Hi all, I'm new to the forum, and this will be my first application cycle. My goal is a PhD in IR, but I'm also applying to a couple of MA programs as a backup. For various complicated reasons, I'm only applying to PhD programs in California, and right now the list is Stanford, Berkeley, UCSD, UCLA, and Irvine. I'm also considering one-year MA programs at Chicago, Columbia, LSE, and Cambridge. Strengths are probably my GPA (3.86 overall, 3.92 in major) at a top-five LAC, and reasonably good GRE scores (170 verbal, 159 quant, 5.0 analytical). I think my biggest weakness is that I didn't write a thesis as an undergrad, so my best writing samples are relatively short. Also applying so narrowly is obviously a risk, but one I'm willing to take.