adaptations

I'm working a full time job, but I actually like it and it keeps me really busy. This means I have to do all of my application work after/before work and on the weekends. It's taken a lot of time management planning, but it looks like the last applications will be submitted today, and I haven't even lost a step at work.

Given what I've read, I suspect that you will be competitive, but it will really depend on your SOP/LORs to overcome the grade blemishes. I suspect it will also make a difference when you received the lesser grades (freshman year or more recently). I am also curious who you are interested in working with at MIT for IPE? I chose to leave them off my list because I didn't find them to have the of depth faculty in IPE, but perhaps we have different subspecialties. You may also want to add Ohio State U. to your list. They have very strong methods training and you could work with Verdier or Thompson on some of the IPE stuff. As for the questions about earning a masters, I think it can greatly enhance your application and help you overcome specific shortcomings. The first time I applied to PhD programs, I got into 1 (unfunded) and was then offered a partially funded MA from U. of Chicago (CIR). I took the MA and immediately applied to PhD programs while completing my first quarter. Having one quarter of grades, a much better focus in my SOP, and LORs from well respected faculty in the field helped a great deal. I got into 4 good programs and wait listed at 1. So, my personal experience is that the MA can give you more opportunities and help you overcome weaknesses.

You may also want to consider IR/Public Policy programs with a strong IPE or foreign economic policy focus. I imagine there are also econ programs with concentrations in international trade and currency. If you are looking to use the masters to develop your knowledge and advance your career, I would place a pretty strong emphasis on the reputation of the school/program, even if it deviates slightly from your ideal focus. In my experience, I found that name recognition of my master's institution was critical to landing a number of interviews.

I suspect that you can tie the purpose or focus of the scholarship into your SOP with ease. For example, if the scholarship had a research proposal that you are now committed to pursuing, you should probably mention that. If the scholarship is for existing achievements, you could explain how those achievements prepared you to earn your doctorate, and earned you X scholarship. If it is a minority scholarship, or something of that nature, you could have a very brief discussion on how your minority status influenced your course of study... Good luck.

I don't think it would hurt to apply to both. If for any reason the admissions committee saw or knew of your research application, I am sure that they would understand that you are shooting for the PhD, but if you don't get it you would like to get more research experience. It makes perfect sense to me, and I think it is a smart option to plan for the scenario of not getting into a program (hopefully you won't need it, but at least you might have a backup option already lined up).

In my opinion, if you are having serious doubts about your desire and motivation to start a PhD, then it probably isn't the right time for you. I've had plenty of friends who were 100% committed to earning their PhD and still burned out in the process, so I can't imagine starting the process and already doubting whether it was a good path for you. Whatever you decide - best of luck.

I think the best advice you've been given is to just relax! You are years away from applying, and the best thing you can do in the meantime is get good grades, secure strong letters of rec., and please don't forget to have some fun - you're in college! As for the grades - having a moderate GPA to start with and then securing mostly As your last couple years shouldn't be a problem, and more importantly, there is nothing you can do about the past grades, so just concentrate on doing well in your current and future classes.

If the recommender is a professor who said he/she would submit the letter, I bet that he/she will follow through. Most professors have no problem submitting the letters on the last day before the deadline (or even a day or two after). I also don't think it will look bad or cause problems if for any reason the fourth person did not submit his/her letter, so long as you at least have the minimum.

Very quickly - here are my thoughts. 1. Intro - what you are interested in, why, and where you are applying... I am interested in studying X, because of (anecdote, interesting policy issue or theoretical puzzle, etc), which is why I am applying to program Z at Amazing University. 2. Provide specific interests and previous experience researching, studying, or working in related issues.... I am specifically interested in studying X. During undergrad, work, or whatever, I spent time researching this issue... OR, during my work experience I noticed that issue X is commonly misunderstood, and I would like to learn more about it... (This could be a number of paragraphs) 3. Goals - What do you hope to achieve from the masters program. What do you plan on doing next. How does this specific program/faculty help you achieve these goals. 4. Tie it all together. It looks to be like you are on the right track. I think you can tie your undergraduate experience and work experience into your discussion of your academic interests and how they lead to your academic/professional goals. I hope this is helpful. Best of luck.

I don't think you should worry about the length too much on these statements - content is much more important than length. 12000 characters is also a very generous limit, and I'm fairly certain you can write a great SOP in half that many characters. Good luck.

I'll do what I can to answer a few of your questions: 1. Sorry - I don't know much about British grades, so I can't help here. 2. Checkout the GRE forum. There are lots of good discussions there. That said, the usual option that are reasonably successful include Princeton Review, Kaplan, etc. I hear a lot about Barons, but haven't personally used it. 3. I wouldn't worry too much about your previous math background, especially if you score well on the GRE. I certainly wouldn't avoid programs just because of it (unless they explicitly say you need to have gone through multivariable calc or something). You may need to work on getting up to speed before you start, but many schools offer pre-semester math camps, or you could take another class to brush up. 4. I don't think private/public is the right way to think about this. For example, Michigan and Ohio State University both provide full funding to all admitted Ph.D. Poli. Sci students, and they are both public. You should read whether schools will provide full funding to international students - I know UCSD says they will not. As for your list of schools - you've certainly selected great programs that would be a challenge for anyone to get into, so you may want to continue refining/expanding your list. Best of luck.

