angry_andrea

Program: MDP, MGPS, MIA Interests: International development policy, specifically aid effectiveness in fragile states. Schools Applying To: Humphrey MDP, LBJ MGPS, Jackson. Undergrad Institution: Oxbridge Undergraduate GPA: 3.7 Undergraduate Major: History I also have a British Masters degree in Security Studies, with a GPA of 3.6. GRE: Haven't taken it yet. Hoping for over 160 on the verbal, and between 150-155 on the quant. Quant: Absolutely none. An A in Maths GCSE at the age of 16. Years of Work Experience: 4.5 Languages: Intermediate Persian (Kabuli dialect), basic Arabic (Egyptian Colloquial). Work Experience: 1.5 years in the Middle East working for an NGO and a newspaper in two countries; a year in the UK working for a British NGO on child rights in conflict supporting their Middle East/Asia programmes; a year in SE Asia followed by a year in Afghanistan doing reporting, monitoring and evaluation, and project development for a large British NGO that does humanitarian aid. LORs: Employee LORs should be good, but it's a while since I was in contact with any professors from university. I'm sure they will write nice letters, but there's a limit to how good they can be since I graduated in 2009 (and in 2011 from my Masters). Concerns: 1. I have no quant background because in the UK we don't take a range of classes during undergrad- we just pick a subject and stick with it. I'm happy to take micro, macro, and stats before applying but I have absolutely nothing quant on my transcript. Correspondingly, my GRE quant score is likely to be awful. If I get above 150, I'll be happy. I'm studying as much as I can and plan to take the GRE at the end of November. 3. My previous Masters degree was completely academic and theoretical. I'm planning on explaining in my SOPs that I want to get an MDP/MIA/MGPS to acquire practical skills (including quant ones) that I need to move on in my career. However, I wonder if the fact I already hold a masters degree with grades that are OK rather than stellar will be a problem in my application. I think my work experience is the strongest part of my application, and that my SOP should be compelling- I have a clear purpose for going back to school and a clear idea of what I want to do with the degree afterwards. I've chosen LBJ, Humphrey, and Yale because the courses offered fit my interests really well; I think I'm competitive to get in at Humphrey, that LBJ will be more of a reach, and that Yale is extremely unlikely. But even if I get in at any of the three, I am worried my lack of quant and (probable) poor GRE score will mean I am not competitive for funding.

Hello all, I'm intending to apply for masters in international affairs this year and have a couple of questions relating to econ and quantitative requirements. I'm from the UK and I have a degree in History, so never did a single econ/maths class during my degree. Most of the jobs I've had since haven't been maths-heavy, so my application is going to be pretty sparse on demonstrating quant skills. To make myself more competitive, I intend to take intro micro and macro online (not feasible to do them in person) with UCLA extension or somewhere similar (any recommendations would be great!)... do I need to complete them before applying, or is it enough to have them in progress on my applications? I'm looking at Yale Jackson, UT Austin MGPS, Princeton WWS, and a few other places.