IR/Security/Public Affairs 2011

[macmc]

It's that time again. I always like when there's one thread for everyone to share their anxieties, struggles, and triumphs, so let's kick this party off: where are you applying? What do you want to do? How are you going to survive the time between when you press "Submit" and when the gatekeepers notify?

I'll share my schools first, in the hopes that this thread will actually take off. I'm applying primarily to security studies programs. The finalists are (in rough order of preference):

Georgetown

Korbel (U Denver), TIED WITH Elliot (GW)

American SIS

Patterson (Kentucky)

Kansas State

GO!

[securitynut]

I'm also applying to security studies programs - though my list is a little different. In an approximate order:

University of Pittsburgh (MPIA in Security and Intelligence Studies)

Georgetown (MA Security Studies)

George Washington (MA Security Policy Studies)

Institute of World Politics (Strategic Intelligence Studies)

University of Denver (MA Intl Security)

American (MA US Foreign Policy)

Pittsburgh is my clear #1 choice, with everything else being about the same (except for American, which is a little lower due to a lack of emphasis on the Intelligence side of things)

[macmc]

I'm also applying to security studies programs - though my list is a little different. In an approximate order:

University of Pittsburgh (MPIA in Security and Intelligence Studies)

Georgetown (MA Security Studies)

George Washington (MA Security Policy Studies)

Institute of World Politics (Strategic Intelligence Studies)

University of Denver (MA Intl Security)

American (MA US Foreign Policy)

Pittsburgh is my clear #1 choice, with everything else being about the same (except for American, which is a little lower due to a lack of emphasis on the Intelligence side of things)

What made you go for Pitt over Georgetown?

[M G]

I want to apply to International trade, global policy, international finance programs. If I had to choose a secondary focus I would like security studies.

American University

Syracuse University

University of Michigan--Ann Arbor

The Johns Hopkins University

Duke University

New York University

University of Denver

George Mason University

These are kind of in order and maybe to many but that is theentire reason for my thread, so anyone here can help me sort this out or tellme which schools I shouldn't waste my time.

Edited October 26, 2010 by M G

[securitynut]

What made you go for Pitt over Georgetown?

A lot of it is simply budgetary - Pitt still has a great reputation and a great program for security studies, but Pittsburgh itself (the city) is cheaper and the program is less expensive as well, and I think I'll have a better shot at getting funding there. In addition, I spoke with the head of admissions at Pitt at an APSIA grad school fair and he gave me a really great impression of the school. To be honest, there's not a large degree of difference between any of the programs on my list (with the exception of American since their program doesn't have as strong a focus on intell), so I'll be happy with whichever programs I can get it into (especially with funding).

Edited October 26, 2010 by securitynut

[adaptations]

Out of curiosity, is this thread geared to master's, PhDs, or both?

[macmc]

Out of curiosity, is this thread geared to master's, PhDs, or both?

This thread is for everyone. I'm hoping a lot of master's candidates will respond because I tend to hear a lot about the Ph.D process, but Ph.Ds are certainly welcome here. Where are you starting anew?

[flyers29]

Note: the following is intended more for people who don't have much relevant work experience coming into grad school, and is written with absolutely no bitterness on my part...just injecting some unfortunate reality into the thread.

Coming from someone who finished a security program this year (Denver), I'd advise next year's applicants to think long and hard about the financial situation they may be getting themselves into. I imagine that many studying security are looking to move onto the federal government (unless you're coming with some work experience already), which is an area that will likely be seeing cuts over the next year. Not to mention that where you went to school means next to nothing in their hiring process.

So while many of the programs some of you are looking at are places I would imagine many of you would have great experiences, you do have to ask yourselves if it's really worth paying off student loan debt for the next 10+ years. That's also assuming you don't have to worry about having a job when you finish, which is a huge "if" right now (I'm currently on the wrong side of that question, unfortunately). If you do decide to go forward with these options, I'd recommend trying to get into a DC-area school (don't forget about places like Maryland and George Mason) and taking advantage of some of the networking resources that could get you one of the relatively few non-government opportunities available to you without some experience. Consider state school options if available to you as well.

Edited October 27, 2010 by flyers29

[adaptations]

Although the previous poster brings up some very good points that are all worth considering, I will also offer my two cents. I finished my MA in IR from the U. of Chicago (CIR) in the spring of 2009. There were approximately 55 students in my cohort and at least 1/3 of us decided we wanted to get jobs in DC. To my knowledge, all of us succeeded. Most of us were able to find policy or non-profit jobs and a number of students who were PMFs got government positions, while a few more went into the foreign service. There were certainly a few students who struggled with finding something, especially something full-time that paid well and was actually what they were really interested in, but most had jobs by the Fall following graduation. Having spent 4 years of my life in DC, I think one of the best parts about the city is its job market and regular turnover, meaning lots of positions open up. You certainly will have to work hard to get a position, and actually being in DC makes a huge difference, but even in these tough economic times working in international affairs in DC is still a relatively promising field in my opinion. Best of luck to all.

