gradcafe26

Hello, thanks a lot for this great thread. I'm currently doing an MA at a decent but not top PoliSci program, and I'm planning to apply for Fall2014. One of my concerns is that I have two largely unrelated areas of research interest: one in IR (A) and the other in CP ( B ). I've been taking IR and method courses to write a thesis in A, and I'm wondering whether I should mention my interest in B at all while applying for PhD programs. Though I haven't done any graduate level work in B, it is the topic of my undergrad thesis, and I have the language skills for B. The risk of including both A and B in my SOP is obvious. But I'm afraid that only focusing on one area in IR (A) may seem narrow. In addition, I will be able take one or two courses in Fall2013, so it will be either A (+ a method course) or B (+ a method course). So my questions is essentially about balancing the depth and breadth of coursework, and balancing the depth and breadth of research interests in SOP. Many thanks!

Thanks a lot blackcoffee64

To blackcoffee, who are the profs doing IPE at UW? And also regarding the funding there, I heard they don't fund every incoming phd student from this forum, so that's not true? Thanks a lot

Maybe Indiana (Kennedy) as well. BTW, no funding for international students at UCSD.

I think there was a thread on this issue, maybe 8months ago, you may find more information there.

That would be fantastic RWBG and jsclar! I will send you my stats if it doesn't work out this cycle, or post them in the Fall2012 SOP thread. So either way, I will let you know

That makes sense, I will do that after I am officially done in this cycle. I am still waiting for results from 2 schools, though prospects seem dim. And one thing that Phd students and professors cannot tell me is my fit to specific programs, so I am mainly seeking adcoms' opinions on that front.

Thanks! Then I think I will just give it a try and see what happens.

I will definitely ask my letter writers for that, however, I don't think their opinions would be that useful. Because, in my case, they are either profs from anthro/econ or non-American political scientists, which may be one of the weaknesses in my application.

Thanks for sharing your insights guys!

PS: I think there was a thread on this issue from 2010 or 2011, but I really can't find it...

Congrats to everyone who has received good news in this cycle! Just want to ask a quick question, since it is likely that I will have to do a MA before reapplying in one or two years, is it still too early to ask the departments about why they rejected me and how to strengthen my application? Madison send me the rejection about 2 weeks ago, and I am afraid they won't remember anything about my application after this month. Also, should I send these emails to graduate assistants, POIs, or DGS? Many thanks!

This is just great, RWBG. This cycle has been rough for me, 2 rejections so far. But should I get into any PhD program, I will definitely post my profile/sop

That happens to me as well. Later on I realized that many people just want to be nice, they don't really care about your application results.

Thanks sindikumva, it really helps

I see, thanks! So I guess the best way is to put zero then, because I am wondering if I tell them I have, say, $10,000 in my savings account for grad school, that amount will be deducted from the funding package, right?

Hi, all While filling out the online applications, I have encountered this question asking my financial resources I expect to have in the future. If admission and funding decisions are separate, should I just put 0 (or leave it blank) ? Thanks a lot!

I guess a lot of people here don't have similar experiences, but have you tried asking the departments?

thanks for the suggestion sindikumva

Thanks a lot, Rising Star!

Sounds good, thanks!

That sounds like the average, according to the NRC statistics. http://graduate-school.phds.org/rankings/political-science

Thanks! I was wondering if seniority matters at all, since most professors have been in the department for a longer time than associates, but maybe im worrying too much.

Associate Prof X fits my research interest the most in terms of region/topic/method in comparative politics. Professor Y is well respected in the subfield, but only certain aspects of his/her work are related to what I want to do in the future. Assistant Prof Z fits some of my interest, but she/he may not be tenured yet. In this scenario, how should I list them in the SOP? 1. “I want to study under professor X, Y, and Z” 2. “I want to study under professor Y, X, and Z” 3. “I want to study under professor X and Y” 4. “I want to study under professor Y and X” 5. Doesn't really matter as long as I don't put Z before X and Y. Thanks!

You might want to ask this question to department secretaries, they should have the answers. My impression is that different schools have different policies on this issue.