Jahiliyya

I know the overall cost of the application process is largely tied to how many programs you decide to apply to. But there are a lot of different costs involved, and they may vary from person to person. How much did you spend overall? How many schools did you apply to? What were the different costs involved (application fees, GRE, transcripts, visiting schools, etc)?

Title says it all--when visiting potential public policy/international affairs programs, or else at a graduate school fair with a large number of different programs represented, what information is most important to get? Obviously, most statistics, requirements, course info, etc can be found on program websites. So what sort of questions are the most productive, in order to get the best sense of whether you should take the next step and apply to a school?

Last year, many MENA notifications didn't come until mid-May, which meant that orientation arrangements were being made while grantees were still in the midst of medical forms, and hadn't even formally accepted the grants yet.

Thanks for the encouraging words! In broad terms, I'm interested in culture and the environment (so probably human geography), particularly around issues of water management, agriculture, urban green spaces, and the protection of historically important environmental sites/resources. So I want to learn more substantively in those kinds of subjects (and more, since geography is such a large field that I have barely begun to explore), develop research tools, and keep doors open for a potential policy career.

The topic title states my situation quite simply: I have virtually no background in geography, the environment, or science more broadly. I studied history for my undergrad degree, with a particular emphasis on the Middle East, and am now on a Fulbright in the region. For a number of reasons, I have been considering the possibility of undertaking a graduate degree in geography. It is the discipline that uses the tools and perspectives most closely matching the evolution of my research interests, while offering the development of skills that would keep non-academic career options open (rather different than taking the pathway of history). I have a superb undergraduate record, and field research experience under my belt. If my interests had continued in their original trajectory from undergrad, I would be in great shape for graduate school in history or perhaps public policy. But I have zero preparation for geography, nor do I have any professors or mentors who are acquainted with the field who would be capable of giving suggestions. So, what is the path forward? Applying for a terminal MA? Would I even have a chance at that, if I could write a persuasive statement about how my career/research interests have changed?

Slight correction: you can only have a Fulbright OR a Critical Language Scholarship in a single given year, due to the conflict in the mandatory orientations. Sometimes Critical Language Enhancement Awards (CLEA) are given, but this varies depending on the funding situation in a given year. This year, only Fulbright grantees to a small subset of MENA countries were eligible for language enhancement awards. Honestly, it depends to a large degree on your exact goals. How long have you studied Arabic? Have you studied Fusha only, or started work on dialects? Which dialects do you want to learn? Do you intend to go into a policy field (IR, security studies, etc), or do historical research? Everything will have different skills needed, and depending on your goals I would recommend different pathways (also, if you need a funded opportunity, versus being willing to pay yourself). Georgetown University's Center for Contemporary Arab Studies sponsors a yearlong Arabic scholarship program in Doha, however, the next deadline will be in December 2012 for 2013-14 awards. CLS (Critical Language Scholarships) are great, but extremely competitive, and you won't be able to apply until this fall for summer 2013. Alternatively, you could just fly to the region and take classes at a place like the Qasid Institute in Amman.

I'm not in this cycle (looking towards applying for entry in either F13 or F14), but I intend to avoid debt as ardently as I can. Having just paid off my undergraduate loans completely, I am reluctant to incur additional debt. I consider a lack of debt to itself be a form of freedom, making unorthodox professional and personal opportunities possible, instead of always being forced to consider the weight of monthly loan payments. So in the process of selecting programs to apply to, one of my main criteria is going to be the scale on which financial aid is offered (SIPA's off the list). I am going to determine a threshold, based on my finances at the time of application, of a level of loans that I would be prepared to take on. If I'm not accepted to any programs that offer financial support allowing me to stay under that level of loans, I'll simply wait until a future cycle to reapply.

Stipend amounts vary HUGELY from country to country, even within regions. I know of people in certain countries who are struggling to afford basic living costs--and on the other hand, Fulbrighters who are able to save thousands of dollars due to extremely generous stipends.

This is definitely something that varies a bit depending on your country, and depending on whether it's a commission or non-commission country--and even on the personalities of the people in the embassy. They're not going to be intentionally invasive or pushy, but on the other hand, they'll almost certainly have all of your contact information, and at least check in with you regularly (like every 1-2 months). Their biggest concern, particularly with travel outside of the country, is your safety. Should anything dangerous transpire in country, they need to know how to locate you--and also, your Fulbright-provided health insurance does not cover you during any times you are outside of your grant country. When leaving the country at all, it's generally expected that you'll let the embassy/Commission know your whereabouts and itinerary. You should also bear in mind that in many cases, the embassy will want to be in touch with you about participating in educational/cultural/diplomatic programs and events.

I'm doing field work right now, and am acquiring increasingly large amounts of research material, ranging from books and pamphlets to interview recordings and transcriptions, as well as piles of business cards from contacts. Does anyone have any insight into methods of organization? Physical versus digital, or both? It's also a bit tough to have a permanent filing system right now, since everything needs to get back to the U.S. with me in several months.

Some countries are quite early (Germany), others are notoriously slow and problematic (Turkey). The other thing to keep in mind is the funding situation--I was told afterwards that a large reason for the long delays I and the applicants for many countries experienced last year was due to uncertainty over the budget situation.

