CakeTea

Foreign Policy Journal published the ranking for International Affairs Schools. The ranking includes some international schools (LSE, Ox, Sciences Po). Georgetown has its strength, but it is mostly Foreign Policy. Ditto for JHU SAIS. MPP covers a lot of other areas such as domestic social policy, education, private/public finance, health, local economic development, policy analysis, implementation, management of public organisations etc.Goldman and Ford have more track record in PP.

@shrimps and @beefmaster: Congratulations on USC Price admission and funding. Well done, you must be delighted @RCtheSS and @kayaker7235: Wow, LBJ came through big time for you. Good for you.

Congrats to admission. What are your areas of interests: micro, macro, econometrics, development? The Econ department is well regarded in Europe with active seminars and grads go on to PhDs or professional careers. Thierry Mayer is the best known in international trade, Prof Martin and Prof Robin produce good research. Most students with PhD plans attend the module "Research Design". Teaching varies by lecturer, good networking with guest speaker series (see SP's website) in conjunction with PSE, Paris 1, EHESS and Polytechnique. For quantitative Econ, Paris 1's Erasmus QEM or Polytechnique offer more concentrations. EHESS offers experimental econ and Toulouse is superb in industrial economics with Tirole. Resources at SP are weak if you have seen the crowded library with insufficient seats, lack of study areas for group projects, iffy printers and moderate database subscriptions. Major complaints from students. Some profs teach at other unis such as Toulouse and come in to SP for a weekly lecture, they have lots on their plates and are less accessible in terms of office hours. The grading is on a curve on a 20 points scale.

@quietman: In last year's WWS/HKS threads, there were some admitted applicants with GRE quant score in the high 150s range. But they tick the right boxes with strong Verbal GRE, GPA, employment and profile. The majority of admits have GRE quant score in the 160s.

@ TheHopefulGrad: Sorry for the mix up. I am just waiting for USC results and heard some people received early decisions. The wait continues for me.

@ TheHoepfulGrad: Congratulations to USC admission, this a very quick turnaround. USC must really like your application. When did you submit yr application and do you have to wait until March for scholarship decision? @ Kasbah: Well done on LBJ, it is a great programme and it bodes well for you.

In the general business press (FT, Economist), there is not much coverage on reform of EU audit sector. Industry magazines such as Accountancy Age cover it a bit, but it is more audit firms friendly blurb. I have not kept up with peer reviewed journals. So are changes for reforms driven by any Brussels specific directorate? With consolidation into Big4 firms, there is not really much competition. Hope you can wrap up your thesis, pass viva and get it published.

So you are a Dr Jur with a completed regulation thesis, wow. You must have done a lot of research on it. Is it Competition/Anti Trust Law? You certainly can contribute lots in class. Have you looked at any specific industries? Form an economic and public policy perspective, many modules look at regulations in energy, telecom as the UK regulators OFTEL, OFCOM have plenty data and a bit more bite than financial services regulation.

@Flou: Congratulations on yr LSE offer. Is it yr first choice and what track/concentration do you prefer?

What are the responses from tutors and potential PhD supervisors? Are they supportive and encourage your application despite the ehh non traditional educational background? You are asking for a lot of faith with a) non compatible foreign schools and different degree without prior econ work. You have not shown much work (seminars, research, dissertation, field work) in DevEcon. Applied Sciences Schools are like Community Colleges in the US and even lower ranked German unis won't accept Applied Sciences grads into PhD programmes (Source: Promotionsordnung). The general admission rates at good US PhD Econ programmes: 4-6%. There are a few talented maths and physics grads who enter a PhD programme in economics. Their research is mostly in econometrics or finance and they have done some undergrad work such as dissertation. But they continue either at same uni and are known to supervisors or come from well recognised schools.

There was a good profile article on NUS LKY MPP as alternative to US/European MPPs. Title: Students turn to Asia for Public policy expertise. Source: Financial Times, Monday 01/18/16. Education Section, page 11. Sorry, I can't post link as FT uses pay wall.

