jackassjim

Tidefan's question was quite relevant. The majority opinion seems to be that coming back to the US to teach with a European PhD is very difficult (nearly impossible?). In Italy, you might want to look at the European University Institute in Florence.

I think Pevehouse moved: http://harrisschool.uchicago.edu/Facult ... ehouse.asp

And I didn't even read your post before writing in the IPE thread...

Go to Harvard. Between Frieden, Hiscox and Simmons, they've got quite a team. There are surprisingly few strong clusters of IPE folks at the top schools, but all of them have one or two profs. Apply everywhere, and join the department where you feel you'll best fit in.

Thanks Jasper. That's probably what I will do. Cheers,

Does anyone know a good place for cheese in AA? Also, good bread?

This is quite off-topic, but I thought some of you could weight-in on the dilemma I'm facing. I'm currently preparing an application for admission to an American law school, and I'm rewriting my CV. I was lucky to get a few SSHRC grants over the years (including that new Bombardier business thingie that I can't take with me to the States), but I was wondering how you thought I should go about trying to convey the "prestige" that is attached to those. Including the grant amount seems quite tacky, no?

Chill out. You're not teaching the course by yourself. Remember when you were an undergrad? The semester usually starts slooowwwwlly and TAs don't usually do much at the beginning. Be ready to work your ass off around midterm season, and near the finals though... When you get there in the fall, you'll meet the prof who is teaching the course, s/he will give you the books or tell you how to order them, and will tell you what will be expected of you. You're not the first one to go through this. Don't be too pushy with the administrative staff before you even get there. They are the people you really have to be nice to.

Pete, Not to belabor the point, but your problem is that you will face very strong institutional pressures that discourage work that is too policy-oriented (you have probably already seen J.Nye's op-ed on the topic in the WashPost). I have read many of your posts, and exchanged with you via PM a few times. Throughout, you failed to demonstrate an ability to formulate a research agenda, or to describe your interests in a way that would conform to the prevailing standards of academic writing and research in the discipline. It is not only a matter of playing down the policy-angle. It goes deeper than that. If I would have to guess, I would say that the problem stems from a lack of exposure to American political science. I am not from the US either, and I had to do A LOT of research and an M.A. before I was really able to grasp what was asked of those who wanted to publish in the field. I thus recommend you do the following before you even start writing a new PS: 1) Pick up the 3 most recent issues of International Organization, International Security, and the American Political Science Review. 2) Read all those articles (even those not related to security) 3) Make a list of 20 different things you would be interested in studying at the PhD level 4) Reformulate every single one of these 20 things as a relationship between an independent variable and a dependent variable. That's generally what you want to study. 5) Start writing your PS 6) From the day you start until you're done, stop using the words "policy" and "recommendation". You have to go cold turkey If you follow these steps, you might avoid a repeat of last year. I hope this helps. Best, Jim

I am also in Montreal, and I got my letter today too. Makes one wonder what kind of applicant gets a 30/30.

Try to think of a loan repayment plan: -> How much do entry-level employees in NGOs or governmental organizations make? (hint: not much, especially if you're thinking about the hippie development stuff. This is not commercial arbitration...) -> How much interest would you pay on a 100 000$ loan? -> How much boost will that degree actually give you employment-wise? -> How much would you have to pay every month in loan payments? -> How much disposable income do you hope to have upon graduation? My answer (maybe not your own): it's not worth it. Those programs, I'm sure, are very very good. They are, however, cash cows for the schools that offer them. Most of us here are not certainly not in this for money. Still, it is an important factor when considering this high debt. The general consensus seems to be that an M.A. is often not worth it. Best, Jim

Ouch. I feel for you, especially since "terrasse"-season has just opened...

I was told by the FQRSC to accept the grant even if I had not received word from SSHRC yet. They even accepted my request for modification. You must be hoping for payments this summer though... Good luck!

Ah, well then I must really be mistaken. Thanks for posting about this.

I am surprised that so many people are wondering about this. It seems pretty clear to me that the "recommended" part refers to the fact that you were recommended by your home institution (i.e. you were put on the A-list). The "not funded" is pretty self-explanatory. I might be wrong, but I'm quite sure it does not mean that you were put on any kind of waitlist. I'm sorry