gradpumpkin

Check out the ASPECT PhD program at Virginia Tech! Seems like it would be right up your alley in terms of research interest.

Hey everyone! I've found this forum to be invaluable this past year as I navigated the PhD admissions process and am blessed to be heading into a great and funded program in a few weeks! As I've been organizing and filing away all of the resources I've collected over the past two years or so, I've realized I have a massive list of documents and links that may prove helpful for future applicants to have all in one place. Below is a vaguely organized-by-topic list of blogs, documents, gradcafe posts and other resources that would be great reads for all of you planning to apply this coming cycle, especially this summer as many of you are starting the process. I have to say that I don't necessarily agree with all of the advice given on these pages and some are more relevant to adjacent fields, but they at least informed my decision making and preparations for what was to come. This is by no means comprehensive and you should consult as many sources and people as possible, but I hope you find some of these links useful! Best of luck this season, and remember that admissions results are not indicative of your worthiness or potential. Perspectives on deciding to pursue a PhD http://www.nunomonteiro.org/advice/grad-admissions https://shouldigetaphd.com/shouldigetaphd.pdf https://duckofminerva.com/2012/08/applying-for-phd-in-political-science.html https://www.apsanet.org/Portals/54/files/Brochures/APSA_EarningaPhD.pdf https://foreignpolicy.com/2012/03/18/so-you-want-to-get-into-a-political-science-ph-d-program-episode-i/ https://thepoliticalmethodologist.com/2014/01/18/student-advice-should-i-go-to-graduate-school-if-so-where-should-i-go/ https://www.insidehighered.com/advice/2017/06/16/provost-unconventional-background-describes-her-graduate-school-experience-essay https://chrisblattman.com/2007/12/12/how-to-get-a-phd-and-save-the-world/ https://forum.thegradcafe.com/topic/27981-advice-from-an-actual-phd-redux-2/ https://forum.thegradcafe.com/topic/12490-policy-phd-vs-political-science-phd/ https://www.lawyersgunsmoneyblog.com/2011/08/professional-education-in-foreign-affairs https://www.outsidethebeltway.com/international-relations-graduate-school-pros-and-cons/ https://theihs.org/blog/choosing-phd-program-in-political-science/ Guidance on going directly from undergrad to PhD https://www.reddit.com/r/GradSchool/comments/2p8wwh/phd_students_that_did_not_take_time_off_between/ https://www.princetonreview.com/grad-school-advice/should-you-go-to-grad-school-right-after-undergrad https://www.findaphd.com/advice/blog/3670/skipping-a-masters-on-the-way-to-a-phd-the-road-less-travelled https://people.fas.harvard.edu/~jkertzer/prospective.html Admissions https://chrisblattman.com/about/contact/gradschool/ http://home.uchicago.edu/~mstaisch/Memo%20on%20PhD%20Applications.pdf https://forum.thegradcafe.com/blogs/entry/547-starting-your-statement-of-purpose/ https://forum.thegradcafe.com/topic/45432-free-gre-resources-master-post/ https://forum.thegradcafe.com/topic/48905-some-advice-on-writing-an-sop/ https://thepoliticalmethodologist.com/2013/10/13/what-courses-do-i-need-to-prepare-for-a-phd-in-political-science/ https://leiterreports.typepad.com/blog/2014/03/some-advice-to-prospective-graduate-students-visiting-departments.html https://forum.thegradcafe.com/topic/122272-results-profile-lessons-2020/#comments https://forum.thegradcafe.com/topic/122468-adcomm-insider/ https://forum.thegradcafe.com/topic/122443-what-would-you-have-done-differently-in-the-process/ https://forum.thegradcafe.com/topic/122124-good-sop-examples/ http://www.ericachenoweth.com/teaching/grad-school https://static1.squarespace.com/static/57d2eeebbe65947fb325749e/t/57db3d47f7e0abec4167cf9e/1473985869102/5+Rules+for+Statement+of+Purpose.pdf https://ls.berkeley.edu/sites/default/files/statement_of_purpose.pdf https://brightlinkprep.com/gre-scoring-algorthm-deciphered/ https://www.btaa.org/docs/default-source/diversity/gradschoolguide.pdf http://www.nunomonteiro.org/advice/recommendation-letters https://contemplativemammoth.com/2013/04/08/so-you-want-to-go-to-grad-school-nail-the-inquiry-email/ https://cyrussamii.com/?page_id=2121 Admissions Statistics https://imgur.com/a/EuNTB https://tableau.dsc.umich.edu/t/UM-Public/views/RackhamDoctoralProgramStatistics/ProgramStatistics?:embed=y&:showAppBanner=false&:showShareOptions=true&:display_count=no&:showVizHome=no&FOSDParameter=All+Rackham (many if not all schools will have a page like this with data sorted by program) https://forum.thegradcafe.com/topic/122652-grad-cafe-political-science-data-stuff/ https://fretpwner.shinyapps.io/GradCafeStatistics/ Funding Info http://www.phdstipends.com/ https://academicpositions.com/career-advice/phd-professor-and-postdoc-salaries-in-the-united-states https://www.profellow.com/fellowships/17-predoctoral-fellowships-for-new-phd-candidates/ https://apps.grad.illinois.edu/fellowship-finder/?action=main.search&grp1=12&grp2=20&grp3=22&q= PhD Resources Important notes for women scholars: https://www.sciencemag.org/careers/2018/10/when-you-re-only-woman-challenges-female-phd-students-male-dominated-cohorts https://foreignpolicy.com/2012/03/11/should-women-get-ph-d-s-in-international-relations/ https://irevolutions.org/2012/05/09/advice-to-future-phds/ https://www.apsanet.org/RESOURCES/For-Students/Institutions-Granting-PhDs-in-Political-Science https://www.insidehighered.com/blogs/gradhacker?page=14 http://gradresources.org/ https://www.apsanet.org/Portals/54/APSA%20Files/Data%20Reports/Employment%20Data/Graduate%20Placement%20Report%202016-2017.pdf?ver=2018-02-02-103603-070 https://forum.thegradcafe.com/topic/123896-tips-for-choosing-between-schools/ https://sites.google.com/site/honestgraduatenumbers/ https://chrisblattman.com/2012/09/09/phd-students-writing-an-nsf-application/ https://contemplativemammoth.com/2011/11/22/how-to-get-a-faculty-job-in-20-not-so-easy-steps/ https://theprofessorisin.com/ https://law.vanderbilt.edu/phd/How_to_Survive_1st_Year.pdf https://economics.cornell.edu/grad-student-advice https://benjaminnoble.org/blog/ https://predoc.org/opportunities https://chrisblattman.com/teaching/ https://medium.com/the-renaissance-economist/the-economics-pre-doctoral-fellowship-what-is-it-and-should-you-apply-for-one-27965bcf7c3 Placement https://forum.thegradcafe.com/topic/118154-the-story-of-one-cohort/ https://alexandreafonso.me/2019/02/11/academic-hierarchies-in-us-political-science/