Just curious, in Germany grads from FHs (ex-Polies) may not transition to German PhD programmes. One would struggle to meet FH grads at any reputable PhD programmes. What areas of DevEcon (Education, Macro, FDI, labour, population) are you interested in? Your mid tier target unis are diverse, but I can't see a cluster of clear research areas. Do you prefer IPE over DevEcon and how much required econ work have you done in yr BA/MSc?

@gaia12: I don't know many students from Canada. I strongly suggest you contact the Canada alumni chapter of Sciences Po and ask alumni about their first job after graduation. They can say something about opps in Europe and Canada. It gives you a good idea of their career trajectory, their experience of internships and how Sciences Po helped them to reach their goals (or not). http://www.sciences-po.asso.fr/gene/main.php?base=334&base2_gpe=C&id_details_groupe=186 I reached out to my country's Sciences Po alumni chapter and they were a great source. They meet on a monthly basis for mixer and an alum invited to come along to meet other alumni, asked questions and see where they end up. It was informative to see about their career post Sciences Po, 1/5/10 yrs. Those without internships wrote dissertation in third semester.

@gaia12: most internship opps at Sciences Po careers office are for French undergrads in French orgs. PSIA has expanded international intake in past 10 yrs without catching up in staffing or personalised career guidance to reflect internationalisation. To be fair, I hear similar complaints from internationals at US programs about restricted internship opps. The internationals from US. Europe and Asia share the experience that they had to rely on their own leads (undergrad alumni network, previous employment, national government schemes). There was a frenzy around Jan-Feb with resumes and interviews. I think the main reasons are fluency in French and transferable skills from prior employment. 2 US students found internships for NGO and think tank in DC, relevant to their degree and goals. The third US student is fluent in French and worked for a non profit in Paris. She was well prepared with French resume and asked French students to do mock interviews with her. The Europeans/Asians landed internships with UNESCO and OECD in Paris, private consulting in Germany, IO in Geneva and gigs back home. 2 Europeans came straight out of undergrad without French proficiency or prior employment and had few transferable skills. They failed to land internships, but this is due to their moderate skill set. So if you neither speak French nor have prior employment, you will face an uphill battle to land internship in France. One needs a plan B such as internship back home.

@Danbrenn: The Sciences Po website is very informative. You can click to all modules listed and it lists: reading list, learning methods (lecture, group based work with presentation, exam), exam valuation/goal and even difficulty levels (101 course or intermediate with required preknowledge). You can play around and build yr fantasy syllabus. There are some core and concentrations.

Hey Danbrenn, Congratulations on yr admission, how long did it take btw submission and offer? Fellow Sciences Po applicant (albeit not International Sec). I know some current Sciences po students and they have mixed reviews. they are mostly positive with some constructive criticism with regard to career office support for international students and course registration system. Most managed to land good internships with NGO and IOs. A first yr International Security told me that the workload in her first semester was intense, but she learned a lot. Do you have a prefered thematic and regional concentration for PSIA? PM me if you have more questions, my friend who studies International Sec is not on this forum. I visited Sciences Po and spoke to some students and attended a few lectures to get a vibe.

JHU SAIS MA Int Dev Princeton WWS MPA EconDev Track HKS Michigan Ford Columbia SIPA Chicago Harris

Just curious, what is yr area of interest? Macro or econometrics? It is a smart list with reach (Harvard, Uchicago), target and safety (OSU, UIU). A lot depends on yr research proposal. You have a great GRE and it should clear the first hurdle. Most programmes publishes the GPA/GRE stats of applicants/admits/enrolled students. Your research experience with IFS counts and I have seen some bios of PhD students who did a stint in consulting too. Good luck.

@Elvidi: There is a major difference btw UK and US schools when it comes to SoP. UK unis find extracurriculars less relevant. Coordinators for academic courses want to see your areas of interest, how it fits with the department's focus, potential electives and dissertation topic. Prior research experience or publications are looked upon favourably. It isn't too early as it is a 1 year master's. Some unis (Oxford's research focused MPhil) want to see some bibliography listing.

