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mrgreen102

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  1. mrgreen102
    I would recommend taking a prep class. I am taking a Kaplan prep class right now and it has been enormously helpful. I know the classes are expensive but they provide you with structure and resources, namely a huge amount of online quizzes and practice tests.
  2. mrgreen102
    Hey, what are your career goals? Why do you want an MPA? Answering those kinds of questions will give people a better sense of what you are looking for in a program. It will also clarify why you want to get an MPA when you already have a graduate degree in something that is kind of related (Economics). Other than that, I think you have a very strong application. I'm not on on an admissions committee for a university but I am pretty sure that you have a good shot at getting into SIPA. I know people who have gotten into SIPA with less than your qualifications. I don't know enough about Berkeley Goldman or Chicago Harris to give you an informed opinion. I think your application is strong enough that you have more than a fighting chance to get into HKS and WWS.
  3. mrgreen102
    Here is my advice. Take it for what it is worth since I am not on an admissions committee: 1) The GRE is a horrible test. It is infuriating that you are required to learn about things like geometry and algebra in order to get into good public administration/policy programs. I am studying for the test now and I sympathize with you. But you need to take it and do reasonably well. I don't know much about Ph.D programs in public affairs but you should try to boost both your Verbal score and your Math score by at least eight points each. What was your Writing score? 2) Where did you go to graduate school? What is a "newly ranked Tier 4" public administration program? 3) It sounds like you have substantial work experience in the field of education. I think you should focus on that experience and education policy as you don't seem to have a public health policy background.
  4. mrgreen102
    I agree that HappyGoLukky should get more real work experience before he applies for MPA/MPP programs. Teach for America or AmeriCorps could be a good fit. He has a fairly good GRE Math score for the programs that he is applying to but it is critical that he improves his GRE Verbal score. I wouldn't list all of my club memberships like that but I disagree with invicta that you may clash with typical public policy professors. I don't get that impression at all. HappyGoLukky, have you taken any economics/quantitative courses in college?
  5. mrgreen102
    I think you have a fairly competitive application despite your low GPA and your low Statistics grade. My main advice for you is to focus on what you want. Here are my suggestions: 1) Think about what you are actually applying for. You wrote that you want to either pursue Security Studies, Latin American Studies, or an MBA. These concentrations are all completely separate from each other. Pick one and focus on it. I understand the appeal of leaving all of your options open but at a certain point you need to figure out what you want to do. 2) Same thing with your schools. Does Stanford even have an IR or a Latin American Studies graduate program? Or are you just interested in their business school? 3) Same thing with your languages. Why are you going to pick up French/German when you haven't mastered Spanish? 4) Why are you going to wait to apply for a dual MBA after you have entered an IR graduate program? What's the point? If you apply for joint programs now, you won't have to do it later. 5) What is TTT public school? Where did you go to school? 6) I'm not one to shoot down anyone's goals but I think your low GPA and lack of experience in international development significantly hurts your chances at Harvard. Give it a shot but know that it is a reach. If you are applying for an MBA at Stanford, I would tell you the same thing as you do not have enough business experience.
  6. mrgreen102
    I also doubt the veracity of your point on legacies. Legacies are a big deal for colleges but they rarely matter for graduate school (unless your family is on the board of the university or has a building named after them).
  7. mrgreen102
    People don't like considering Tier 2 schools for professional programs because they are not as good and sometimes they are not worth the investment. Most MPA master's degree holders don't make a lot of money (at least right away). Why spend over $40,000 in a second-tier program that probably won't land you a job? American University is a Tier 2 program so HomeGrown gave it a shot. I think with the exception of his exceptionally low GPA and a low GRE Writing score, HomeGrown has a fairly competitive application. He went to an Ivy League school has a great GRE Verbal score, a good GRE Math score (158 is around the top 75th percentile), and some work experience.
  8. mrgreen102
    If I were in your position, I would take Microeconomics (is this an intermediate course?) and Statistics. Public budgeting could be helpful as well. Could you take another economics class instead of public budgeting?
