IRToni

According to the UK forum, I should be hearing from LSE within the next two weeks. I wasn't expecting to hear from them until March. Waiting is torture!

Interesting. Most European poli scientists I know basically say they don't predict anymore. Of course, when proposing different policy solutions, you do some predicting in the broader sense, but the predictive power of political science has been discredited a lot in Europe. I actually don't agree with this, because it means that we largely leave it to economists to predict, who usually don't do anything but crunch numbers, which is inherently problematic, IMO. And I am one of those people that believes in the importance of quantitative analyses. I also think that the real world is changing so fast, and if everyone only does what is important at this moment for the real world, we'd be at a complete loss in the future, when things change. So what's irrelevant today might be crazy relevant tomorrow. In addition, many smaller, unrelated things often contribute to new scholarship that might then be important for the "real world".

Does political science really have the goal of predicting (still)? I though that went out of the window with the fall of the Berlin wall. Otherwise, I personally am interested in policy-relevant research, and having my research feed into the political process. The goal of research for me is understanding (not prediction so much). I also think some of the most academically relevant research isn't per se policy-relevant, but it's still very important, because it helps us understand. However, I do absolutely think that academia shouldn't exist in a bubble, so I'm kind of in-between your positions, I believe.

I'm really struggling with my MA thesis now. Spent months convincing everyone and myself of why my dissertation topic is important/great etc., wrote a proposal of 10 pages, looked for literature etc., and now I need to do something else for my MA thesis. I really like my MA thesis topic, and I think it's important and interesting etc., but I haven't been able to find my way back into this topic yet. Any tips?

Judging from the debate, at least the first name/last name thing wasn't a stupid foreigner question displaying my ignorance of all things American. I will just play it by ear, if he does contact me again...

Thanks! LSE is one of my top choices (my top choice in Europe, for sure)!

I haven't even gotten an interview yet. Here's to hoping for some good news soon! Sorry about your experience!

The LSE system was a mess for me, too. I spent 10 $ on the phone with them because they could not figure out that a person that I entered as Professor Dr. (the German title) might be an academic reference, and also couldn't find the writing sample. I got it all sorted out, though, and am waiting for results on the PhD in IR now! Good luck with all your other schools!

In Germany, you need a very specific invitation before saying "du", and it needs to come from a specific person, according to certain rules. Drives me nuts, especially as in most work environments, you'll have some people using first names, and some people using last names (and maybe even some people using first names and "Sie"), which makes communication awkward!

Q: I sent the info on my scholarship to various professors/assistants (depending on whether I had been in touch with them before etc.). Several of the professors wrote back using my first name, and then signing Luke or sth. like that (name obscured to keep their anonymity). If I was to send them another email (e.g. when they inform me of their decision to admit me and I'm replying to explain how insanely happy I am, and how I was weeping all over my keyboard, which is why my spelling sucks...), should I address them by their first name or stick to professor?

Bummer! May I ask when you got your fourth email/sent in the docs for review?

Congrats Texas A&M admits!

Nyu definitely said theyrr not done yet, and had two waves these last couppe of years.

3/7 responded by now, mostly just thanks for letting is know, well pass it along. I was kinda, in the back of my mind hoping one school would see this,anand just let me know im accepted, but thatsnotnot how this process works...

All the schools!

Congrats!

I spent a total of 18 months in China, studied in a francophone city, and am native German. I usually feel inadequate, because I don't really know any exotic languages, and I "only" know 4. Just goes to show you that who you surround yourself with shapes your perception...

Ich kann deutsch sprechen/schreiben. 我也会写中文！ Je peux aussi ecrire un peu francais.

Thanks! I contacted him already. He replied in a nice, but non-comittant email. Well, we'll see!

I'm not currently involved in the process, so take this with a grain of salt! The year I applied, you could get accepted in the first or second round, but scholarship decisions for everyone were only released later on. I don't think applying for a scholarship means you won't get accepted the first round, since I know people who did early admission and got a scholarship in March, I think.

This scholarship is basically just money, almost no strings attached. They also don't help you with your applications, which is annoying. I would hate to get the scholarship, and then not get accepted to any school in the US!

Nope, it's an award that is not tied to me returning to my home country in the same way, which is great.

No, but I'm a lot cheaper for them! I still need some funding, though.

How do I find out who is the right person? NYU peeps, where did you get the acceptances from, the DGS, right?

So, I just got an external, sizable scholarship. Who do I contact at the different schools to tell them about it?