edwardsaid

Hi! I just applied last year to a bunch of PhD programs and didn't get into any unfortunately (applying again this fall). But these are some of the things I learned that might be relevant for you. 1. Your GPA and coursework are great. You demonstrate that you are indeed competitive and prepared for political economy programs. However, adcoms at the top programs (HYPSM, Chicago, Michigan, Berkeley, Duke) get many similar profiles. You have to demonstrate fit clearly with the research interests of 3-4 faculty members of each program. For instance, which aspects of political economy are you interested in? Persistence of extractive institutions? Electoral cycles and distribution? Gender and development? You have to be specific and yet also not make it too niche so that your research can align with faculty members'. Do make sure to be clear in how you align with the faculty in the SoP. This was why I suspect I did not get into any programs despite my hard stats. 2. Due to the increased competition and the uncertainty around funding, I would advise you to apply to more US and even Canadian programs (UBC, UoT, McGill). Since you're interested in political economy, I'd consider Michigan, UCLA, UCSD, Duke, Cornell, UPenn, HKS Public Policy (Politics track), UNC Chapel Hill and UW Madison. I'm also surprised why you didn't include Central European University since it's one of the more famous political economy schools. 3. Your verbal and AW GRE scores are a bit on the lower side. 155V is too low for the top programs. 160+ is acceptable but 165+ would look much better. Best of luck!

I’d honestly spend as much time as possible with family and friends, possibly date around if you’re single. Building a support system is very very important!

Oof.. that's depressing to hear. That basically confirms my existing suspicions that they will only admit students with safe and feasible research ideas. How about if one declares they're willing to be unfunded? I can apply for scholarships from my home country.

Hi all, Congratulations to everyone who got into their desired programs this cycle and I wish you all the best as you begin this fall! While I didn't get into any program this year (the closest was a waitlist at Stanford), I just wanted to check if anyone knows the admissions prospects for the next few cycles under the Trump administration with the cuts, etc. I'm still interested in applying again as someone focusing on CP and methods incl. topics such as religion and politics, historical political economy, political economy of development, democratization, and MENA politics. If anyone who knows more inside information can comment, it would be very appreciated

Yes, I’m being waitlisted there but again it’s Stanford… I’m not betting on me getting off unless something miraculous happens 🙏

Claiming an R from Harvard! Finally concluding this tough cycle: 0A/1WL/9R. Congrats to those who got into their desired programs! Looks like I’ll be preparing another round of applications next cycle. Does anyone have any advice on how to approach it the second time? I’m planning to ask each adcom on feedback; would love some suggestions on how to go about this 🙂. Thank you!

Congrats to those who got into Harvard!

Anyone has an idea of how likely someone is to get off the waitlist of a T10 program these days?

Claiming an R from UCLA. It was an email to check portal. Welp.

It is all really up in the air. For your example it could be they were taking very hard courses and it's from a school with grade deflation like Princeton. Anyhow, GPAs are not a perfect measure for academic achievement as the norm can vary widely between institutions. It could also be institutional interests like the program needing a methodology-heavy candidate?

Thank you for making this thread! I’ve never been happier in my life to be waitlisted LOL

Claiming an R from UMich and a WL from Stanford! The best news I’ve had in a while 😭

Man, at this point, I'm just grateful to be accepted to ONE program. It's so crazy how hard it is to get into a political science program these days. Like what's the point of doing coursework in the first two years when you have to have all the experiences and stats before even applying lol

Agreed. Finding the right balance between the specificity and potential directions of my proposed topic was a challenge. Hopefully it's a good sign that you haven't heard from any schools. Thank you! I aimed high because the programs that would have the funding and the faculty to support my research would likely be in top programs only (MENA politics and extensive fieldwork with methodological innovation). I did apply for safety at UW but got rejected. Curious which programs you applied to!

I've received 5 out of 10 rejections, including UChicago's. Granted, my proposed topic was quite niche: China and MENA politics and political Islam. This could have been too risky. Still waiting for other programs like UMich, Yale and Harvard but the odds are not looking too good for me.