  9. mrgreen102
    I think that a military background helps with MPA programs but it probably depends on the specific program and the area that you want to focus on. If you are looking into MPA programs that focus on nonprofit management and youth development, I'm not sure how much military experience will bolster your application. But this experience would definitely help you if you apply to more international affairs oriented programs that focus on security.
  10. mrgreen102
    Hey, 15 graduate school programs is a little much. It would also get to be expensive in application fees alone. Your best bet is to concentrate on a solid core of programs that you are truly interested in and programs that you have a realistic shot at getting into.
  11. mrgreen102
    A graduate degree in IR is most likely not necessary for jobs in intelligence / diplomacy if you already have your foot in the door. It is the same thing as people who are in finance who choose not to get MBAs. Why get an MBA or any type of graduate degree if you are already working in a field that you enjoy and you can just work your way up? I doubt that teaching experience would help you get a defense contractor job (unless you were a spy or something). But it would help you stand out in applying to international relations graduate programs. These types of professional programs won't qualify you for certain positions anymore than having work experience in the field. However, they will give you invaluable networking opportunities. You can then use those opportunities to find a job.
  12. mrgreen102
    Well how old are you? You might not have to be at your company for 5 more years if they are truly grooming you for upper management. You could always teach yourself programming. Chicago has a number of IR think tanks and non-profit organizations. Check out sites like Idealist or do a Google search. What do you have to lose? Maybe they won't hire you at first. But it can't hurt reaching out to them, especially if you have a skill they might need.
  13. mrgreen102
    I don't know that much about IR certification programs so I can't speak to if they are a sound investment or not. But certificates are definitely not necessary for IR graduate programs. 1) If you are interested in going to graduate school for international affairs, than it automatically helps you that you have experience working abroad. Don't stress out about a lack of internship experience. I know someone who got into Columbia's SIPA Program and they were an English major and a Chinese minor. He lived and worked in China for a year but he did not know much about IR. I don't know if he got any funding from Columbia though. Have you taken any economics courses? Top MPA/MPP and IR graduate programs often require applicants to have taken Intro to Macroeconomics and/or Intro to Microeconomics. How good is your Arabic? Your application should be pretty competitive if you become proficient. 2) If you just want to work in international affairs or defense, then you have a few options. Work full-time but see if you can help out at a nonprofit or NGO on the side. Maybe you can't be an intern but you can always be a volunteer. Also think about if you have any skills that you can apply to the defense industry. How good are you with numbers? How about computers? You could also stay at your insurance company, climb the ladder to upper management, and then apply to business school.
  14. mrgreen102
    Here are my thoughts: Schools you are interested in: Are you going for an MPA/MPP or an MIA? If you are interested in getting an MIA, why are you applying to Syracuse Maxwell and the Indiana School of Public Affairs? Languages: Many top international affairs graduate programs (though not all of them and there are ways to get around this) require you to pass a proficiency exam in a foreign language. You might want to skip the math classes and brush up on French or Arabic. Arabic would be harder but it would make you stand out more than French. Describe Work Experience: That's awesome. I don't know if you have to go to graduate school with your work experience. Main concerns: You definitely don't need to take math classes in undergrad for either an MPA/MPP or MIA. You have already taken economics, so you are fine there. Statistics could help your application. But you should not waste your money on linear algebra or calculus.
  15. mrgreen102
    Do you think it would have helped if you had done something related to your master's degree? I know that IR programs rarely lead to extremely high paying jobs (unless you go into something like international finance or consulting but that's something else entirely). But shouldn't an IR master's degree give you an immediate advantage over someone who does not have an advanced degree?
  16. mrgreen102
    I am curious about security clearances. I am an American citizen who spent a couple of years working abroad and I have a graduate degree from another Western country. Will it be difficult for me to get a security clearance? Will people look down on me because my graduate degree is not from an American university?
  17. mrgreen102
    How close do FSO's normally get to the local people of the country where they work? Is making friends with locals frowned on as it might compromise a FSO's work?
