[2018-2019 Application Thread]

2 hours ago, sandmoon said:

Out of curiosity - what would you say helped you the most as a non-US student? I have a couple of friends applying from overseas universities, and they said research opportunities are hard to come by, and when they are available, they are typically not of the kind that people do in the US. Is it sufficient to have good grades at university and write a good personal statement that shows your passion and knowledge? Do your recommenders have to have US connections to make things work? They asked me for advice but I feel unqualified to give any as a US grad.

 

International student here, luckily got into some top-10 programs this cycle. From a non-English speaking country.

My two cents for international students who want to get into top PhD programs in the US but lacking the financial resources to invest in a foreign MA:

1) Go heavy on stats, math, econ, and programming. Do some graduate-level statistics/econometrics and calc 2. Take a few courses that require using Stata, R, Python etc. If you don't have recommenders with good connections in the US to credibly bat for your research potential, taking quantitative courses is a much easier path to signal your skill sets.

2) If there are such opportunities in your school, do a study abroad program (exchange student program). Pick an R1 university in the US (even better, a school you want to get into in the future). Work exceptionally hard in all courses, develop good relationships with professors, and do some research projects there if possible. Ask for recommendations from these professors after the semester. Most R1 professors graduate from top programs, and I assume they have better connections with committees of the programs you are aiming for. Their recommendations help demonstrate your English ability and compare your academic achievement with other students in the US. Admissions committees will get a better sense of what kind of student you are.

3) Be really careful when drafting research plan in your SoP. Read political science journals widely, especially APSR, AJPS, and JOP. What topics are people working on? Which methods do they use? Topics (and methods) the mainstream US scholars care about nowadays may be very different from the paradigm in your home country. Definitely don't write on a topic you are completely unexcited about, but you are going to be expected to do this kind of research when you start graduate school. If this is not for you, a PhD in the US might not be a good idea.

On top of everything, keep in mind that the admission process is a signaling game. We all need credible proofs for our abilities (and fitness with the program).

I got a lot of helpful advice from this forum, so I really hope my experience can help!

[2018-2019 Application Thread]

Is doing grad school even possible given that UCLA charges international students for additional non-resident tuition for two years.....

[2018-2019 Application Thread]

Anyone heard from the department at Rochester? Got an official acceptance from the portal two days ago and just received an email on visitation from the department secretary. Has the DGS sent anything yet?