billythekid72

@Nico Corr how much did you receive from George Mason? I would recommend sending the admissions office at American SIS and GW Elliott a short email informing them that you have received an offer from George Mason with X amount of funding, but that American or GW is your top choice.

Did you receive any acceptances/scholarships from other MPP/MPA programs? I ask because I am unsure if Harris will consider matching the scholarship that you were offered from GW Law (as it's a completely different type of professional school).

For your interest in International Development, SIPA and NYU Wagner (International specialization) are really the only worthwhile options in NYC. If you are able and willing to travel up to Syracuse, New York, The Maxwell School would be another solid option for your interests.

Thanks ESIAGradStudent!

ESIAGradStudentSPS16-18, no worries, we all understand! Thanks for offering to share your thoughts and experience at the Admitted Students Day event. Can't wait to read them.

Pichichi, thanks for providing us with a detailed overview on experience at the Elliott Admitted Students Day event. I wasn't able to attend; however, you sentiments seem to mirror alot of what I have heard and read about the program. Thanks again!

For those who attended admitted students day, could you please share your thoughts on the school?

Hi Kuelfeel, I just received funding notification earlier today. I would reach out to the Graduate Office of Admissions at Elliott. PM me if you have any questions.

Anyone else still waiting on funding...

Congrats! Thanks for the heads up, hopefully I will be hearing back on Monday. GWU is the last choice that I am waiting on.

Congratulations to all those who have been accepted! Has anyone heard back from the International Trade and Investment Policy program?

Thanks, I felt that my research experience was fairly solid but wasn't sure how it would stack up against other applicants. The research assistant positions and my honors thesis have all been catered towards my specific research interests purposely. I kinda of wish I had started doing research a bit earlier in my undergraduate career but I am happy with all of the experiences and opportunities that I have had so far. Yes, I will definitely be leveraging my LORs to convince the admission committees that I understand the type of research that is conducted in the discipline and that I sufficient experience conducting this type of research. I would like to apologize for the confusion. Unfortunately, I did not get authorship credit on the paper, I helped my professor get it published. I worked mostly on creating data sets and running regressions but I was thanked in the acknowledgement section. Thanks again for all of your help!

Thanks for the advice victorydance. I figured most of the achievements (non research related) would bear little to no effect on the admissions process. Do you think that I have 'sufficient' research experience to put forth a competitive application? I am currently working on those last three aspects of my application.

Cool! Well Chinese is an excellent language to know. I took a few years of Mandarin back in elementary school but don;t remember much now. LOL, regarding the debate. Any advice on how to strengthen my application kaykaykay or victory dance?

I definitely agree with you on MastersHoping's list of schools. They all have particularly strong IR policy schools for individuals interested in obtaining a professional masters degree.

No problem. I would also suggest looking at the job placement records of the schools that you are interested in applying for. This is very important if you are looking to work in academia. Yes, I plan on applying to 6, perhaps 7 schools. Fortunately, many schools have application fee waivers for AmeriCorps volunteers. I know people who applied to 10 schools this past cycle and it just seemed like a waste to me. I have a group of 5-6 schools that really match my research interests and they are also institutions where I can see myself spending the next 5-7 years at. I studied french in school from a young age and my parents are both native speakers. Have you studied any Asian languages?

If only, haha, Thanks for the support!

Thank you! I know most schools only request 3 LORs but I have 4-5 excellent LORs at my disposal. I am also working on my SOP over the summer and will make sure to have several pairs of eyes read over it as I revise it.

I am considering going to an IR school but I am no longer interested in such a program. I plan on obtaining a PhD and going straight to academia. I will consider transitioning into the policy-world much much later in my career if I am inclined to do so.

Hello! Sorry for the last reply. Interesting list. I haven't finalized my list completely but about 6 of the Top 15 programs. We don't seem to have any schools overlapping. I would recommend looking into UCSD, they are known for their regional strength or focus on Asia.

Thank you very much for your response! I wish you the best of luck on your PhD applications. Have you already narrowed down your final list of schools? I will probably be applying to no more than 6 or 7 programs. Additionally, are you planning on studying Comparative or IR? (it seems you are doing a Masters now in Asian Studies)

Bump...

Thank you for the heads up victorydance. Hopefully I will only have to take it once but I will make sure to keep all of these factors in mind when planning a retake if necessary. Most of the deadlines seem to be early to mid December.

Congratulations esotericish! Thanks again for the advice. I am not sure if I am will fully prepared and ready to take the exam before September, maybe August the earliest. Would i not be able to retake the exam in the end of October or the beginning of November?

Hi esotericish! Thank you so much for your response. I have four excellent recommendation letters from POLS professors, I will begin drafting my SOP over the summer, and I am hoping to take the GRE in September. Will you be entering a PhD program in Political Science in the Fall?