future in academia, so I am currently looking into some PhD programs. But the career in public policy or maybe some research job in private sector also look quite attractive to me. So, as I am narrowing down my choices, I want to ask your opinion - is it a good idea to aim for professional programs with the background and the profile (see below) like mine? More importantly, is there a good chance of landing on a job, say, in some international organizations like UN or IAEA? So, here is my profile. Undergrad: Top-1 journalism school in Russia Major: International journalism Minor: New media GPA: There is no such thing in my home country, but the grades in my transcript roughly translate into 3.82/4.0 GPA. My degree is marked "with distinction", although it is not a big deal, because my undergrad school has a grade inflation problem. The admissions office might be oblivious about that, though. GRE: Haven't taken it yet, currently preparing. Also going to take TOEFL shortly after that. I am usually comfortable with standardized tests, so hope to get decent scores. Languages: native Russian, fluent English, intermediate Japanese (had to learn it right at the workplace), intermediate Polish, beginner Spanish. Quant-related coursework: I spent most of the time in college studying liberal arts (not my choice, because the syllabus was very rigid), but did take an intro to microeconimics (got A for it). I am going to take some more courses in econ before applying. Work Experience: Right after my graduation in 2010 I took a job in a state news agency and went on a long-term dispatch to Tokyo. So, now I've got 4 years of working as a news reporter in Japan under my belt. We have a very small bureau here and so each correspondent has to cover news on all topics from culture to politics to relations between neighboring Asian countries. Recently our focus is mostly on economics (well, Abenomics to be precise :-) ). Desired Program: My top choice are IR masters programs that leave me the choice between continuing on PhD (perhaps, in another institution) or going straight to work upon graduation. Such, in my opinion, are Yale Jackson, UCSD IRPS, Georgetown MSFS, Chicago CIR. Among others I am inclined towards HKS, SAIS and Columbia SIPA. SOP: Since there is still a plenty of time, I am mostly collecting ideas for SOP right now. Probably the essays will take clearer shape when I finally make my choice with the desired programs. Letters of Recommendation: I hope to secure a good LOR from my immediate boss. There is a couple of potential academic recomendees. One of them recently approached me with a proposal to write a research article on Japanese LNG market for a collection prepared under her supervision. The second one back in the undergrad years got my assistance with his research that recently resulted in a pretty successful book (although it is in sociology and not closely related to my current field of interest), so he is also likely to write a good LOR for me. On the non-academic side I believe I can also secure LORs from 3-4 people - mostly journalists, as myself. To cut a long story short, what is the general feasibility of a person like me going to professional grad school and benefiting from that?
  12. Hello everyone, I want to address my question to those in mid-career who went or are currently thinking about going to grad school. Here's my story. I graduated from Moscow State University, Faculty of Journalism in 2010. That is the top j-school available in my country (Russia). My major was international journalism. I also minored in new media. Immediately after graduation I took a job at a pretty large media outlet (state news agency) and went on a long-term dispatch to Tokyo. So, the past four years I spent covering events in Japan and East Asia in general. This has been quite an experience, but recently I started to reflect on the ways to somehow move my career forward. The question I want to ask fellow journos is - do you think that going back to school is a good investment of time and money and, more importantly, is it a valid reason to take a break in reporting career? If yes, then what, in your opinion, is the best thing to learn at grad school for a mid-career journalist in these days? As for my opinion, I don't see much sense in going to a j-school again unless there is a program with strong specialization. I feel a strong urge to go for another field. For instance, I've been thinking about getting a degree in international affairs or political science (thus pushing further in my major). It also seems to be a good idea to enhance new media skills through training in computer science or statistics. Well, there is a whole range of choices. I just wanna know what would you choose and why. The issue is not very urgent. I think that if I decide to apply for grad school, I will probably do it two or three years later from now. Thanks for your suggestions.
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