wmplax

what kind of theory do you represent?

what kind of theory?

what kind of theory?

I can't speak for the other theorists (please let this be a response to secret squirrel and iwouldpreferanonymity, to whom I have rudely failed to respond in my PM), though my interests are rather broad: democratic theory, philosophy of language, legal theory, etc. Though, for my schools I obviously spun a much more cohesive project in which I focus on the cultural and metaphysical relevance of history in the formation of unique reservoirs of "certainty" that operate to engender political identities. Essentially, I want to look at how different employments of the "historical" structure particular political schemata (think of the role of historical "data" in deliberative democracy, for instance), contribute to ethnic conflict, or draw in political subjects and discourses to a core symbolic codex (which ties the abstract categories of community, culture, nationalism and the nation into a more comprehensive trajectory of causal influences, while also linking said trajectory to a material and behavioral basis). Other than that, I submitted a writing sample which analyzes a series of "civic culture" thinkers, fielding what I hope to be a more robust definition of culture that opens unto a wider range of political problems; I simultaneously argue for a rational convention follower by leaving traditional game-theoretic models behind in an effort to posit the subject at the juncture of simultaneous games. That's basically it. I'm not really sure why people like coocoocachoo don't like to post their ideas: I think this is a horribly opaque process full of horribly opaque individuals coalescing on horribly opaque methods of sweating it out. Wouldn't it be better if this board turned into a circulation of ideas rather than a sounding board for "like, zomg, it hasn't come yet; now what"? Ah, but I dream....

What aspect of theory do you cover? I know only that ohsnap, secret squirrel and myself are the other theory people...

what's your undergraduate thesis on?

What did everyone choose to write about for their writing sample?

Who here is a theorist, comparativist, IR, etc? It's very difficult to gauge what some of you are pursuing...

Please send info to me as well. What is your concentration?

What is your focus, Balderdash? And who's a theory person in here? From what I can tell, secret squirell and ohsnap are--what are you two focusing on? Is it correct to assume that, for the most part, you are competing with those in your sub-discipline more so than with students in disparate categories, e.g. the IR people battle it out for IR slots and so forth?

Hi all-- So, as per several other posts, I'm interested in hearing whoever's advice on my chances to political theory programs. I'll try to be as specific as possible--any advice or opinions are welcome. Undergraduate: 3.37 GPA from large state school freshman year; transferred to NYU thereafter, where I graduated summa cum laude (3.95; top 5%) with an interdisciplinary major in Political Philosophy. I took a graduate course in democratic theory my freshman year (got an A), and two graduate courses thereafter (both As). Though, given the nature of my interdisciplinary program, very few of my classes were actually in the Poli-Sci department--however, it is very clear, from titles and SOP descriptions, that my coursework is centered around canonical political theory issues. Also freshman year: got invited to ACC Meeting of the Minds conference, where I presented a book-length research project on epistemology and politics; sophomore year: developed my own research project where I studied the deliberative processes of a homeless group in Union Square. GRE: took it twice. first time: 167V (98%), 149Q (49%), 5.5 AW (96%). second time: 166V (97%), 154 (67%), 4.5 AW (76%). Strong recs: 1 is a recognized political theorist; 1 is an adjunct professor (I took three classes with him, though, and produced three 50-page research projects) in philosophy and poltiics; 1 is a chaired professor in the German dept. My interests: democratic theory (deliberation and distributive justice), civic culture, theories of nationalism, philosophy of language, and political realism. My proposed research project focuses on the way history is construed and appropriated in different democratic traditions, and in particular how divergences in historical knowledge reflect divides over the "certainty" of justifiable facts, contributing to notions of intergroup/ethnic conflict and cultural drift. My writing sample: 1 tailored for Berkeley and Stanford, drawing from a couple professors at both--I focus on civic culture, arguing for a rational convention-follower who fields concordant strategies in order to play "simultaneous games"; working on Yale, Princeton and Cornell's. Applying to: Stanford, Berkeley, Yale, Princeton, Cornell. My question: I am thoroughly fucked by the low GRE Q? I'm actually a very good "fit" at several of the programs, and my research interests coincide almost directly with some of my proposed faculty--though, I know that Stanford is keen on quant, and was curious as to whether this Q score dashes my hopes. Feedback appreciated.

what are your stats?