TheWalkingGrad

During my undergrad in International Relations I got a scholarship to study Political Science in France for a year. I barely knew basic French but I went anyways. I did ok in most of my classes, nothing great, but since I didn't know the language I was pretty satisfied with the results, and I got a certificate of political science. BUT, I failed one of the classes. It was a stupid class, about something I knew pretty well so I didn't really put in any effort, and the final evaluation was an UN simulation (which I hate), so I failed it. The programs for which I'm applying ask that I upload the transcripts from every university I've attended, but since I failed one of the classes I'm not sure I should say anything. The pros: 1. Only 2 people per class are selected to this scholarship; 2. I ended up learning French (kinda); 3. I got a certificate in Political Science, which would be nice to mention since my major in undergrad was IR and I'm applying to Poli Sci programs. The cons: 1. I didn't exactly get outstanding grades; 2. I failed one of the classes. Should I send these transcripts or not?

No, I graduated from the Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul. That's why I worry about the admissions committee not knowing it. Even though it is the best ranked university and program, I don't think people outside Brazil know that. I suppose I can fix that by mentioning it in my SoP.

You guys are right, thanks so much for the input. The only reason I'd apply to these lower ranked schools is that I don't feel I have a strong enough application to get in better schools. I'll try both higher and lower just in case.

I'm planning on applying to 10 programs, but I'm having trouble identifying where I can get in given my profile. As I said, besides GW and Georgetown, I've sent my scores to Boston U and Brown, which are considerably lower on the ranking (U.S. News). Other options that I've found faculty that could help are Ohio State, Penn State, University of Chicago, John Hopkins and Duke, but all of those are better placed than GW and Georgetown, so I figured it would be harder to get in.

Mostly because of the faculty, from what I gathered there are a few professors that could advise me on the stuff I'm interested in studying. I wasn't aware of their funding situation, their website says most people that get in the PhD program are fully funded, but honestly I've been going through so many programs' websites I could be wrong.

Goal: PhD in Political Science Type of Undergrad Institution: #1 University in Brazil Major: International Relations Undergrad GPA: 3.66 Type of Grad: M.A. in International Strategic Studies at the same university. Grad Focus: National Security Institutions Grad GPA: 3.71 GRE: 166 V, 162 Q, 4.0 AWA TOEFL: 116 Letters of Recommendation: I have one great letter from my academic advisor, who is pretty well known in our field (international security and intelligence). The other two will be fine I think. I'm asking two guys who were my professors both during undergrad and grad school, so they know me well. One of them is an economist who is very well known in Brazil, but I'm not sure elsewhere. The other guy works with methodology and is one of the coordinators of the World Value Survey project. Research Experience: 1. Three research projects with my advisor; 2. Undergrad and M.A. theses; 3. 3 papers in Brazilian journals (lower level journals, for undergrad), 3 book chapters, and 4 papers presented in conferences in Brazil, US and Peru (next year I'll present 2 papers at ISA) Teaching Experience: 2 semesters being a TA during my masters (Security Studies and International Relations Theory B ); I've been teaching a few seminars about geopolitic issues in a prep course. Subfield/Research Interests: comparative politics, security institutions, national security I think my main weaknesses are my GPA, which could be better, my AWA score (but maybe the TOEFL can counter that) and the fact that even though I went to the best university in Brazil (and my undergrad program ranking #1), I'm not sure if that'll be acknowledged by the admissions committee. My goal is to get in Georgetown or George Washington, but I don't think my application is strong enough. I've sent my GRE scores to Brown and Boston U as well. Thoughts? Tips? Advice on where else I should apply?

Hi, I'm finishing my MA in International Strategic Studies overseas, and my thesis is on the National Security System in the US (institutional design and decision-making). I want to do my PhD in the US and continue this research, but maybe through a comparative perspective, comparing the NS systems of a few other countries (right now I'm thinking UK, France, Russia, Australia and Brazil, but it's definitely not set in stone). My problem: I'm having difficulty finding faculty to advise me, so I'm having trouble deciding to which programs I should apply. Help? Thanks