Hi Krok, Thanks for your suggestions. I am not sure if he's looked at those programs yet, so I will definitely pass them along. I think he is now applying to Bentley, Rutgers, Harvard, Stanford, DePaul, Michigan, Columbia, and a couple others.

I would send in the updated transcripts to all your schools. It certainly won't hurt, and there is a good chance they will want them eventually anyway.

I did a similar program and have found that some schools want the transcripts and some don't. In most cases, schools are pretty good about explicitly stating on their website whether to submit all transcripts where you earned credits, or if you just need transcripts from degree granting institutions.

To the OP: I wouldn't worry about the word count since you are within the page range. To the follow-up question, "yes" - your sample should be double spaced. Good luck with the short limit, I wouldn't even know where to begin submitting something between 4-6 pages.

You may have already figured things out, but I thought I'd share this experience anyway. My partner just took the GRE and realized his name had been entered wrong. He tried contacting the test center, but they said that nothing could be done. When he called ETS the customer service rep was actually quite helpful, and within 30 minutes had changed the name for the score report. It may not always go this smoothly, but it may be worth trying if you want them to receive both score reports.

If you happened to register two embark accounts, it is possible that one of them has your recommenders info and the other does not. I know when I was applying to multiple schools I was given multiple pin numbers and I had to be careful to not have multiple apps going for the same school.

Chicago is definitely not a "safety" school. Your numbers are good so I would expect you to get into the DC schools, but as you note, funding is a question. I'm not the most familiar with the other programs, so that's all I can offer. Good luck.

Wow - I am shocked. I'm applying to 15 schools (for a second time) and none of my recommenders complained at all, and instead encouraged me to apply to that many programs. From what I have seen, the forms can typically be filled out in 5 minutes and it takes another 5-10 to submit it (if your not already familiar with the websites). I've seen experienced faculty submit letters at the rate of one every 3-4 minutes (obviously they are submitted the same letter to multiple schools). If she really doesn't think she has the time, then I would get another person to submit your LOR and forms. I view it as a bad sign if someone doesn't think you are worth spending the time to write and submit 4 LORs and forms (I'm sure she doesn't mean it that way, but it's not exactly enthusiastic support to tell you that it's too much work).

Almost all of the Poli Sci PhD programs admit students and then have campus visits (there are a couple exceptions). Don't worry Balderdash, quite a few of the Poli Sci programs admit in February. I once did an analysis of admissions timelines that I will update and post later in the cycle, but first I have to submit my apps. Good luck to all.

Many schools will require transcripts from the two other schools you mentioned. I have never heard of having to request transcripts in person (and I am dealing with transcripts from four different schools), so you should be able to handle it without a five hour drive. You should be able to submit a transcript request form (see the registrar page from former schools) and they can send the transcripts to you, or directly to the schools to which you are applying.

Here's another discussion onthe same topic that may be helpful:

In my case, that is correct. The experimental section was clearly marked and was the final section. I had the option to skip the section and then was done.

Given your professional goals, I would not recommend striving for a PhD. If you want to work in NGOs, Non Profits, Government, etc. you really don't need a PhD. Having a masters in public policy, development, or international affairs would help you get your foot in the door, but you certainly don't need a PhD. Arguably, the additional three or four years of working on a PhD, as opposed to just a MA, would be better spent working and gaining professional experience, given your ambitions. As for the different fields, international relations is a subfield of political science and is typically not geared toward the type of on-the-ground development work you are considering. Public policy and international development may be more applicable to the type of work you are hoping to do, but you may also want to look at international affairs programs with a focus on development. I know "affairs" versus "relations" sounds like a small change, but for graduate programs it typically represents a substantive difference. IA programs will generally be geared toward the practical or "real world" of international business, economic, and policy development, whereas IR programs pursue the study of international relations as a social science, focused more on the theoretical development and high-level analysis of the political structures, climate, security, etc. I'm oversimplifying this, but hopefully the general distinctions help.

Congratulations harpyemma on your good GRE scores and best of luck in the application process. That said, I don't think your post is very helpful to the community of gradcafe users. The test certainly is not easy for everyone and for some people it is a major obstacle to continuing their education. Based on your numbers, 95% of people have a harder time on the verbal section than you, so I am betting those 95% do not appreciate having you tell them not to worry. Furthermore, coming to a specific forum dedicated to discussing the GRE and how to do better, and then being suprised that people in the forum are dedicating themeselves to the GRE is just unnecessary. That is a bit like going to an AA meeting and telling people to just relax, have a beer, and everything will be fine. I trust that you didn't intend for your comments to belittle anyone, but please be sensitive to the numerous people who use this forum as a resource to improve their GRE scores, advance their chance of graduate admissions and may not be having as easy a time as you.