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Hodor

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Posts posted by Hodor

  1. Right, I didn't mean to imply that you would be studying IR, but guessed from your profile you would be interested in a degree that you could apply in an international context. I applied to programs that will connect with the international development field. They go by a variety of names. Some of are MPP, some are MPAff, MPA, or Master of ID. As someone pointed out in another thread, the degree title does not matter so much, it really comes down to the courses you take and the focus of the faculty/school.

    I would suggest you take a hard second look at SAIS. Maybe reach out and look any friends/friends of friends/etc who are alumni that you could talk to.

    Yeah, I'll check out SAIS, thanks for the advice.

    E: re others reactions to the "neo-con" statement, I was a little premature on that, they have large faculty with many different focuses. However, I still think their senior leadership (Wolfowitz, Cohen) and students (Karlin) has advocated and planned some seriously terrible Mid-East FP over the years, but granted will not really affect anything I'm going to study and represents a minority.

  2. .

    I think you have good second choices. Other schools that you could consider are Georgetown, GWU, CMU-Heinz, Syracuse, University of Denver, UCLA. They have varying levels of international focus so you should look at the concentrations, course descriptions, and professor bios to see what fits with your interests. I am curious why you don't have SAIS as a dream school? It seems like their regional studies program for Asia would be a perfect fit for you and your language skills would count for a lot. If you didn't want to limit yourself geographically, you could still do a functional concentration in the international sphere.

    Sorry I wasn't too clear, I'm going for an MPP in Policy Analysis not IR. Thanks for the advice though, I'll look at the other programs and try to get some decent letters of recommendation. I am not going for IR b/c I don't think the quantitative analysis is too strong, but if you know of programs that do have strong quant programs I'd appreciate any pointers. I'm really not into SAIS b/c of the neo-con faculty, but I haven't heard any specifics about the program beyond that.

  3. Hi all, applying for MPP w/ a focus on policy analysis in 2013. I'm curious as to whether a circuitous academic history will affect my chances, and what if any second tier programs are available.

    I have a somewhat muddled and longwinding undergrad career with a 2.5 GPA through most of it, but finished the last 45 credit hours or so with a 3.9. I have about 20 credit hours of a master's in IR with a 3.6, but I'm probably not going to finish b/c I found the school (an online program of a state school) incredibly unhelpful.

    I can speak Mandarin and Spanish and will have taken proficiency exams in both before applying later this year. I currently work for a state owned enterprise in the shipping industry in China, and will have also lived in Korea (my Korean is borderline conversational but nothing special). I also volunteer teaching migrant children in China as well.

    My GRE was strong 710 V 800 Q 4.5 writing, but I'm wondering if the new scale will take my Q score down a few percentile points? My dream schools are Princeton and/or UC Berkeley, but I'm trying to round up "second best" schools, and have come up with Indiana, UT-Austin, and maybe Michigan? Are my backups feasible or should I cast a wider net? Thanks for any advice.

  4. I took the GRE, 710 V, 800 Q 4.5 AW. I have very little actual math coursework besides a general Intl Econ course. Applying to Woodrow Wilson, Goldman, Sanford for sure, still thinking about "fall back" schools. Want to do Public Policy/Affairs.

    I speak Mandarin, Korean and Spanish, lived abroad in Korea and China, and have taught for 4 years (including as an adjunct professor), volunteered for about 1. I was a contestant on College Jeopardy too, if that counts for anything.

    Since I have a good Q on the GRE, will I have a shot at these schools even though I lack stats? I will of course take stats if I get accepted, next summer.

    As far as fall backs, I have been considering UCSD Pacific Rim Studies for a "fall back", even though I hear it's incredibly competitive. I dont' mind it's IR because of the heavy quant emphasis and I lived in China and Korea.

    Can anyone recommend "fall back" MPP programs? I'm thinking LBJ, UWashington and maybe UIC (I'm from Chicago).

    If anyone has suggestions or advice, I would appreciate it.

  5. I can't figure out how to edit a post with this new format, so just adding on...

    I got my AWA score - 5.5, which was a relief.

    Otherwise, currently flipping out because I'm having a hard time finding a recommendation from a professor. I'm really concerned I might not be able to get one, and I don't want to wait another year so that I can take BS classes in between just to get a random reference. I understand the idea behind these recs, but I feel that professional ones should be sufficient if you have been out of school awhile and aren't going into academia. Ugh, this is honestly what kept me from considering grad school previously - if only I didn't need a Master's degree!

    I was just talking about this, I really think it creates more problems than it solves. For those out of school, it becomes completely impossible to get a really detailed reference that indicates the student's strengths.

  6. **Sorry I already posted this in PoliSci, newb mistake in not seeing this forum first ***

    Hi,

    I have an undergrad in history from a not very good state school but a 3.92 GPA, and half a master's in Intl' Studies from another so-so school with a 3.6. In addition, 2 years teaching abroad and 4 years teaching total, I speak three foreign languages.

    I recently took the GRE, getting 710 V, 800 Q (haven't found out writing yet but I have a ton of writing samples that are pretty good, I'm thinking 5.0 at least)

    I want to get into a better program, preferably in public policy. Even though my schools are not prestigious, I think my GRE scores will help. Does anyone know of schools that are more likely to weigh GRE and especially when awarding financial grants/scholarships? In general, what are my chances in getting into a top tier programĀ  and getting money?

    I would like to attend a good school, but also one that would lead to non-academic employment while still awarding aid (we can dream can't we?) Also, I pretty much plan on walking away from the current master's, will this hurt me?

    Any help is appreciated.

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