I am not a gradstudent

My uneducated reaction to this is that the verbal score is laudable and should most likely be a bit ahead of the pack. I agree that the quant score isn't great but eh. As long as you're right that you're not doing anything math-heavy. Analytical writing is probably fine too. As someone who is doing masters apps - I think it should help your case, so much that your verbal is indeed ahead of the 50th percentile in your app competition.

nvm ignore

Considering applying to international studies masters and PHDs Major GPA 3.15 I don't know how bad this is for the most competitive programs. I'm curious about the GRE. Obviously a 99% will help my case for admissions and fin aid. But I'm having a harder time wondering about what score will help me. I think I should be looking at my GRE score as compared to the applicant pool. Or should I just be looking at the flat GRE scores? Does it help my case as long as I score above the 50th percentile of the typical class body? Or do I want to shoot for higher and essentially 'counterbalance' with the lower GPA?

Serious opinion; i'm applying for a few of these places HKS is not that special imo. 13 years of journalism and being rejected is pretty stunning to hear however. I think SAIS, GT, GW, SIPA, GPS - all good, and HKS is up there with them. Totally short-sighted to just go straight for the big H name brand. If you are doing this, it's just a typically non-holistic view of school. Is there something about HKS that is really compelling to you that you have been waitlisted one time (credible applicant, you pass the test) that you don't want any other school? Go talk to some people in DC who have these degrees who hire other people with degrees and ask them what they think. Look. On the ground, if I were walking around in Washington DC with a degree from SAIS, I think it is totally viable to see myself as slightly better than the HKS kid. Is that correct? No. I'm just saying if I felt that way, I think you have an argument for it. Frankly it's probably all neck and neck though. I'm just trying to illustrate that if you're just pursuing the HKS name without any reason like, oh there's ONE professor you just have to have, or you know that their curriculum after having browsed it is exactly what you need and you've SEEN that no one else has what they have, then maybe look into other programs that suit your actual needs, not ego. Again, none of this is relevant if it's not just ego pursuit which drives billions to throw their apps at harvard. But you are also applying for a fellow position though, I don't know what that entails! Maybe the fellow position is just much harder.

Oh! Thank you that was like the most ideal answer imaginable.

I try not to pay attention to 'rankings' as if they are holy scripture, but FP in collaboration with william & mary called GT the #1 school for IR. Except GT doesn't have a program called "IR". The closest is one in foreign service, where 50% of their grads go into state. They have one for security studies, which is also pretty specialized, but that's pretty much for pentagon work. So wth? I don't understand. I was interested in a more general IR degree, I guess. But GT being the best for IR feels very awkward and unfitting.

It asked me for everything in college, but including my HIGH SCHOOL GPA? No way, enjoy my nonsensical data inputs. What happened to the site? There was this big data breach a long time ago, but what's with it being so intrusive now?

Please tell me if I got this wrong but it looks like BLOCK 1 SAIS MAIA (early 2024, but 2023 for ED app) MASCI (same as above) MAIS (roughly the same, early 2024) GT MSFS (early 2024) MCCOURT MPP (early 2024) Security studies (same) BLOCK 2 SAIS MAIR, end of 2024 HKS (JFK school) MPP, end of 2024 Do I have this all right? Uh, why are there two distinct application blocks?

1. I don't know a better place to ask a very specific question like this (on the internet, honestly) because there's no such thing as think tank interns.com 2. I don't know if this is permissible here In any case, I graduated BA recently and have been (for a very long period of time) looking for jobs. But it's been sucking, and I don't know if I suck or something sucks that I can blame with good reason. I just have no idea. I've been doggedly focusing on think tanks, and only think tanks. I just feel that other things don't seem interesting and despite occasionally looking out for other things, I struggled to find something interesting. For instance, there was a position which would have been relevant at Pinkerton, that detective agency. Yes, I would likely be qualified. But, I am no Sherlock reader and no thanks. Some other areas which are appropriate for students of my field of study are HR or project management. Yes I could take those jobs but I have negative interest in that. Research is all I care about. Yet my responses in jobs have been garbage so far. It's been closing in on two years and while I've landed successful internships at a large (in the past) and small think tank only recently, only recently have i gotten my first positive response for a position I would consider priority 1, which was for a research assistant at AEI, and it wasn't even a you were selected, it was an explicit please apply again, we liked your application, but there was someone else better. Is this a normal 2-year post graduation internship cycle for students in my position? And are there alternatives to these kinds of jobs that I'm looking for or not really? Perhaps is it just simply the case that unless I'm from GT or GA or the top 5s, that I lack the trimmed academic pedigree?