2018-2019 Application Thread

[IcedCovfefe]

3 minutes ago, eggsalad14 said:

Lol I mean it was me, I guess my messages earlier were vague about that. I'm just surprised that no one else has heard because my portal is now updated and everything, and it's not like I've won some special wustl award or have had contact with any faculty that would warrant an early notification.  

Wow.  I’m really curious about what’s making your app stand out so much.  You’ve been killing it out here. 

[IcedCovfefe]

Just now, Dwar said:

Random question from what you said, does ranking matter much in the non-academic market place? Like in policy/government or think-tank work?

Hard to say because I’m not in that marketplace, but I’d imagine it matters to the extent of name recognition.  Maybe more so for think tanks because they try to keep one foot in academia.  I would imagine it matters less than if you were looking for a tenure track job though, as long as you develop the same skills.  Non academics are less obsessed with “pedigree”. 

[eggsalad14]

1 minute ago, IcedCovfefe said:

Wow.  I’m really curious about what’s making your app stand out so much.  You’ve been killing it out here. 

Lol me too because I applied very widely in anticipation of lots of rejection. 

[trinityshot]

Just now, eggsalad14 said:

Lol me too because I applied very widely in anticipation of lots of rejection. 

Same thing is happening to me. Applied everywhere thinking I would get in 1 place

[Dwar]

1 minute ago, IcedCovfefe said:

Hard to say because I’m not in that marketplace, but I’d imagine it matters to the extent of name recognition.  Maybe more so for think tanks because they try to keep one foot in academia.  I would imagine it matters less than if you were looking for a tenure track job though, as long as you develop the same skills.  Non academics are less obsessed with “pedigree”. 

That makes a lot of sense. I know that at least for some government jobs (EX: Foreign Service) it doesn't matter where you get your degree from, as long as you have one. 

[amyvt98]

 

1 minute ago, IcedCovfefe said:

Hard to say because I’m not in that marketplace, but I’d imagine it matters to the extent of name recognition.  Maybe more so for think tanks because they try to keep one foot in academia.  I would imagine it matters less than if you were looking for a tenure track job though, as long as you develop the same skills.  Non academics are less obsessed with “pedigree”. 

In politics, alma mater matters very little, especially once you get past your first job. I have worked in public affairs/public policy since the late 90s, and people care more about who you know and what you've proven you can do on the job than they do about pedigree. A big name college education makes very little difference in DC. 

[ana21]

1 hour ago, StormingTheCastle said:

Does anybody know if all Pittsburgh acceptances are out at this point, or do they do them in batches?

I was told they were still making decisions, but I'm not 100% sure. 

[Pancho Villa]

14 minutes ago, eggsalad14 said:

Lol I mean it was me, I guess my messages earlier were vague about that. I'm just surprised that no one else has heard because my portal is now updated and everything, and it's not like I've won some special wustl award or have had contact with any faculty that would warrant an early notification.  

Oops, I misinterpreted your initial post. Congratulations! Whichever school snatches you up is going to feel mighty proud! Maybe it's something like they've only sent out notifications for those in American, then it would make sense that there could be very few (and maybe just you active here). I suppose the rest of us will hear back before long. I have to admit, I agree with departments that don't send rejections on Valentine's Day?

[oats]

14 minutes ago, Dwar said:

Random question from what you said, does ranking matter much in the non-academic market place? Like in policy/government or think-tank work?

Much less so but I would strongly advise against getting a political science Ph.D. with the intent of going into policy/government. It's unnecessary and incredibly expensive in terms of opportunity cost. If this is your intent I would encourage you to think deeply about why you really want a poli. sci. ph.d. as the only good reason to get one in my opinion is to be doing scientific research.

The marketplace outside of academia cares much more about the tangible skills you bring to the table (i.e. stats, programming, salesmanship, etc.). To acquire these skills you're better off either getting an MA or Ph.D. in another field. If you want to be a subject matter expert for some consulting firm or go in the foreign service, a masters degree in a poli sci field is sufficient and a Ph.D. is overkill without adding much value.

