Dreams

Oh come on. Fate wants some tempting Just think of it as wishing it into existence.

Congrats. I am sure you put a lot of energy into seeing those through. I do not think I could do so myself. I only applied to 5 schools.

I have taken a gander at them too, as well as past student handbooks. Some of the requirements seemed doable and some seemed out of this world insane. Such is graduate life though

I am going to be the optimist here and go for all acceptances + funding.

Be patient. I submitted some of my applications in September and October and read that all applications would be reviewed regardless of submission date. You would not believe the amount of applicants who submit right at the deadline - upwards of 75% for some programs. So relax and be happy that one program at least notified you of your application's progress

Hmm. How nice of them to call you. Who knows, you might even get another call soon with some good news.

You know for these types of questions it would be really helpful to have more information. But anyway, I say no, do not retake the GRE.

I guess some hope the graduate departments will show mercy and post admissions results! Relax folks! Do what I do to kill the time: cook and clean. Well, not so much cleaning here! Bot something to pass the time that will also get you away from the computer

I think you are just feeling general anxiety from the wait for an admissions decision. I think it is not as bad as you think. In my case, if I were rejected across the board, I would be disappointed naturally. But I have a nice job that I would stay at while looking at other options I will be putting into place come spring if that were to happen.

No you definitely are not the only one who believes this. It bothers me too when people will not consider applying to top programs because they went to an unknown school and did not get stellar scores and such. There are many other ways to identify a strong candidate than the name of their undergrad or a 99% GRE score.

Michigan, WashU, and Johns Hopkins have them too.

Yep, Princeton was probably the exception on my list. But you know, for me those are just minor inconveniences. I know a few people in NJ with a car that I can call up to do bulk shopping. For the other things, I really don't mind using public transportation or going out with others on campus

No, and I made sure the places I applied to would be conducive to this choice. The less expenses on my shoulder the better.

The key is not to chop, but to start from scratch. There is a difference between, for example changing a few words and eliminating a paragraph or so in a cover and, tailoring one from scratch to each job. A pretty noticeable difference. For a 250 word SOP just start over and get to the point. Explain what your interests/research ideas are Briefly, how the schools will help you move closer to those Very Briefly, faculty with whom you would like to work, and post grad goals.

I think I will chime in with the others and say you already have a very good chance of getting into one of your picks already. The things you list make you a very strong candidate. Even though you already have strong scores, your current MA will also attest that you can handle the work. And that fact that you have outside funding boosts your attractiveness more. I would not recommend that you apply to any more schools.

Reminds me of the Family Guy episode where Stewie goes on that Cosby television show. The girl said the robber was a "big, stupid doo-doo head!" Anyway, when I received an acceptance call to an MA program a few years ago. It was from the person who interviewed me over the phone for admission. The Grad student admissions coordinator or something to that effect. He called me around mid dayish and just got to the point. He offered me admission with a half tuition scholarship and told me the package is on the way in the mail. I told him thanks and we hung up.

Wanna talk about irony? How about I taught math at a higher level than what is on the GRE and still bombed it.

If you are considering rushing new transcripts in an attempt to show them your "better" GPA, then NO. I mean honestly, two-hundredths of a point is not going to make or break an application. Now on the other hand. If the sociology classes you took were upper level and relevant to your program, and you got good grades in them, then by all means send the new transcripts. It would show the adcoms that you can handle the sociology coursework.

The SOP will without a doubt be one of the most important tools you submit to the admissions committee. It the most effective way to set you apart from others who will like have similar "stats" in the pool. In your case the SOP becomes even more crucial because your scores and such will put you in the bottom range of spplicants. When writing my statements, I kept to the guidelines outlines by each school. It helped that nearly each school was seeking similar information. I started with a brief autobio then jumpped into my career interests and how that school spefically would help serve as a springboard into that field. You can only go so deep due to page limitations imposed by the schools. Besure to check the page requirements of your programs. I think you have a lot of interesting experiences to touch on. If I were you, I would definitely talk about the delegate AU and model UN experiences, as well as the leadership and internship experiences. How these shaped your interest in IR and what you plan to do after graduation would not be a bad idea to include either.

A 12 page SOP? That sounds like a small chapter to a book!

I capitalize the first two, but not always the third.

It looks like you have limited yourself to the DC area. I think it would be a waste to apply to SAIS and Georgetown, since they look critically at Q scores and you would be competing with others with very solid backgrounds. But that is just my thought. As others have said, with your limited experience and your weak scores, chances for admission are not good. I do think though that you should try for it anyway, I agree with your professor about those three schools, especially Howard as the people there are willing to look past weak scores in their applicants. Plus the people there are really friendly and have strong government connections for student internships and such. Maryland is worth a shot as well. Either way good luck.

Only 76 days left? Man time is flying. I remember when I had 150 days until mid March. At this rate, coupled with some filler activities for the next few months, that date will arrive in no time hopefully with some good news for you - and everyone else too

I submitted some of my applications in early October, but do not expect to hear back from any until late February to mid-March. The programs I submitted early to said that applications are reviewed at the same time after the deadline.

It told me I would not get into anything