For those who were math or economics majors, this isn't relevant. But for people who studied other fields, how did you build your quantitative/economics background? Did you take courses during undergrad? Community college courses? Apply without the 'ideal' profile? I would appreciate comments from people with any vantage point or experience. We talk about what these type of grad programs are seeking a good deal, but I'm more interested in the diverse ways that people meet (or seemingly don't meet) those standards.

The problem is, this initial stage and notification doesn't really help in clarifying life/academic plans, since it's not actually the decision. If you are not recommended, then you can carry on with fall-back plans. But if you are recommended, and face a wait that may last until June, very few other programs will you let you just stay "on hold." I'm on a Fulbright right now, but because I didn't hear until a week before graduation, I had already accepted a grad school offer. I do wish everyone the best, but I think I would have gone crazy if I hadn't done my best to push it to the back of my mind, given the odds and the ambiguous timeline.

I would echo this. Even if you are recommended in this stage, there is still only a 50% chance of receiving a grant, and you may not get a final yes or no until as late as May or June. In many cases, you will need to accept other graduate school, fellowship, or job offers, simply because the Fulbright process takes so long. Basically, the best thing for your mental well-being is to completely forget about Fulbright, and then see it as a potentially happy surprise if you get a grant notification in April/May.

Any tips on finding a well-fitting mask? I'm starting PADI certification, and the mask that seemed to fit in-store didn't work so well on my first confined water dive. I also seem to have this psychological fear of water getting in my mask, since I don't know how to manage my breathing right to both clear the mask yet avoid holding my breath.

This was the case for me last year. I got a cryptic email from the embassy in-country nearly a week prior to the official email from IIE.

Given the length of PhDs, and the tremendous level of personal and intellectual investment, I would only consider doing it in a field that I truly love. And that is History--you may be correct that a policy PhD would "make more sense" professionally, and I have looked at those programs, but I can't see myself doing the 5+ years in those disciplines. Also, history is quite essential for the type of international work that I hope to do (I am hesitant to say more than that on an open forum).

The common refrain in this forum, and the common advice given to undergraduates considering graduate school, is to do so only if completely dedicated to a life in academia--and with full understanding of the abysmal job market. I completely understand that perspective, and having sat on search committees for TT hires, I can appreciate just how over-saturated the history field is. But I do not want to teach, or enter academia. Despite that, my advisers are urging me to pursue a PhD, as a necessary credential in my field, foreign policy and development. For example, a PhD is a basic requirement for advancing in think tanks and other research institutions, and provides a great deal of credibility. I have been told by multiple people, both tenured academics and people in policy, to get a PhD as quickly as possible--publish sparingly, use summers for policy experience, and remember that "the only good dissertation is a done dissertation." But a difficulty seem to emerge from that. PhD programs are focused on producing scholars to enter and reinforce the existing academic system. I can't imagine advisers taking kindly to my goals, either at the admissions stage, or once matriculated, when they would have other students who would want to become scholarly superstars. I have long been interested in doing a PhD in history, despite the time and energy that it requires. There are several exciting research projects that I hope to pursue in my field (Middle East), that could potentially frame a dissertation. I'm willing to spend months bogged down in archives--and indeed, love doing so. But that must somehow be balanced against the fact that PhD programs don't seem well structured for people who don't want to follow the over-saturated path of academia.

I would not view it as a strict limit. As long as the essay is approximately 750 words/3 double-spaced pages, you are unlikely to have a problem. My analytical essay was slightly over 750 words, not including footnotes, and I was accepted last year.

I'm wondering if anyone has any experience in applying for or receiving FLAS fellowships for graduate study. Particularly, I'm wondering about the best way to approach the statement of purpose, which asks: "How are language acquisition and area studies training integral to your degree program and long-term goals? How do your long-term academic and career plans relate to the goals of the FLAS Program?" Since they are government grants (in part), to what degree should we be articulating a professional vision rather than an academic research agenda? I'm grateful for any insight people who have gone through the application process--or who will be this year--may be able to offer.

That's disappointing to hear. Their website makes it clear that funding is competitive, though I wonder if that means that being a relatively highly qualified candidate makes it easier to obtain (if, as you said, the best candidates shy away). The advice I've always heard has been to choose graduate schools based on faculty, not rank. So in that way, GWU would be preferable for me over say, Princeton. But my aim has never really been to shoot for the TT job market, instead, my interests are much more so in policy, with the PhD a fairly essential credential for advancement. I suppose it can't hurt to put in an application and see where the chips fall. Thanks!

I am considering applying for PhD programs in Political Science/Government either in this admissions cycle or the next. Any of the top programs will be highly competitive, with uncertain application outcomes. Therefore, I am taking a fairly expansive view, and attempting to consider as many programs as possible for comparative politics of the Middle East. That said, does anyone have impressions of Political Science at George Washington University? There are several faculty members there whose work I admire tremendously and who I would love the opportunity to work with. However, it rarely seems to come up on my radar as a prominent and well-respected institution, since I get the impression that it tends to rely upon its location in Washington DC.