[Dwar]

3 minutes ago, oats said:

Much less so but I would strongly advise against getting a political science Ph.D. with the intent of going into policy/government. It's unnecessary and incredibly expensive in terms of opportunity cost. If this is your intent I would encourage you to think deeply about why you really want a poli. sci. ph.d. as the only good reason to get one in my opinion is to be doing scientific research.

The marketplace outside of academia cares much more about the tangible skills you bring to the table (i.e. stats, programming, salesmanship, etc.). To acquire these skills you're better off either getting an MA or Ph.D. in another field. If you want to be a subject matter expert for some consulting firm or go in the foreign service, a masters degree in a poli sci field is sufficient and a Ph.D. is overkill without adding much value.

Thanks for the advice! i'll definitely consider it! 

[IcedCovfefe]

Additionally, if you’ve been not receiving acceptances, this could be a big reason.  If you indicated in your SOP that you don’t intend to stay in academia, then you likely won’t receive much interest. 

[Dwar]

Just now, IcedCovfefe said:

Additionally, if you’ve been not receiving acceptances, this could be a big reason.  If you indicated in your SOP that you don’t intend to stay in academia, then you likely won’t receive much interest. 

I was warned about that early on, and I avoided it in the SOP's. It isn't that I necessarily don't want to go into academia, its just that the way the academic market is trending, it is harder and harder to get a TT position. So I figure if I work for a few years in industry and then try out academia, i'll be a better candidate. My passion mainly is in research, I love doing it and its what I want to do for my career. Honestly i'm not too picky about what industry thats in, if its in a research university, think tank, or government agency. 

[usmeme]

In at Cornell.

just received the email.

[PBandMachiajelly]

2 minutes ago, usmeme said:

In at Cornell.

just received the email.

Congrats!!! Just an email, or was there a link to a portal to see?

[usmeme]

Just now, PBandMachiajelly said:

Congrats!!! Just an email, or was there a link to a portal to see?

Just an email from the DGS. It says there will be a follow-up email that covers more details about the open house and the funding package.

[irgradcafe]

Claiming Cornell as well for IR subfield. Got an email from DGS, and formal letter of acceptance with funding details will come later. Super happy - I didn't even think I have a chance at Cornell!

[PBandMachiajelly]

1 minute ago, usmeme said:

Just an email from the DGS. It says there will be a follow-up email that covers more details about the open house and the funding package.

 

1 minute ago, irgradcafe said:

Claiming Cornell as well for IR subfield. Got an email from DGS, and formal letter of acceptance with funding details will come later. Super happy - I didn't even think I have a chance at Cornell!

 

Congrats to both of you!! That's so exciting. Off to go refresh my inbox furiously ?

[irgradcafe]

Those of you who applied Stanford - go check your application portal. Just like some other people on the results page I found a rejection letter sitting there. Hope you guys would find an acceptance though! Didn't even bother to send us a generic rejection email, eh?

Edited February 14, 2019 by irgradcafe

[martinn]

2 minutes ago, irgradcafe said:

Those of you who applied Stanford - go check your application portal. Just like some other people on the results page I found a rejection letter sitting there. Hope you guys would find an acceptance though! Didn't even bother to send us a generic rejection email, eh?

Thanks for sharing the info! I checked and found the same... oh well. 

[peggy.olson]

Also claiming a Stanford IR rejection - oddly at peace with it and mostly glad that they didn't drag it out ! Congrats to those admitted!

[IcedCovfefe]

2 minutes ago, peggy.olson said:

Also claiming a Stanford IR rejection - oddly at peace with it and mostly glad that they didn't drag it out ! Congrats to those admitted!

Ditto.  Disappointed, but wasn’t expecting to get in anyway. 

[peggy.olson]

Hoping Columbia will come out soon.... ! But who knows might have to wait till next week 

[StormingTheCastle]

Just happened to refresh the portal and got a WUSTL rejection. Seems like they may be sending some of them out today.

[Battlestar]

12 minutes ago, StormingTheCastle said:

Just happened to refresh the portal and got a WUSTL rejection. Seems like they may be sending some of them out today.

WUSTL rejection email just received

Edited February 14, 2019 by Battlestar

[IcedCovfefe]

So I’m still waiting on Yale, Columbia, and Harvard.  What are my chances of hearing something before the weekend?