  18. mrgreen102
    Taking introductory macroeconomics and introductory microeconomics courses are not necessary for every international affairs professional program but it definitely gives you more options. I know that Georgetown MSFS, John Hopkins SAIS, Columbia SIPA, and GWU Elliott require applicants to take those classes. Here are two Asia focused policy programs that seem like they are right up your alley. They are both good programs but they are not in Washington, D.C. or New York: 1) UC San Diego School of International Relations and Pacific Studies 2) University of British Columbia Master of Asia Pacific Policy Studies
  19. mrgreen102
    It might be helpful for you to think about what kind of program you are interested in: an academic program or a professional one. Are you interested in a broader international affairs program or a "China Studies" program? If you are interested in a professional international affairs program, you should consider taking both an introductory Macroeconomics class and an introductory Microeconomics classes. Many international affairs programs require these courses. It might help the quant side of your application if you do really well in these courses.
  20. mrgreen102
    RetakeEcon, you might want to call the admissions offices of the programs that you are interested in and ask for their opinion on this matter. But I think it would certainly not hurt you if you took Macroeconomics and/or Microeconomics again. The admissions committee would then be able to see how dedicated you are to improving your application.
  21. mrgreen102
    Hey selfnonself, I would not be concerned with 2.,3., and 4. on your list of problems. Many people have gaps in work history. Management experience at an NGO will definitely help you. You probably have more work experience than a lot of people who apply for MPA programs. You don't need to have volunteer experience to get an MPA. You could take an online economics course or an economics class at your local community college. You will have to pay money but it shouldn't be too expensive. I recommend taking a practice GRE exam before you pursue one of your three options. That will tell you how much time that you need to dedicate to study for the exam.
  22. mrgreen102
    Hey, Thank you for answering our questions. I have two questions: 1) What is the average age of foreign service officers? Or if that is too broad a question, what is the average age of a foreign service officer on the Economic track? 2) I'm about to begin a graduate program that focuses primarily on Asia. I like Asia (otherwise I would not be specializing in the region) but I would like to work in other areas as well if I join the State Department. Would I only be able to work on issues relating to Asia or could I potentially move around?
  23. mrgreen102
    I don't know of any graduate programs that solely concentrate on Sino-American studies. There are a number of programs that concentrate on Asian countries and these countries' foreign policy. The U.S. relations would certainly be a major component of that foreign policy. Most IR graduate schools allow you to specialize in "China Studies" but that just means there are 3-4 professors who teach classes about China. There are a few programs that have a real specialization in this area. Here are two you should check out: 1) UC San Diego School of International Relations and Pacific Studies 2) University of British Columbia Master of Asia Pacific Policy Studies
  24. mrgreen102
    International relations and government is like a lot of other fields. You don't need to go to graduate school to work in either international relations or government. I know people who got jobs at the Council on Foreign Relations and the Brookings Institution straight out of college. But they were lucky and probably had connections. Graduate school will help you take the next step and make those connections. And many companies/government institutions require you to be a student in order to intern for them. I think most people would agree with me that D.C. is the ideal place if your goal is to work for a politician. I would also recommend choosing a couple of issues (security, arms control, international development, etc.) or regions (Asia, Latin America, etc.) that you want to focus on. It is good to have a specialty as it will help you stand out from the crowd.
  25. mrgreen102
    Myshemblable, I would recommend that you go to graduate school in Washington, D.C. In order to become a foreign policy advisor, you have to be accomplished and you need to have connections. A program in D.C. would give you plenty of opportunities to make those connections. You could also intern/work part-time for something like the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations. Ivy League schools may carry a certain amount of prestige and name recognition. But that kind of thing is not as important in international affairs. There are plenty of amazing non-Ivy League international affairs graduate programs. I doubt you are going to meet smarter students or professors at Columbia' SIPA program than Georgetown's MSFS program. You should also pick a political party and work on political campaigns. That will give you an opportunity to meet people and get your feet wet in American politics.
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