[adaptations]

And since this thread is really about past experience and applications, I'll join that conversation too.

I will be applying PhD programs in Political Science with a focus on international relations (IPE) and formal/quant. methods I'm applying to a long list of schools (15). This is my third time applying. The first time, I got one PhD offer (unfunded), but decided to do the master's in CIR at Chicago largely because they gave me a good funding offer. While I was in CIR, I applied again and had much better results (accepted to OSU, UCLA, GW, U. of Washington, and wait listed at Michigan). Due to some personal reasons, I decided not to attend and moved back to DC. I've since been enjoying my life and job in DC, got engaged, submitted an article to a top tier journal (still under review), and am eagerly waiting my return to academia.

Best of luck to all the applicants this cycle!

[spm8p]

For those of you possibly interested in going further afield, there are also a wide variety of intelligence and security-oriented programs in the UK to look at as well.

Examples include:

Aberystwyth University's Centre for Intelligence and Security Studies: http://users.aber.ac.uk/rbh/iss/aber.htm

Brunel University's Centre for Intelligence and Security Studies: http://www.brunel.ac.uk/about/acad/sss/research/centres/bciss with a one-year MA: http://www.brunel.ac.uk/courses/postgraduate/L900PINSSTD

King's College London's MA in Intelligence and International Security: http://www.kcl.ac.uk/schools/sspp/ws/grad/programmes/maiis/

U of Warwick's MA in International Security: http://www2.warwick.ac.uk/fac/soc/pais/prospectivestudents/pgindex/is/

Tuition in the UK is substantially less than the US, so it is entirely possible to complete a MA degree in the UK at much lower cost than you would in the US....

[fadeindreams]

Note: the following is intended more for people who don't have much relevant work experience coming into grad school, and is written with absolutely no bitterness on my part...just injecting some unfortunate reality into the thread.

Coming from someone who finished a security program this year (Denver), I'd advise next year's applicants to think long and hard about the financial situation they may be getting themselves into. I imagine that many studying security are looking to move onto the federal government (unless you're coming with some work experience already), which is an area that will likely be seeing cuts over the next year. Not to mention that where you went to school means next to nothing in their hiring process.

So while many of the programs some of you are looking at are places I would imagine many of you would have great experiences, you do have to ask yourselves if it's really worth paying off student loan debt for the next 10+ years. That's also assuming you don't have to worry about having a job when you finish, which is a huge "if" right now (I'm currently on the wrong side of that question, unfortunately). If you do decide to go forward with these options, I'd recommend trying to get into a DC-area school (don't forget about places like Maryland and George Mason) and taking advantage of some of the networking resources that could get you one of the relatively few non-government opportunities available to you without some experience. Consider state school options if available to you as well.

I'm going to pick on Korbel here, though I feel this applies to almost all private schools. I am just more familiar personally with Korbel as it was one of the final three schools I was choosing between.

It's difficult to justify attending Korbel without funding. If they do not offer you funding with your admission offer, then you are looking at a full bill (I'm sure there are some exceptions, but for the sake of simplicity that's just take this as a given). On the other hand, public schools (Washington, Michigan, Maryland, Indiana, etc) have other avenues of funding available to continuing students such as assistantships. These positions exist across the university as a whole and are not limited to your program. I was very fortunate to obtain an assistantship that will continue for my full two years at Michigan. I am fully funded and I will leave here with ZERO debt. So, while you may think that a school like Korbel is a better fit for you (I was on the fence about fit, though Korbel was an attractive option due to it being in Denver, etc), if you don't receive funding when you are admitted, you may want to consider looking elsewhere. Even with PSLF, I am of the opinion that 100k in debt for a public affairs degree is untenable. Korbel might be great for those of you that fit their standards for automatic funding...

Furthermore, attending an outstanding public school like Michigan allows you access to all of the other opportunities available across campus. These include electives in OTHER prestigious departments. The Ford School at Michigan allows 12 credits in electives. That's 1/4th of the degree that you can use to take classes through Michigan law, business, economics, political science, education, sociology, public health, etc etc etc. For an interdisciplinary degree like public affairs, this is an extraordinary boon. At the Ford School, many of the classes are cross listed. This means you can take an economics class, for example, without using up your elective credits. Take a look at US News and World Report's rankings of the programs I mentioned (at least top 20 for all). It's exposure to that sort of consistent academic excellence that makes Michigan a hard choice to pass up.

