WilliamHsieh

Thank you hitomimay for your information! It's very useful! And actually I would like to ask you more about the tax situation you mentioned. You said I will have two options for paying the tax, if I understand you correctly, that I can either choose to receive all of my stipend in every paycheck, and save up enough to pay taxes in April, or, I can have them remove 13% and get most of it back as a refund. My question is that, if I choose the latter option, does that mean what I will get in the first hand is a stipend with the amount of tax being taken away, and then some time after that most of that amount taken away will be given back to me? This seems to be the ideal way. And by choosing the former option I still have to pay that tax in its whole amount? If you could explain these different options and how they end up with different outcomes, it will be very appreciated! Another thing is that, what you mentioned about your current housing seems the type I am hoping to find. I would like to ask that having a 1-bedroom apartment to yourself within a house with your own bathroom and kitchen and doorway, how much does this cost you per month, and with other fees included, like water, electricity, gas, internet, how much should I expect to pay for the house like yours per month? And what should the percentage of my rent be in my monthly budget? Also, you recommend living close to campus within walking distance, and this seems to be an ideal option for me. And from what you mentioned, the neighborhood seems safe for me, unlike what I have read from previous posts. What's the neighborhood like? Is it convenient to get the necessary grocery there? But I am just thinking if staying in an area with public transportation to the school will signicicantly lower my rent? Thank you.

Hello everyone! I am admitted to USC and thinking about getting more information on living here in LA. I have a stipend of 20,000 Dollars, but which will be taxed. I would like to ask how much the tax would be for this assistantship of 20,000 Dollars? Another thing is that, I would like to know what kind of living standard can I expect for a budget of 20,000? I am thinking I would like to have a studio, or a room and a study with my own bathroom, but I can share a living room and kitchen with others. I just need some personal spaces. Also I would like to be in a safe and convenient neighborhood which has easy access to public transportation to USC or in a place not too far from school. With these kinds of requirements, will my budget be sufficient, or what should the reasonable amount be? And I would like to ask if someone can provide me some ideas or opinions which areas would be ideal for me? Thank you!

Thank you guys for these helpful advice. I will not consider those unfunded schools, since it will bring a heavy debt burden for me. Yet I think if I can provide some more details of my situation, it might be more helpful for other fellow graduate students to provide me more advice. I actually have a Fulbright Fellowship to cover my studies for the first two years, yet after I asked OSU the possibilities of guaranteed assistantships for the years after my Fulbright ends, the reply is such guarantee can't be provided. I am wondering, what are the chances of obtaining these positions to support my studies if no guarantee can be provided? I remember OSU replied to me and mentioned that some of their budget has been cut and that's why they can't give me such guarantee. Under such circumstances, is it worthwhile to go to OSU without knowing if there will be funding for me afterwards? Or is it not worthwhile at all to be in debt to go to graduate school? If I were offered funding from OSU, I would have decided to study there very early. Thank you.

Hello everyone! I am considering several schools for PhD but am now choosing between UVa and University of Southern California. My research interest is international relations with a focus on U.S.-China relations and international security in East Asia. And I hope to build a theory accounting for the role of China in the international system in East Asia. I would like to ask if someone can offer me advice on how to choose from UVa and USC based on my interests, and considering the reputation of these schools, prospect on the job market, research resources there, and connection in the academic world. The time to make the decision is coming and I simply can’t make up my mind. I appreciate any thought and opinion! Also, I would like to ask will a stipend of 20,000 Dollars be sufficient for a life as a student of USC? I am also seeking advice if I should consider choosing other schools not offering me funding. I am also admitted to Ohio State and University of Washington School of International Studies. These places do not offer me funding, therefore they might not be the priority on my list. Yet considering that the two schools seem to be nice options as well, especially that I really want to do researches on international relations theories, Ohio State would be an ideal fit for me. I am wondering, from the perspective of fellow graduate students of political science, is it worthy to take on loans and debt to go to Ohio State? Will a degree from Ohio State give me better chances on getting a job or help me build a career in academia? Another thing I would like to ask for opinions is, what is the general impression and reputation of UW-Seattle School of International Studies’ three-year PhD? They said that this degree can be completed in three years, but I am wondering does such training in a rather shortened period of timing bring some concerns or doubts, especially on the job market? Thank you.

Hello everyone! I would like to ask for opinions on how to choose a writing sample when applying for PhD. Should I send an essay which has something to do with my future research topic, or should I send an essay in which I have some special new discoveries? Currently I have two available options. Both are papers that I have presented in international academic conferences. One is in international relations, which is my major in graduate school, and this paper is basically a shorter version of my master thesis, which analyzes the difference of U.S. policies between the nuclear crises of North Korea and Iran. The other is in comparative politics, which is my undergraduate major, and in this paper I bring out unique new cases entering semi-presidential system and illustrate that these cases are one of its kind, so I think this paper could be more special since I have some new discoveries. The thing is that I plan to major in international relations in my PhD program, and my primary focus is Northeast Asia, and U.S.-China relations. So here comes the question: which paper should I choose to be my ideal writing sample? I would like to ask the knowledgeable and experienced people here for your advice. Is it better to send a paper that is in the same field and has something to do with my future research as my writing sample, or it does not matter if I send another paper in another slightly different area that I recently presented yet which has some new contribution to the discipline? Thank you for your advice!

