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A few thoughts. For a more IR centric approach to international business, you might consider Tuft's Fletcher School's MIB (Masters in International Business). You can find for information about it here: http://fletcher.tufts.edu/business/default.shtml'>http://fletcher.tufts.edu/business/default.shtml Another approach you might consider, which I have decided to do, is to pursue a joint degree between and MBA program and an IR program. This would give you the ability to dive deeper into both worlds while also exploring the interactions between the two. Furthermore, an MBA from a top tier school can open different doors and allows you access to the MBA recruiting pipeline which most MA/MPA/MPP programs lack. For this a few schools really worth looking at are: For MBA: * Harvard (They have a joint degree with Harvard's Kennedy School) o http://www.hbs.edu/ o Very large program (1000 in a class), most prestigious, very big on Case method o They take the GRE * Yale (They have a joint degree with Yale's Jackson Institute of International Affairs) o http://mba.yale.edu/ o Unique curriculum, big on joint degrees, very socially/ethically conscious student body, blend of Case and traditional lecture o They take the GRE * Stanford (They have a joint degree with Harvard's Kennedy School) o http://www.gsb.stanford.edu/ o A great school, very West Coast, big on private equity type stuff, a blend of case and lecture, somewhat do-gooder o They take the GRE * Wharton (They have a joint degree with Penn's IR program, the Lauder Institute, and with Harvard's Kennedy School, and with Johns Hopkins SAIS) o http://www.wharton.upenn.edu/ o Very big name, big program (800+ in a class), heavy quant/finance focus, lecture focus o They take the GRE * Virginia (They have a joint degree with Virginia's IR program) o http://www.darden.virginia.edu/html/defaulti.aspx o Big on community, big on team learning, great traditional MBA curriculum (similar to Harvard), small class size (200), very Case method intensive o They take the GRE for joint-degree students only * Michigan (They have a joint degree with the Ford School of Public Policy) o http://www.bus.umich.edu/ o A great school, I don't know that much about it - but worth looking into. o The do NOT take the GRE * Duke (They have a joint degree with the Terry Sanford School at Duke) o http://www.fuqua.duke.edu/ o Great southern feel, very do-gooder, blend of case and lecture, big on international focus o The do NOT take the GRE * Dartmouth (They have a joint degree with Harvard's Kennedy School and Tuft's Fletcher School and with Johns Hopkins SAIS) o http://www.tuck.dartmouth.edu/ o A quite traditional MBA, very big on community, very big on consulting, big on Case Method o They take the GRE * Columbia (They have a joint degree with Columbia's SIPA) o http://www4.gsb.columbia.edu/ o Great ties to wall street, more quant focus, more lecture style teaching, great brand, in NYC o The do NOT take the GRE * Georgetown (They have a joint degree with Georgetown's School of Foreign Service) o http://msb.georgetown.edu/ o Great DC connections, beautiful new campus, I don't know as much about this one o The do NOT take the GRE IR/Public Policy: * Johns Hopkins SAIS o http://www.sais-jhu.edu/ o Amazing IR school, great DC connections, very quant/econ focus o They will partner with Dartmouth or Wharton * Princeton WWS o http://wws.princeton.edu/ o Amazing program, awesome faculty, poor community, almost everyone gets full funding o Does not do a joint degree with anyone * Harvard JFK o http://www.hks.harvard.edu/ o Harvard brand, great professors, large core curriculum, more domestically focused o Joint degree with HBS, Wharton, Dartmouth, Stanford * Georgetown o http://msfs.georgetown.edu/admissions/ o Amazing IR school, great DC connections, lots of State-department and CIA connections. o Joint degree with Georgetown MBA only * Tufts Fletcher o http://fletcher.tufts.edu/ o Very flexible curriculum, great faculty, good funding, great brand in the IR world, in Boston o Joint degree with Dartmouth * Yale o http://www.yale.edu/macmillan/iac/ o Great professors, more academically minded, flexible curriculum, Yale connections, new-large endowment * Columbia SIPA o http://www.sipa.columbia.edu/ o Really cool school, in NYC, great connections to UN and Wall Street, also State Dept. * Michigan Ford School o http://www.fordschool.umich.edu/ o More domestically focused, more policy than IR, but great faculty, Ann Arbor is a great town o Joint degree with Michigan MBA * Duke o http://sanford.duke.edu/ o Cool school, great ties with Duke's MBA and Law schools, a blend of domestic and IR focus, relatively new o Joint degree with Duke MBA only Hopefully this is helpful. For full disclosure. I am doing a joint MBA/MA at Yale - starting this fall.

Hello All, Random question, has anyone used Rosetta Stone or similar programs to help prepare for the language requirements of most International Relations programs? Thanks.

I was admitted to HKS, SAIS, Fletcher, and I am headed to Yale, if that helps at all.

Just to chime in on this one, I have decided to go to Yale over SAIS, HKS, and Fletcher. A few of the things that helped in making the decision for me were: a very flexible curriculum, slightly more academically focused - taught with a historical perspective more than a policy perspective, the Yale brand, the opportunity to pursue joint degrees at Yale, and a great financial aid package. That being said, you certainly cannot go wrong with any of those great schools. If you haven't yet, you should visit and see what you think after seeing the facilities, the faculty, and the current students. Best of luck.

