Do you think I have a shot at these schools?

[bilarslan]

Hi everyone,

I'm an international applicant willing to pursue a PhD in Political Science. My interests are focused on IPE and political economy of development. I'm considering to apply to a number of schools and I would like to get an idea about my chances of admission and which other schools I should apply. Here is my profile:

BSc in Economics, GPA: 3.54 (in the 5% of the class, with an upward trend in the last three semesters)

MA in International Relations, GPA: 3.69 (7th out of 10, would this create a problem? Should I even state it?)

GRE: Q800 V640 AW: -

TOEFL iBT: 106 (I had to take it again today due to 2 years limit, and I hopefully assume it to be around 100)

I'm currently writing my MA thesis very roughly on BRICs and certain other promising developing countries.

I will present a paper in the ISA conference in March 2011.

I have two years of TA and a year of RA experience.

Not sure about my recommendation letters, but I have a few respectable professors in mind whom I suppose will write a good letter.

The schools I am considering to apply are as follows:

UC Berkeley

USC

UPenn

Brown

Penn State

Cornell

NYU

Northwestern

UToronto

McGill

Do you think I have a shot at any of these schools? Or should I diversify the list with some lower-ranked schools as well? Would you recommend any other universities regarding my research interests?

Thank you in advance.

Edited November 15, 2010 by bilarslan

[Zahar Berkut]

Hi everyone,

I'm an international applicant willing to pursue a PhD in Political Science. My interests are focused on IPE and political economy of development. I'm considering to apply to a number of schools and I would like to get an idea about my chances of admission and which other schools I should apply. Here is my profile:

BSc in Economics, GPA: 3.54 (in the 5% of the class, with an upward trend in the last three semesters)

MA in International Relations, GPA: 3.69 (7th out of 10, would this create a problem? Should I even state it?)

GRE: Q800 V640 AW: -

TOEFL iBT: 106 (I had to take it again today due to 2 years limit, and I hopefully assume it to be around 100)

I'm currently writing my MA thesis very roughly on BRICs and certain other promising developing countries.

I will present a paper in the ISA conference in March 2011.

I have two years of TA and a year of RA experience.

Not sure about my recommendation letters, but I have a few respectable professors in mind whom I suppose will write a good letter.

The schools I am considering to apply are as follows:

UC Berkeley

USC

UPenn

Brown

Penn State

Cornell

NYU

Northwestern

UToronto

McGill

Do you think I have a shot at any of these schools? Or should I diversify the list with some lower-ranked schools as well? Would you recommend any other universities regarding my research interests?

Thank you in advance.

The MA and perfect quant should make some of these schools a possibility (no AW?). If you're worried, you could add one or two less competitive schools to the list, but just make sure you'd actually be willing to attend if it came to it.

[bilarslan]

The MA and perfect quant should make some of these schools a possibility (no AW?). If you're worried, you could add one or two less competitive schools to the list, but just make sure you'd actually be willing to attend if it came to it.

I've taken the GRE a few days ago, thus no AW score yet. Do you know any less competitive schools in which I can study political economy of development?