jeremy95

I look at places where students at Duke have been placed so far. Few ones get into strong programs (here is the link to the placement web: https://polisci.duke.edu/graduate/phd/placements) Same top-10 programs (Eg: UCSD, MIT, UMich...) have significantly better placement compared to Duke (since 2010): MIT: https://polisci.mit.edu/graduate/job-placement UCSD: https://polisci.ucsd.edu/grad/placement/Placement-tables/Graduate-Placement-Table-Updated-051120.pdf UMich: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1ctb2SVXHa2tHNgszgth-zAmPwedp9InbCopqG5aIt40/edit#gid=958445409

I'm going to apply to Duke (as one of my priorities) this year. There is a faculty there that I really hope to work with. However, I'm concerning the placement at Duke (which is poor), and I want to embark on academia in the US. I'll do PE and IR if I come to Duke. Is Duke still one of the best choices for me given my orientation to academia? Many people told me that it's very difficult to get an academic job in the US without the PhD from top-10 departments. However, given the placement at Duke, I doubt the "top-10" label of Duke, though the newest US News still ranks it #10. Why Duke has such a problem with its placement, given its ranking? P/s: I'm international student from the EU, finishing my BA at a top program in the UK Thank you so much everyone