Thank you for every valuable opinion. To blackcoffee64, thank you for your information about the University of South Carolina, I'll go and check that program. Also thanks to Coocoocachoo and Helix for your comments on choosing schools. Do you guys (or other people here) have more comments on which schools are better options for qualitative research now in the U.S.? I have this feeling that it's like every school is going very quantitative and I am thinking about doing otherwise. Thank you.

Hello everyone: I am an applicant this year, and I found this forum only recently and it is very useful. Wish I had known here earlier. I applied for ten schools, but so far I have received eight rejections. As here in my country we do not have much useful information or connection available for applicants to collect updated information, I would like to hear some advice and suggestions from experienced professionals and fellow applicants, especially who have successfully been admitted into top programs. Especially, I would like to ask for the knowledgeable and experienced people here what are my chances of getting into top programs and what schools should I be looking for as safe schools. Thank you. And here is my profile. MY PROFILE: Type of Undergrad: BA in Political Science (major in political theories and comparative politics from the best national university in Taiwan) Undergrad GPA: 3.78/4.0 Type of Grad: MA in Political Science (major in international relations, minor in comparative politics from the same university where I received my BA) Graduate GPA: 4.0/4.0 GRE: V 740 Q 800 AW 3.0 / V 650 Q 800 AW 3.5 (the story with my GRE is that the higher verbal score was from my second test, and originally the AW was 4.0, yet I received mostly 6.0 and 5.5 in my preparation classes, then I decided to ask for a rescore, and it ended up being lower and I was very depressed. Should I retake the GRE to focus on a higher AW score?) TOEFL: Total 109, Reading 29, Listening 25, Speaking 26, Writing 29. Math Courses: haven’t taken them after high school Stats Courses: (undergrad) applied statistics and I got an A and a B in two semesters Econ Courses: (undergrad) economics with a pretty bad score, a B and a C Letters of Recommendation: One from my thesis advisor, a professor who is an important advisor to the President of my country and currently a cabinet minister. PhD of Virginia. One from an associated professor who specializes in comparative politics. I took her classes both in undergrad and in graduate school and received great scores in all those classes. And she thinks that I have very good chances in getting into the top programs. PhD of Chicago. One from a professor from Israel, who is a professor emeritus and a chair of one of the research committees of the international political science association. I presented a paper which was a draft version of my thesis in a conference he chaired, and since then we maintained good relations. PhD of Johns Hopkins SAIS. One from my mentor, who is a senior professor and director of the highest research institute for political science in my country. I took his classes on comparative politics and wrote a report that he was very impressed and I received the highest score. I subsequently took that good report and expanded it into an academic paper and presented at an academic conference in the U.S. This professor only wrote letters for three schools for me, as he is popular and many people asked him for recommendation. PhD of UC Berkeley. Research Experiences: I received a fellowship for government sponsored undergraduate research project and did my own project. It is considered a high honor for undergraduate students in my country. I have also presented several papers in international and national academic conferences, and most of the papers are in English. Aside from these more academic research experiences, I was Model UN chair several times in college and did some research to write several study guides on international security issues. Teaching Experience: TA in department of foreign languages for Spanish. Did not teach in the department of political science. Research Interests: International Relations, with a focus on U.S.-China relations and international security in Northeast Asia, and I hope to build a theory accounting for the role of China in the international system in East Asia. My thesis is a comparison of U.S. policy on the nuclear crises of North Korea and Iran. And my research interests in U.S.-China relations partly derived from something I found in the process I wrote my thesis. I also have interests in comparative politics, with a focus on semi-presidential system and democratic consolidation. Presented some papers on these topics as well. Applying to: Harvard, Yale, Princeton, MIT, Cornell, U Penn, Georgetown, George Washington, Johns Hopkins, Brown I mention my research interests in IR and U.S.-China relations in most of the SOPs I submitted for these schools. Taking into account my profile, do I have a chance in getting into these schools? What should I improve in my application? And because I received really bad scores on my GRE writing, should I consider retaking GRE to get a better score? I would also like to ask when I apply for PhD next time and if I still continue my interests in U.S.-China relations, what schools should I add to my list, and what schools that I applied this time should be left out? Or if I want to research democratization and semi-presidential system, are there good programs in the U.S. specializing in this topic for me to apply? Also, can someone offer me some ideas on what schools should I consider safe schools? Thank you.