sm321

Thank you to those who responded regarding MA programs. My undergrad university had a very small polisci program, so an MA would definitely expose me to a lot more. Your responses reassured me and I feel like it certainly won't be a waste to pursue one of these degrees.

I'd like to expand on the previous post with a few related questions. As someone who got rejected from every PhD program, how do I gauge which MA programs can help prepare me for PhD work? I'm currently debating between a few options. Some of the schools are more "policy" oriented, like GW, Denver, and American, so I can cross them off the list. Other Schools like NYU and Columbia, which offer Masters degrees in their PoliSci departments, seem like good options, but I don't know if I can afford two years... On the other hand, Chicago's CIR program seems like a great fit, but is one year of study enough to prepare someone for PhD work? Compared with these programs, how do adcoms view 'taught' degrees from universities abroad, like LSE? Basically, when admissions committees look at a student's prior degrees, how do the curriculum, structure, and duration of the degree affect its credibility? Are these programs actually good at training future academics, or are they viewed as a way to kill time between cycles? (This is my main question, you can ignore everything above if you want).

I also applied directly to CIR. I have a few other MA options, and my concern regarding CIR is the same as the post above me. If I decide against pursuing a PhD, can CIR really place me in the public or nonprofit sectors?

Also thinking of going on the 8th. I didn't get in to a PhD program, but CIR seems like a really good program and I think it'll make me stronger for another application cycle.

Chicago CIR!!

Same, just received my rejection

Still nothing from Michigan. Really hoping I don't have to wait until Monday to hear from them.

I am convinced some schools sold my information or something. I have been receiving so many telemarketing calls from states that have schools where I applied. Calls on both my house and cell phone... and I never get calls like this.

hahaha exactly

I feel the same way. I'd prefer an email blast rather than whatever is currently happening (alphabetical rejections? rejections organized by subfield?)

Thanks to those who responded regarding masters programs, etc. Did you all do Masters in PS or in some other subject? I've applied to some IR masters, some area studies, and some broader social science programs (like MAPSS at Chicago and QMSS at Columbia) to add diversity to my background. Would this help a future PS PhD application? Or would it dilute my credentials? I came from a large but mediocre public school. While I did well in undergrad, I know that relatively, my application was probably not impressive compared to students from better schools. Hopefully a masters program helps show schools that I am fit for admission

Congrats to all the recent admits! To those who heard bad news, I'm right there with you. So far I have two rejections, and at least three of my other schools seem to be sending things out, but I'm just not receiving anything. I'm slowly coming to terms with the idea of taking a few years and then reapplying. I'm just out of undergrad, so, while I would love to get started on a PhD now, I know I still have a lot more maturing to do. I'm just dreading telling my professors who wrote recommendations. They were so optimistic about my chances lol. For those who got rejected in previous cycles and reapplied this year... what did you guys do in between? I applied to a few Masters programs, but even those are competitive. Any job I could hope to get seems so distant from research work, and I don't know how it would actually strengthen my future applications.

Hey everyone. I also received another email from UCSD to check my status (after being rejected). This time I found a new message encouraging me to apply to the IRPS masters. Did anyone else get this? Is this a generic message?

Has anyone heard of any more movement from UNC? With no word from UNC and no mail from Madison, I'm beginning to lose heart lol.

Yes, thank you!! I never received any of this information after applying.

Congrats to those who have heard something back from UNC! I have a stupid question... what's the UNC status check website? I only have the application website (where you use the UNC pin).

Congrats to those who have heard back already! Do schools send out all acceptances/rejections at once, or do people hear back over a span of a few days? I'm just anticipating someone posting something on the results board and me freaking out because I have yet to hear anything.

Thanks to those who responded about teaching. I think I'm just scared of teaching people who are close to my age. Hopefully, if I get in somewhere, I won't have to teach immediately...

Question to those already enrolled: When do most programs ask you to start teaching courses? I had one professor who said he had to teach his first year as a grad student, while others said they didn't teach at all. Is it all determined by funding packages, or are there departmental requirements for teaching?

So it looks like a few people have heard back from one or two schools. Were you expecting to hear back so early, or did the websites say it would be later? All of my schools said March, but now I'm anxious that it might be earlier!

Are you referring to a Michigan app? I had the same problem and called the department about a week ago. They said they are experiencing problems with the "status check" site, and received a lot of complaint calls from applications. As long as you have the confirmation email, they said you should be fine.