Leica

Welcome to SIS! I'm glad you had such a great experience at Grad Day I'm a current (graduating) student - if you have any questions about the school, don't hesitate to ask!

Ashlee - no, the language exam isn't hard at all (it's just reading proficiency), but you may have to find someone to test you in Indonesian since they don't offer it as a standard language exam through the school. It's not a complex process, though - people have gotten certified with more obscure languages Cnreves - no, in your case I don't really think it'd be worth it, unless you're absolutely dying to come and/or you're still entirely unsure. They won't tell you much you won't hear at orientation. I think it's much more useful for people who are still comparing schools. As for registration, you'll be able to register online in May anyway, so I also don't think that'll be a big deal. The most convenient area is in NW DC, somewhere on the red metro line - Cleveland Park, Van Ness, Tenleytown, Friendship Heights, Bethesda and further up. The further up you go, the cheaper it becomes. Lots of people live in Columbia Heights (it's also cheaper) and Adams Morgan (a little pricier, but good nightlife - however, not always the safest). I'd stay away from the NE area of town and far, far away from Anacostia. Northern Virginia is nice, but it's really far away.

I'm a current SIS student who's procrastinating on her thesis Feel free to ask anything you'd like! I'll try to help with what I can. I'm not in the ID program, but I have many friends who are, and they all LOVE it. The program takes very good care of its students and everything I've heard about ID has been overwhelmingly positive (bordering on obsessively positive, in fact ). However, in regards to work it's a lot trickier for international students - almost all of the part-time job opportunities on campus are federal work-study jobs international students are ineligible for, and your visa conditions may preclude you from legally obtaining a job off-campus during your studies (don't take my word for it, though - see if you can contact the international student office at AU, they appear very helpful). There's been some discussion of higher H1B caps sometime in the future, and I know that international AU grads have gotten H1Bs to stay here, but it seems easier said than done (though obviously the big places like the World Bank and the IMF would have greater flexibility to hire a foreigner, and I know that some of the "temporary" 2-year contracts with the World Bank often turn into two years plus two years plus two years plus... so people do end up staying, and with attractive salaries at that). This isn't an AU problem, though, it's a US immigration problem. Overall the school has a very solid reputation in DC, a solid track record of job placement and excellent connections. For US-based folks it may be worthwhile to note that SIS churns out a lot of PMFs, FSOs and government employees annually. I work full-time at a cool nonprofit in downtown DC, and I got the job thanks in large part to my amazing faculty advisor who helped me get the internship that led to the job in the first place. P.S. Based on everything I've heard in regards to immigration procedures it appears the easiest way to stay here is to get a PhD - there's also some talk of Obama's immigration reform eventually granting permanent residence to people who obtain graduate degrees in the US, though that may take some time to get off the ground. Not sure if that's something you've considered, Ashlee, but it's just a thought. Plus it comes with tuition remission and a stipend.

Agreed. Ultimately, this is a decision only you can make, but FWIW, my friends in the EPGA program love it and are doing really interesting research. On another note, DeepShadeofBlue, welcome to SIS!

Well, let me start off by saying I know exactly how you feel - it really is a catch-22 in the sense that it's tough to get into grad school without work experience and it's tough to get work experience without a Master's. I see nothing wrong with going to GW, especially if you want to start off your career in DC - it's a great school with a solid reputation and the price tag isn't as scary. All pros if you ask me. Unless you absolutely have your heart set on GT/SAIS/SIPA, go to GW. P.S. The availability of nighttime classes could actually be a great thing for you, especially if you happen to get a job offer before you graduate. You'll also have more time to do more internships.

True, but the "discipline" of IR is also kind of tough to define because there are just so many different things going on. Your distinction is probably entirely applicable when one considers PhD programs, but MAs are definitely a different beast. That said, I do think the distinction between MAIRs and MPPs with an IR concentration is kind of arbitrary and perhaps sometimes defined by university politics above all else.

I'm not sure I agree with the distinction tammy-san makes. I'm finishing up an MAIR at American right now and I think I've written a grand total of three research papers (with only one on state behavior) - the rest have been policy memos/briefs/white papers/briefing books, etc, with papers in quantitative methods, advanced analytical methods and so forth. I can't speak for all programs, obviously, but most MAIRs are very policy-oriented with a solid practical component, especially those in DC, though academic-minded students have the option of choosing courses that would prepare them for a PhD as opposed to, say, a policy analyst job. MAIRs (or, more specifically, MAIDs) can have a heavy quantitative component, too, especially if you're interested in development economics and things of that sort. And while theory is unavoidable, my program only requires one theory class, and I've heard many DC schools are the same way. I'd disagree with this as well. Very few of my classmates are on the academic track - I can't think of a single one, actually (and we're a big school), though I'm sure they exist.

I'm not in the MPP program at AU, but I have friends who are, and they really seem to enjoy it, for what it's worth. You can also take classes (not sure how many) at SIS as an MPP student, which a lot of people do, apparently, particularly within the US foreign policy concentration. I think there are quite a few adjuncts in the program (the pros and cons of this are debatable, but I've found adjuncts in my program to be awesome), too.