What about Emory would make it more of a boutique program? Just curious what area/methodology you'd say they're oriented around, as I haven't noticed any particular direction from them like I have with WUSTL, Rochester, etc.

Most of the ones I have seen are for URMs but if you search for Gateway to the Doctorate programs there are quite a few! They seem like really good opportunities and are a good signal to adcomms that you're targeting your development specifically towards the PhD.

@poliscihopeful2021 Thanks so much! That's really helpful to consider.

That's great to know! I haven't heard back but I'm kinda debating between a program like MAPSS (only IF I got full tuition) and a MA doctoral gateway program at a substantially lower-ranked school that gives you full tuition and stipend. Any thoughts?

MAPSS and CIR will offer partial or full tuition (I've seen 1/3, 2/3, 1/2, and full tuition packages), but do not offer stipends. Precisely my problem, as it's still extremely expensive in Chicago even without tuition. They said most students will work 5-10 hours a week and can serve as RAs, but it's up to you how you go about getting income outside of the program.

Congrats!! Any funding info included?

Literally in the exact same boat but for CP- if you got accepted and have better options please please let them know as soon as you're confident in your choice ?

I believe they've sent rejections already. I'd guess that it likely means you're waitlisted, congrats!

Claiming Cornell and NW rejections within 5 minutes of each other. Officially struck out this semester. Other than waiting on an official Maryland reject, at least I've got the closure I need to move on fully to the job and masters hunt!

I'm on the UVA waitlist and got the info about their virtual visit day- I could be wrong but based off of how they've been talking it seems like admits are out already, although I also never saw one posted here or on the results page either.

You're CP too right? Could be wrong but I actually never saw any interviews claimed for CP so maybe they're doing things differently. One can only hope haha

Oh wow, that gives me hope! ! I'm also CP and didn't get an interview request but thought I had good odds and a great fit. Was it a personalized email?

Same!