bsquar

Just turned down a funded offer at GWU, fyi....

Yes, I got my funding offer from GWU today.

For those still waiting on GWU, you can check online (Applyonline) and they have decisions up for everyone.

^ Thanks! I got an informal note of admission from a professor in my area last week indicating that I would be accepted and funded but I did not get the email this morning, so it looks like those being offered funding didn't get a mass e-mail either...

Here is mine. It was structurally somewhat different from what some others have posted, so I thought I would post. ------------------ Objectives: I plan to pursue a Ph. D. in Political Science with American Politics asa primary subfield and Quantitative Methods as a secondary subfield. My research interests are in X,particularly their application to “my specific interests”. My ultimate goal is to become aprofessor at a research university where I can continue my studies of “myspecific interests”. ResearchGoals and Impacts:In addition to completing my research on the “topic of independent researchproject 1”, and completing my research investigating “independent researchproject 2”, I plan to pursue a vigorous research agenda. Chief among theprojects I wish to pursue is “planned research project 1”, “planned researchproject 2” and the application of “method to planned research project 3”. Additionally, I am interested indeveloping “new method”, investigating “planned research project 3”. As aresult of my research interests, I am particularly interested in X Universityto work with Professors “A and B”. I hope to learn much from Professor A’sexpertise both in “common interest area A” and from his more recentinvestigations into “common research interest area B”. In a similar vein,Professor B’s work developing new applications of “X methodology” also appealsto me. Preparation: In order to prepare for my graduateeducation, I have made extraordinary efforts to enhance my knowledge and skill.While most of these efforts have been engaging in research, I would be remissto not mention the academic steps I have also taken. In addition to independentreading on a wide range of topics within and outside “my research interest”, Ihave attempted to supplement my undergraduate education wherever possible, includingobtaining permission to enroll in graduate level courses. Thus, in my senioryear I will complete a graduate seminar on “my primary focus area” and twosemesters of graduate quantitative methods. This will allow me to learn the advanced methods necessaryto conduct my research early in my graduate career. Having this methodstraining early will allow me to begin producing publishable research almostimmediately upon entering graduate school. I plan to pursue a strong secondaryconcentration in quantitative methods, hopefully including participation insummer training programs such as the Inter-University Consortium for Politicaland Social Research’s Summer Program in Quantitative Methods. Research Experience: Thanks to my mentor, “Undergrad Advisor”, I have had theopportunity to engage in substantive research presented to few undergraduates. Ihave engaged in a variety research activities – both on my own and as aresearch assistant. Theseexperiences have taught me what it means to be a researcher and a scholar. Independent Research: 4/2008-Present:“Independent Research Project A”:My first independent research project (which serves as my writing sample) was aninvestigation into the process of “X”. This project was also my introduction toarchival research. In order to gather my data I took several trips to theprivate papers of “primary sources”, photographing and coding over 14,000 pagesof primary source documents. This past April, I presented my preliminaryfindings at the Midwest Political Science Association’s (MPSA) annual meeting. Thisresearch continues to teach me valuable lessons. Paramount among them is theimportance of a strong command of empirical methods. Recognizing the complexityof the methods I need to test my hypotheses prompted me to enroll in graduatelevel methods courses. Presenting at the MPSA conference and observing moreexperienced scholars present their research taught me how to communicate myfindings in a cogent and interesting manner. Finally, the false starts of thisproject have been the best teachers of the creativity, savvy, and patiencenecessary to overcome obstacles encountered during research. 6/2009-Present: “IndependentResearch Project B”: Inthis project I argue “…” I am currently conducting a literature review andgathering data from the last decade utilizing diverse sources including pollingdata, major newspapers, and television ads. I am also collectingand analyzing direct data. 7/2009-Present:“Independent Research Project C”: I work with “ProfessorC of Not My University” in this project to explain the conditions under which …“description of the project”. Iwill present our initial findings at the MPSA annual meeting this April. I also have extensiveresearch experience as a research assistant. For the past two years I haveworked predominately with “Undergraduate Advisor” and his graduate students onseveral major projects. Conclusion:Nobel Prize-winningphysiologist Albert Szent-Györgyi wrote, “Research is to see what everyone elsehas seen and to think what nobody else has thought.” The margins of my bookstell me that he may be right. Indeed, they are filled with writing: “How can this coding scheme bechanged to analyze...” “The authors stop short of demonstrating...How can Ianswer this question?” Ultimately, Szent-Györgyi’s words describe what will bymy greatest contribution to political science: my ability to both utilize thelessons of previous research and see beyond them to implement my own ideas ininnovative ways to answer the lingering questions in the discipline. It is notenough to say that my ultimate career goal is to be a professor at a researchuniversity, though it is. Being a professor not only gives me the ability toaffect the lives of my students through teaching and mentorship, but it givesme the ability to pursue research on “my area of interest”, therebystrengthening the legitimacy and uncovering the institutional intricacies ofour least understood but perhaps most powerful branch of government.

It probably should be but there are some complicating factors so I'm torn between WashU, Minnesota and Princeton... My undergrad advisor at UMN is beyond amazing and there are some really appealing aspects to Minnesota. WashU is a better "school of thought" fit. But Princeton is Princeton, and I'm not sure I can walk away from that (especially after reading so much from The Realist!). So... I have no idea. I bought plane tickets and sent my confirmation to Danette, and counted that as close enough to an RSVP. I also had a professor in my subfield call me and he asked me if I was coming so I confirmed with him... But my best guess would be to email Danette Rivera once you get your travel arrangements figured out... I answered the top choice question-- your turn! ?

