kafcat

People who got admissions to UCI...have you checked your financial aid package (its listed online). I got 6 years of the social sciences teaching award...just wondering if anybody got non-teaching fellowships? It seems generous but it appears that this teaching commitment is for every single quarter...which seems exhausting? I thought first years didn't have to teach in most schools... :/ Anybody else get a diff. financial support package?

Claiming UCLA and UCI here. Also, wanted to share some funding opp. for poli sci which just opened up. Usually the APSA only offers its minority fellowship program during the fall, but looks like they have a second round this year. Check it out if you qualify! http://www.apsanet.org/mfp

The bottom line is that education is what you make of it. You may go to a top 10 school but not get really well connected. Top schools are great and open tons of doors, but if you really push yourself in lower tier schools, I think there's a possibility to get a tenured track position. Personally, I'm more interested in post-doc positions after graduation since I would like to go to England or Germany for a while before settling down in the US (or I might not come back at all if people like Donald Trump get elected).

How long does it usually take for scores to be sent out after you order additional ones? I ordered additional scores about 2 days ago and while the payment was process it says "pending" (usually means they haven't been dispatched). I'm procrastinating with the scores so I'm hoping they reach my school on time..

Learn to be patient and trust that whatever the outcome may be, something great awaits :)

As in the Gates-Cambridge? I applied for the 2nd deadline

@fuzzylogician a few days ago I saw one of your comments in one of these threads of sample papers...what do you think about my overall set-up (see above), the methods section is lengthy...and should I even bother with the lit review or should I just stick to the results and discussion portion of my thesis.

I have the same question...I have a 110 page thesis.. so Im thinking of a title page, table of contents (yes or no?), abstract, intro pages (about 2 1/2), maybe a small portion of the lit review, methods section, two of my results ( I had several hypotheses) and the final discussion..in total it should be a 25 page sample (at least for my poli sci PhD program). How are you planning to do yours @UTARyan

So I have sent my SOP to three faculty advisors and they gave me the corrections and told me it was good overall. However, today one of them said that maybe I shouldn't be too specific about my research goals and maybe keep it more open? In one paragraph I clearly state my research question for my potential project, my hypothesis, and my methodology. Is this generally acceptable?

Mine is close to 1000 words.

Did you have a nervous breakdown? I am experiencing one right now I really hope I can relax soon ....

I am also sending in transcripts last minute Do you think there's a possibility to be disqualified? It seems that they are somewhat lenient as long as they arrive within two weeks after the deadline?

Thank you I just clicked on the "print" button and saw it...I'm just in freaking out mode right now!

Hi everyone, what is the general format for this? I never received a copy of my official scores and I'm freaking out because the deadline to the program is around the corner....I read somewhere that people copy pasted their scores into a word document and converted that into a Pdf, is that accurate?

I'm going crazy because I am procrastinating on applications but the worst part is that I am freaking out about my low GRE scores and I have no idea how I will get into the programs I am applying for....yay.

Okay sounds good, thank you for your insight!

I received a grant for political science and along with the award comes a letter of support from the organization acknowledging that I received the grant, which will be sent to all of the programs I am applying. Do you think this could also play a role in boosting my chances into receiving admission into PhD programs in political science?

Did any of you get an email receipt acknowledging that you had applied for the Ford fellowship? I submitted mine two days ago and I never received the automated message I usually get when I apply to things.

Question about the proposed research statement. I am applying to several PhD programs, and one aspect of the prompt states: ◦ Explanation of why the chosen institution is especially suited to the field of study and the type of study to be undertaken A previous grantee is reviewing my statement and he said that it is better to write a generic statement since the reviewers might think that I will not conduct the study if I am not accepted to X university. However, my advisor showed me another statement from another grantee and she clearly stated the name of the program and why it is the best suited for her. Any previous grantees (or applicants) have advice on this?

Anybody having trouble with the letters of recommendations?? All but one have submitted it and I haven't heard back from her even though I already emailed her twice. She has the letter, all she needs to do is submit it...how should I email her without sounding pushy??

maybe call them and ask them?

Since space is limited, I'd say just stick to the presentations that are relevant to your field or if they somehow contribute to promoting diversity.

Yup, still on the hunt for more answers but hopefully more people chime in. Its a shame that there isn't much out there for references. Well, worst case scenario we can help each other out in here since it seems like this is the first Ford fellowship post on here (for 2016).

Oh yeah, sorry---barely entering a PhD program in Fall 2016, so I suppose pre-doctoral?