ThisGuyRiteHere

While I did not apply to Stanford...i believe that your application will be rendered incomplete. What you should do is see if they can email or fax it to them...I hate LOR's

Everything was sent in and now the wait begins.

thats rough.

I called all my schools today and got my ducks in a row...they said email either the department unofficial copies or the graduate admissions office...That may move things along

just send the highest

Is it a good thing if a school wants your complete application for financial aid purposes...in December, 1 month before the deadline? Got an email saying for me to get all my info in as soon as possible from the director of the program.. hope this is good

Get all A's. Establish relationships with your professors. Seek out Research. Kill the GRE when its time. Have Fun.

Been doing the same thing. I do it once a week. I am just waiting on the Darn ETS to grade my GRE. Also I sent it to the wrong department numbers....i really hope i dont have to pay 25 per school including the ones i already added

lol must be nice

Ok thanks for the response. I never had the opportunity to attend such institutions, though I would love to. I feel like this is the big pink elephant in the room. Everyone knows it but no one wants to address it. I guess exposing it more may lead to something being done about it...one can hope

Ok, so what is your recommendation for people who do not attend the 11 schools or so that produce 50% of PhD's? Or not a top school in general? Just dont go? Prestige runs a muck throughout all of academia from UG on up. So if you dont go to a good UG, dont go to college? While this research is good, it will prove what people already know. However, instead of stating the problem, what are solutions to the issue at hand? And please dont say..."well...go to HYPS"

Ohhh you guys are talking about contacting POI's? Yea, I didnt do that. I contacted the admissions directors of the programs and not the POI's. Now that I thought was off limits

Which ones?

What are your interests?

Which UK universities? Honestly, I am thinking that if i dont get into any phd's I can atleast get a MA with some funding to rebrand myself as a good applicant. ^^This is my PhD Chances lol

I think that maybe you should go to some Poli Sci websites and look at the recommended reading lists and see what you can gather.

Actually this is very good advice. I was going to pull the trigger on law and maybe go to a school 25-50...but that is madness for about 50% of those attending (or any school outside the T14). Granite, I am still "wet behind the ears" but I think that life is all about weighing pros and cons and making the best choice. While law would probably fit me best, It is no way I am risking that for financial hardship. So I will will try and get a PhD, whether I am tenure track or just toil in post docs.

I applied to 7. I would say only 3-4 are good fits for my research topics with 1 as a DEFINITE safety and one where I would go if free and I could study under this guy who seems like a true expert, even though he is at a low ranked uni. I personally think you should round it out at 5...but that is entirely up to you

Lol no one knows this better than me. I am depending on that to get me in..and the fact that I minored in IR and had a superior gpa...not so much in my major in econ :/

What schools and what were the deadlines

Virginia director said admissions are incredibly competitive. WashU tends to have a strong focus on American Politics, Public Policy, Comparative Politics, Political Psychology, and Political Methodology. Also, Delaware tends to have a strong focus on Global Governance. I may apply, but I dont know..I applied to Albany. What do u want to focus on?

Thanks, the hardest thing is getting LOR's on time. I feel like profs forgot what it was like when they were applying! But I read in a book on getting into graduate school that it is imperative to make contact with everyone. That way your not just a name in a pile.. Come to think of it..i forgot to make contact at one..D'oh!

Mine are complete...just waiting on the GRE to hit all of the universities. I literally just took it yesterday lol. I would think if you can write a REALLY good email to a POI you may get a response. I made all my moves in early November. I ONLY applied to schools where I spoke with someone. They may not be the best, but I think I have a decent chance of admittance. What schools did you apply to and what is your focus?

Why not apply to both? You will probably have to pay anyway.

I agree with the above post. Just spoke to one of my profs yesterday and she basically was astounded that I am asking job questions while I am only applying. I feel like you need to know these things before you commit 5-7 years on something.