Has anyone gotten more specific funding information from Princeton yet?

AP-- If you get admitted to UMN, would it be your top choice?

Just because I haven't heard anything yet... And thanks!

It was afternoon. I know they are going to call everyone they admit (which is why it is taking longer) but also I do know the professor who called so that was probably the reason for it being so early. Like I said, I wouldn't read anything into it just yet except that it looks like we won't have to wait until March 5th!

In at Minnesota! I heard via phone and it sounds like they are taking their time notifying people so I wouldn't think anything of it if you haven't heard yet.

I did my undergrad at UMN (and am also waiting on a decision from them) so I thought I'd chime in here. I am also in American Politics so though I think I can give you pretty good insights into the Americanists, I know next to nothing about the IR folks and the Comparativists.... I should note my bias from the outset that I think UMN is a wonderful department and I couldn't have asked for more from the education I got there as an undergrad. The Dept in General: Though the department isn't small, per se, it's VERY tight knit. The faculty is incredibly supportive and very interested in seeing their graduates succeed. They often write with their students and, more important, the students often collaborate with each other. The grad students are laid back, and genuinely interested in learning from one another. Admittedly, the UMN placement record in recent years causes a moment's pause. I would caution against reading too much into it, however. There has, uniquely, been a trend in the last few years, especially amongst the American grad students, to be interested only in jobs at LACs. The majority of these students got interviews at R1s, but many of them turned them down for their own reasons, preferring to teach at small liberal arts colleges instead. Looking at the placement record without these students, I think UMN could go toe to toe with many of the other schools you're thinking about. Political Psych: In response to the concern that non-political psych students do not get attention, that's definitely not the case. First, the institutionalists at UMN are, for the most part, not political psychologists. Kathryn Pearson and Shawn Treier (Congress), Tim Johnson (Courts) and Larry Jacobs (Presidency) would not call themselves political psychologists. The benefit of this, of course, is that if you are interested in American without political psych, it's available to you. But more than that, the availability of the Center for the Study of Political Psychology (and its incredible scholars) couldn't hurt. Many of these scholars research both within the field of political psych and outside of it and they have all had students that focus on both political psych and non-political psych. But if you're interested in pol psych, all the better... Joanne Miller (who studies everything from attitude strength to propaganda to media influence) is incredibly accessible, brilliant and, frankly, a joy to work with. This is an upside to the dept as a whole because she is also the current DGS. Paul Goren (who studies party influence and voting behavior) also teaches the introductory quantitative methods classes. He is equally accessible and though I don't know much about his research interests, I can speak to his skill as a methods instructor. His instruction is clear and really evenly balanced between the mathematical logic behind various methodologies and their substantive applications. If my methods training has taught me anything, it's that the second shouldn't be overlooked. There is tremendous value in not only understanding the methods but understanding the pros and cons of when to employ each tool, and this is Paul's strength. The same could be said for Chris Federico who has a joint appointment in the political science and psychology departments and also teaches the quantitative methods sequence. As a caveat, with the exception of John Freeman who teaches MLE and time series (one of the most preeminent scholars in the field), to my knowledge, all the methods instructors are Americanists, and with the exception of Shawn Treier, who teaches the classes on Bayesian, they are all political psychologists. So though there might be a bias in their substantive approaches to the methods training, it is first rate nonetheless. One other benefit of the Political Psych focus at UMN is that the Center for the Study of Political Psychology is an excellent resource for those interested in political psych. More to the point, there is a benefit to the Political Psychology minor beyond excellent training in pol psych. Because the Center is so successful and well funded, there are research grant opportunities available to students in the minor that are not available to students outside it. (Note that I am not a political psych focus...) The Twin Cities: Yes.... It's cold there. Sometimes VERY cold there. That being said, MSP has some real benefits. Campus is about a mile (and a 5 minute light rail ride) from downtown Minneapolis which boasts the third largest theater scene in the US (second only to NYC and Chicago) and if you're into the arts, the Guthrie is great. If you're more of a sports person, all four major sports are in the Cities and it's the same 5 minute train ride to a football (I'm promoting the pro sports because as beautiful as the new Gopher Football stadium is, Gopher football never fails to disappoint!), basketball or baseball game (a little longer for hockey because it's in St. Paul). The summers are as wonderful as the winters are terrible, however, and campus is beautiful when not covered in snow... Living isn't cheap, but it's not ridiculous either. Hope that helps!

Personal or mass email?

Nope. Coming out of undergrad at a top 20 public. GPA 3.65, GRE 740Q 640V 5.5AW. Numbers aren't everything.

American / Public Law

OMG! I'm in at Princeton. Email 10 minutes ago. omg omg omg.

Nothing from Princeton here either.

Sorry to be a pest, but was the email from a professor or from the department? Thanks!

AND, the people who founded Google started out as graduate students in the computer science department at Stanford...

SuddenlyParanoid, Does that mean that Princeton will conflict with WashU or is it really Sun - Tue? Thanks!

Emory - phone call inviting me to interview. Said they were inviting "about 10 people" and that decisions would be made after that.