Schools Applied To: I am looking to do a joint-MBA/MA degree. I applied to: Johns Hopkins SAIS, Tufts Fletcher, Harvard Kennedy School, Yale IR, University of Virginia IR, Harvard Business School, MIT Sloan, Yale School of Management, UVA Darden, Dartmouth Tuck Schools Admitted To: Johns Hopkins SAIS ($15K), Tufts Fletcher ($15K), Harvard Kennedy School ($?), Yale IR ($35K), University of Virginia IR ($10K), Yale School of Management, UVA Darden Schools Rejected From: Harvard Business School, MIT Sloan Schools Waitlisted At: None Still Waiting: Dartmouth Tuck Undergraduate institution: Calvin College Undergraduate GPA: 3.9 Last 60 hours of Undergraduate GPA (if applicable): 4.0 Undergraduate Major: English GRE Quantitative Score: 800 GRE Verbal Score: 760 GRE AW Score: 4.5 Years Out of Undergrad (if applicable): 5 Years of Work Experience: 1 year teaching, 4 years management consulting

Since I started the post, I'll go first. Previous Schools (Name, type, or tier): Calvin College, private Christian liberal-arts college. Previous Degrees and GPA's: English, 3.9 GRE Scores (Verbal/Quantitative/Analytical Writing): 760 Verbal, 800 Quant, 4.5 AWA Previous Work Experience (Years, Type): 5 years total: 1 year teaching, 4 years management consulting in DC Math/Econ Background: Zero math since High School, Intro to Macro/Mico (taken at the USDA Graduate School) Foreign Language Background: Spanish - learned via living in Peru/Marrying a Spaniard Intended Field of Study in Grad School: International Economics/Security Studies Long Term Professional Goals: International Management Consulting Schools Applied to & Results: Admitted: Yale MA ($), Tufts Fletcher ($), Harvard Kennedy School, Johns Hopkins SAIS ($), University of Virginia ($) Ultimate Decision & Why: I am still somewhat on the fence. At this point, I think I will be heading to Yale, as I have also been admitted into their School of Management and the prospect of doing the joint-degree is highly appealing. Yale also provided a great scholarship. With its highly flexible curriculum, outstanding faculty, and somewhat academic bent, I am increasingly excited about the program in New Haven. I am still waiting to hear back from Harvard on financial aid and scholarships, so that may sway my decision making. Any advice to Future Applicants? For me it was seriously a factor of taking the time. I studied for the GRE for nearly four months, roughly an hour a day. Also, it helped me a lot to take the time to really research the schools and make the effort to visit them if you can. They really are different and have different things to offer, if you can capture those unique characteristics in your essays and craft a story of how you fit and will contribute to their unique culture, I believe the Adcom's find it compelling.

Hello All, I'm stealing this idea from Cornell07, because I found it very helpful in my process: Congratulations! This 3 to 12 month ordeal is coming to an end. You've taken your tests, gathered recommendations, wrote crazy ammounts of essays, and waited for longer than you'd have like. By now, you've probably heard back from all or most of your schools, have weighed your choices, and might have even made your final decision. For the aid of future Gradcafe applicants, please post as much of the following information as you feel comfortable sharing after you have made your FINAL decision. Please do not use this thread to ask other users to help weigh your choices. Previous Schools (Name, type, or tier): Previous Degrees and GPA's: GRE Scores (Verbal/Quantitative/Analytical Writing): Previous Work Experience (Years, Type): Math/Econ Background: Foreign Language Background: Intended Field of Study in Grad School: Long Term Professional Goals: Schools Applied to & Results: Ultimate Decision & Why: Feel free to add any more info that you feel would paint a better picture of your applicant profile.

I would agree with the previous poster. I don't think it can completely sink your application, nor does a strong GRE score guarantee anything. Your GRE score can be used, however, to cover some application weaknesses, but again the admission councils are looking at the total package. In terms of preparation, I cannot emphasis the benefit of taking many practice tests to get a strong grasp of what the testing experience is like. I took in the realm of 30+ practice tests before the actual test day. Good luck on your studying and all of your applications.

I am joining the growing litany of prospective IR applicants for the Fall of 2010. I just finished my GRE - 760 Verbal, 800 Quant, 5.5 AWA. Naturally, I am pleased with these results. Undergraduate GPA - 3.87 (cumulative), 3.93 (in Major) from a smaller liberal arts school. I majored in English Lit. Work experience - I have 5 years of work experience. 4 as a management consultant working with senior gov't execs and intelligence officials, and 1 year as a high school teacher. Schools I plan on applying to (the standard set of many on this board): KSG, WWS, WSFS, Yale, Oxford, Cambridge, Fletcher, SAIS Econ Classes, Etc. - I already took Calc, Macro, and 2 Poly Sci classes undergrad. I am currently taking Micro and Stats at the USDA school in DC. I've started on the application prep stuff, and beginning drafts of my personal statements. So, he's to everyone working on all of the same stuff. Good luck to you all. Hopefully we'll get to work together one day.