In the end, I would recommend applying to 5+ programs that you would be comfortable attending. Once you receive admissions offers, rank them by the debt load you will have after graduation. If you didn't receive any funding, try to find info on funding available to continuing students. If a school, such as Korbel, is completely done dispensing funding, then I would not consider attending their program. Over 100k in debt is ridiculous. Period.

[flyers29]

I'm going to pick on Korbel here, though I feel this applies to almost all private schools. I am just more familiar personally with Korbel as it was one of the final three schools I was choosing between.

It's difficult to justify attending Korbel without funding. If they do not offer you funding with your admission offer, then you are looking at a full bill (I'm sure there are some exceptions, but for the sake of simplicity that's just take this as a given). On the other hand, public schools (Washington, Michigan, Maryland, Indiana, etc) have other avenues of funding available to continuing students such as assistantships. These positions exist across the university as a whole and are not limited to your program. I was very fortunate to obtain an assistantship that will continue for my full two years at Michigan. I am fully funded and I will leave here with ZERO debt. So, while you may think that a school like Korbel is a better fit for you (I was on the fence about fit, though Korbel was an attractive option due to it being in Denver, etc), if you don't receive funding when you are admitted, you may want to consider looking elsewhere. Even with PSLF, I am of the opinion that 100k in debt for a public affairs degree is untenable. Korbel might be great for those of you that fit their standards for automatic funding...

Furthermore, attending an outstanding public school like Michigan allows you access to all of the other opportunities available across campus. These include electives in OTHER prestigious departments. The Ford School at Michigan allows 12 credits in electives. That's 1/4th of the degree that you can use to take classes through Michigan law, business, economics, political science, education, sociology, public health, etc etc etc. For an interdisciplinary degree like public affairs, this is an extraordinary boon. At the Ford School, many of the classes are cross listed. This means you can take an economics class, for example, without using up your elective credits. Take a look at US News and World Report's rankings of the programs I mentioned (at least top 20 for all). It's exposure to that sort of consistent academic excellence that makes Michigan a hard choice to pass up.

In the end, I would recommend applying to 5+ programs that you would be comfortable attending. Once you receive admissions offers, rank them by the debt load you will have after graduation. If you didn't receive any funding, try to find info on funding available to continuing students. If a school, such as Korbel, is completely done dispensing funding, then I would not consider attending their program. Over 100k in debt is ridiculous. Period.

FWIW my debt wasn't any worse than if I had attended one of the DC schools (much lower cost of living in Denver) and was nowhere near 100k. Then again I had some savings, split rent with my SO, had a federal work-study (not hard to get), and took a larger course load to get out a quarter early (thus saving a few thousand bucks due to the weird way Denver's tuition is set up). Otherwise, I think you make a very fair post--I think Denver is second only to Tufts/Fletcher in terms of annual tuition. Kind of sucks too as the high tuition is set by DU--the Korbel administration was actually very supportive of finding ways to make it cheaper for yourself, including being very generous with the transfer of previous graduate credits.

[Roger84]

Only had time to apply to three schools

Boston University

Fletcher

SIPA - Columbia U

I have heard from Boston and Columbia. Columbia gave me this weird response where the accepted me for Fall 2011 and not Spring 2011. Right now I am waiting for Fletcher and the suspense is killing me.

I am more IA than IR but they are related so I thought I would jump on this thread

[yeahgradschool!]

Hello, all!

Anyone out there looking to focus in domestic policy? I consistently see applicants who are interested in international policy/development but the domestic kids seem few and far between on this forum.

When I first started thinking about applying to grad school seriously (a few years ago), I was planning on applying to international affairs programs. Having spent a year and a half working abroad, I've gotten my fill of international development ha. So my original list of the usuals: Fletcher, SIPA, SAIS, etc. have been completely scratched (of course I used them for my free GRE score reports, too! bummer).

I'm now applying to more domestically-focused programs: Carnegie Mellon (DC Track), Michigan, Duke, UPenn, USC and Syracuse. I limited my list to schools which have fellowships with the Peace Corps (except Syracuse, whose year long program makes the total tuition comparable to the others, even with the fellowships). So as exciting as it would have been to apply to Harvard, Berkeley and Princeton, it didn't seem worth it (since my chances of getting in are almost non-existent and my chances of getting funding are absolutely non-existent)! Though the DC-Track at Carnegie is my top choice, I'll probably be inclined to go toward the $$, assuming I get offered any. I'd be interested to hear from any other domestic policy applicants and where you're planning on applying? Good luck to everyone out there!!