The student satisfaction survey was really interesting, thanks for sharing! I'm now curious to know just how bad this PAL exemption test really was!

As a student who's participated in similar panels, albeit not at Korbel, I'd like to mention that 1) the students who attend these things are a self-selecting bunch; most of those who haven't enjoyed their experience at School X on the whole are less likely to want to spend hours talking to prospective students in the middle of feverish final-writing; 2) especially in face-to-face encounters, few are willing to voice actual criticism of any aspect of the program because they think, whether rightly or wrongly, that it makes them look bad, that it makes it seem as though they messed up by choosing the school that wasn't best suited for them, or that they should've gotten more out of the experience/for the price. I'm genuinely enjoying my program (again, not at Korbel), I really like my classes, my professors have generally been great, but it never occurred to me to volunteer criticism leveled at my program by my peers, or a vivid description of Process X I found difficult to deal with, or whatever at these events. I was mostly all sunshine and rainbows even without administrators present, though this was generally because I really did like my program. My friends who weren't as thrilled with theirs didn't attend these events, which is why it's useful to get a variety of viewpoints from "anonymous" people online.

Aye aye. That's the reason I went to grad school essentially straight out of undergrad (I took a year off, but I had no work experience before I applied, and while I did temp for a while before starting school, that can hardly be considered "relevant experience"); I'm graduating in May and I already have a full-time job in my field. In response to another comment above, while I did start grad school at 22, I had no trouble making friends/relating to people older than myself. There is something to be said for taking some time off, but I don't think it's absolutely necessary and I don't think taking time off solely for the sake of taking time off is the best idea in the current job market situation. It would be beneficial for people who have no access to loans and thus must rely solely on the generosity of their prospective programs (e.g., international students), or for people who have little to offer prospective employers upon graduation from a Master's program. You don't seem to fit into either category, and you do have a lot going for you, namely the critical language skills and the semester abroad. You sound like a great candidate and I'm sure you won't have trouble finding employment in DC afterwards.

I'm surprised people are assuming it's easy to get an IR job out of undergrad these days... A lot of places won't even look at an applicant who isn't at least already a Master's student, and because the job market is still trying to recover, BAs will be up against MAs for jobs that would realistically consider them. To the OP: with your language skills, your semester abroad and one internship, I think you will be a good candidate for AU, I can't comment on any of your other choices as I have no knowledge of them. Working beforehand is great, but now it's become much more difficult to find something relevant. The comment above regarding the three-letter agencies after graduation was spot on, too, and I'd recommend going for a critical language scholarship as well. Good luck!

I find it very bizarre that Duke would say something like that, particularly since some American students transfer in a year's worth of AP/community college credits when starting college. Placing those kinds of restrictions on overseas students doesn't seem right. But anyway, I know people who've done very well in the admissions process with a three-year British degree, so I don't think that's going to be a problem. Given your experience I'm pretty sure you'd be a very promising candidate for American (and if you're applying for the international development program, you should have a very good chance of funding), but I can't speak to any of the other schools.

I'd cut the first two sentences and the "rather" at the beginning of the third and just lead with how your interests have grown and evolved over time. The first two sentences don't really add anything to your SOP, but the use of negatives may detract from your message.

Well, I can't speak for all programs out there, but IR degrees in general aren't "theory-based" - you may have one core theory (or theory & history) course and you may have theoretical readings at the beginning of each class, but if you tailor your degree to meet your needs/interests, you shouldn't have any trouble acquiring the specific skills employers want. Besides the core theory course in my program, everything I've taken has had a skills component, and my coursework has covered everything from SPSS to GIS to policy brief writing to briefing book preparation. That's not to say you can't mold your degree to be more theoretical than practical, but that doesn't sound like what you're after. As for the comparative value of "specified" degrees, there are several things worth noting: 1) an IR degree is going to be pretty specific once you move past the core components; 2) it all depends on the field you want to go into afterwards. An MBA has its value and if you want to go into investment banking or small business development or what have you, that might be the better route to take, but I haven't seen many (okay, any) IR job postings that have specified (or hinted at the fact) that an MBA would somehow be preferable over the standard formulation in these types of announcements: "an advanced degree in international affairs, international development, security studies, public administration or a related field". But again, there's no reason you can't do a joint MA/MBA if that's where your interests lie. I can imagine that being a serious challenge, yes. However, there are ways to get around taking out exorbitant sums (or any money at all) - you can get scholarships, you can find a government or private sector position and get them to pay for it, you can find a full-time job on campus and use tuition remission staff benefits, etc. There are ways to get around taking out hefty sums, and you should always think long and hard about whether that $80k degree is worth it for you personally. Last year, there were really long threads here about whether a Harvard degree is worth $120k - some said that it's just like buying a house, an investment in your future, while others shied away from the idea. Ultimately, it all comes down to your comfort level with the amount you'll be taking out, and it'll clearly be a very personal decision.