Both are good peer unis in the same bracket and have a large international student body. I think the MSc Democracy and Election at Uni of Manchester is more specific whereas MSc Comparative Public Policy is more generic. Most public policy syllabi comprise of governance, IPE, PP institution analysis, Quant methods and some electives. The course should fit your academic interest and goals, hence check concentration and research focus of lecturers. If you really know and are certain about your preference, choose MSc Democracy and Election. Otherwise if you wish to keep your option open, take MSc Comparative Public Policy. You should check teaching methods (traditional lecture vs experimential learning), professional development such as guest speaker series or communication seminars. Do they have treks to public policy organisations/non profits and capstone project vs dissertation? The alumni network is important, how about local alumni chapters in Jakarta for both unis. Ask for employment data of grads, where do they end up career wise (see LinkedIn)? I can't comment on funding. Good luck

LSE MSc HR is the most established out your 3. It derives from Industrial Relations and Organisational Behaviour Research clusters in the 80s under Prof Baker. It is highly academic and teaches various HR concepts (International HRM, People Management, Conflict resolution btw unions and employers, HR as Strategic Management, HR Measurement by quantitative scorecard, Intercultural, Motivation). Generally, in the UK the top 3 HR programmes are: LSE, Manchester and Warwick. I would seriously consider Manchester instead of King's. As EU student, you pay home tuition and it may work out cheaper as Manchester has lower cost of living than London. Manchester B-School is way higher ranked than King's (See FT, Economist, Guardian). The MBS HR/Org Behav. course has a long tradition with famous professors and produced many alumni who work in HR. When a MBS HR prof died a few yrs ago, there was a London Times obituary listing all his accomplishments. MBS has better facilities and organises guest speakers from academia and industry for networking events. Incidentally, MBS HRM is recognised by the HR professional body Chartered Institute of Professional Development (CIPD), you need further certification if you wish to work in HR in the UK and CIPD looks good on your CV when you go to anglo countries or work in international companies. St Andrews HRM is new and does not have CIPD recognition yet. KCL does not have a good reputation in management sciences and students are not as top quality as LSE/Warwick/UCL. Other London colleges are far better and employers know it. Another good option is Birmingham MSc HRM Pathway (!) option, it is more practical and you get more CIPD modules/consulting coursework that helps you towards certification. Diff CIPD levels of student member, certificate, diploma with exam and fellowship. I think Bir has lower tuition than your 3 choices and I believe that MBS/Birming HRM is better career wise than King's within the HR industry. The general reputation of the parent uni is another matter as it factors in all degrees, hence LSE/UCL/KCL may be better known to general public. I would contact course director and ask for employment data of grads, length or prior employment, HRM recruiters, average grad salary, career office support. The hard metrics are more helpful than soft brand/reputation. Good luck.

I understand that exam anxiety happens. Yes, you should be fine for GWU and LSE. Fletcher is the stretch as your application asks the adcom to blink on your GRE Q. Basically you need to convince them that you can handle the quant course work. You can offset to some degree your GRE Q with high GPA, quant courses and quantitative at work if applicable. Show in your SoP that you have done quant work and performed well. If you look at the Fletcher admitted thread from previous yrs, how many admits with low 150s GRE Q score do you see?

Program coordinators look at quant work on your transcript to get full picture. Macro, micro, stats and science courses are relevant. Good grades certainly support your application. If you have a poet background, adcoms may understand that your verbal score is much higher than quant. You have a strong verbal score and GPA. You may need to apply to a mix of reach, target and safety school, check class stats. If I remember correctly, LSE doesn't require GRE for MSc Politics course at all. LSE looks more at GPA, apply in the early cycle before Christmas. GWU Global Comm is not very quant heavy. Most modules focus on writing and concepts in Comm. I saw stats for MA Comm at a public research uni and GRE V is in the low 150s. What study guide did you use for GRE prep and how much study time did you invest. Self study or group? Good luck.

I heard from two US journalists who earned their MA at Northwestern and Uni of Missouri J-School. They also mentioned Columbia, UPenn and USC.

It is normally published on the website under class stats/profile (GPA, GRE V/Q, age). If not, contact admissions.