Edited November 19, 2010 by yeahgradschool!

[HandsomeNerd]

Georgetown SSP

GWU SPP

AU Comparative Regional Studies

Fletcher

BU

[TKO]

Definitely consider USC! I'm currently pursuing a MPP along with a Certificate in Homeland Security & Public Policy. Our Center for Risk and Economic Assessment of Terrorism Events is a DHS National Center of Excellence. Feel free to PM me if you have questions. My program is very quant based. There's also the Trojan Network to lean back on

There's a dual JD/MPP program as well. Other than DC, LA is a great location for policy work in this particular field (i.e. RAND, intelligence agencies,LAX, Port of LA, Port of Long Beach , etc)

Edited December 4, 2010 by TKO

[fifa1984]

Hi Guys!

I am new here. Wish I found this place earlier during my application process.

I am going for UCSD MPIA

USC Public Diplomacy

Yale IR

Anyone else applying to UCSD MPIA here this year? The first round deadline was Dec. 4th. When I try to submit on the 4th, it wouldn't let me. It kept on saying the deadline has passed. Called admission office to leave a message and sent an email about it. No reply yet. called again this morning and lunch time, phone was disconnected or go straight to voice mail....arg so frustrating!

[macmc]

Anyone else applying to UCSD MPIA here this year? The first round deadline was Dec. 4th. When I try to submit on the 4th, it wouldn't let me. It kept on saying the deadline has passed. Called admission office to leave a message and sent an email about it. No reply yet. called again this morning and lunch time, phone was disconnected or go straight to voice mail....arg so frustrating!

That's weird, I don't know why it wouldn't let you submit. I sent my app for the MPIA last week, but I'm pretty sure my last recommender didn't get his letter in on time; my transcripts didn't make it there yet, either. Looks like I'll be waiting till March to hear back.

[macmc]

Anyone else applying to UCSD MPIA here this year? The first round deadline was Dec. 4th. When I try to submit on the 4th, it wouldn't let me. It kept on saying the deadline has passed. Called admission office to leave a message and sent an email about it. No reply yet. called again this morning and lunch time, phone was disconnected or go straight to voice mail....arg so frustrating!

That's weird, I don't know why it wouldn't let you submit. I sent my app for the MPIA last week, but I'm pretty sure my last recommender didn't get his letter in on time; my transcripts didn't make it there yet, either. Looks like I'll be waiting till March to hear back.

[fifa1984]

That's weird, I don't know why it wouldn't let you submit. I sent my app for the MPIA last week, but I'm pretty sure my last recommender didn't get his letter in on time; my transcripts didn't make it there yet, either. Looks like I'll be waiting till March to hear back.

so it was okay when you submitted last week? I couldn't submit at all. when I click on review and submit, it just says you can't do it anymore because the deadline has passed.

[macmc]

so it was okay when you submitted last week? I couldn't submit at all. when I click on review and submit, it just says you can't do it anymore because the deadline has passed.

Yeah, it was fine for me...have you called again recently? It's only 4:08 in CA right now, maybe someone will pick up. It could be just a flaw in the system right now.

[fifa1984]

Yeah, it was fine for me...have you called again recently? It's only 4:08 in CA right now, maybe someone will pick up. It could be just a flaw in the system right now.

good call Meg11! I just called again and someone finally answered the phone(instead of busy tone or voice mail). They told me that due to their system error, they will extend the deadline to tomorrow. Yea, it makes me feel way much better now. couple more of these kind of incident, I will have high blood pressure whew

[macmc]

good call Meg11! I just called again and someone finally answered the phone(instead of busy tone or voice mail). They told me that due to their system error, they will extend the deadline to tomorrow. Yea, it makes me feel way much better now. couple more of these kind of incident, I will have high blood pressure whew

Awesome!

[greendiplomat]

good call Meg11! I just called again and someone finally answered the phone(instead of busy tone or voice mail). They told me that due to their system error, they will extend the deadline to tomorrow. Yea, it makes me feel way much better now. couple more of these kind of incident, I will have high blood pressure whew

Similar situation with HKS, apparently.

An email went out to people who had started an application but hadn't submitted by midnight that the Embark online app system went down, so they were accepting applications until midnight ET (instead of 5PM). They followed it up today with an email informing everyone that the recommendation forms were also down and that they (registered recommenders) will receive an email when it's back up.

Was kinda frustrated because I could have used those extra 7 hours...