Going straight from BA to MA?

[lvt]

This may seem like an useless question considering that I already applied and got into graduate school. But I've been reading around the forum and it seems like everybody who applied to IR or public policy programs have already had years of work experience in the field. I know that some people choose to get a MA in mid-career but do you guys think it's a good idea to get a MA in international development with pretty much zero work experience?

[palabared]

I just talked with a columbia mpa student who is concentrating on int dev, and has 3 years of experience prior to his education. He's extremely frustrated that he is having so much trouble finding a position, since he said hes competing with people with experience around the 4-6 year range for positions. So it definitely makes you more marketable in an economy like we've had lately. I would recommend some experience not only for better (or a) job(s) after school, but it will allow you to focus in on what you might really be excited about in Int dev (a huge field). And thus you will get more out of your education and be more engaged.

Without any experience, or even little, chances are you will have to go volunteer abroad or in DC/NY for some time to rack up some time abroad/experience in a field your interested in. In my opinion, I would rather do that first, than with a large load of debt hanging over my head. But it probably depends on what you want to do, do you want to work abroad for NGOs or bilateral orgs or in a local municipal government for the time being?

To tell you the truth, i replied to your post since I'm in a similar position in that I'm not sure that I have enough work experience to find a good job out of grad school and I have 2.5 years of experience working abroad. But I guess it depends on your situation, maybe someone offered you a job upon completion of the degree? Or you might go back to your home country and have connections in government there or something? that I dont know. Just my .02.

[Diesel2011]

I think it depends on where you got in and what funding they offered you and how much internship experience you have.

In general, though, it is best to have at least 2-3 years of work experience. Even a one year deferral could be helpful.

I applied to grad school during my senior year in college and was accepted at several good places, but I did not receive very much funding and lacked a clear sense of what I really wanted to do. So, I decided not to go. After 3 years, I was a much more competitive applicant, wrote a better personal statement, and had a much stronger sense of my career goals.

At the same time, before you decline your offers, it would be wise to have some prospective work opportunities lined up.

[deechi]

Without a doubt, go work before going to graduate school. The return on investment will be that much higher.

I used to run hiring panels for people trying to get PMF positions in a foreign affairs agency and it was absolutely brutal for kids who had no relevant experience.

[lvt]

I was planning on joining the peace corps after getting my degree, but I'm guessing that's doing it backwards?

[pushpin]

I was planning on joining the peace corps after getting my degree, but I'm guessing that's doing it backwards?

It might be a little backward. Most of my cohort when I was in the PC were looking to get into grad school in IR/ID. I think if you really want to do the Peace Corps (and if you do, let an RPCV try to talk you out of it first), do it before you go into grad school because you'll have a better handle of how international development works out in the boondocks.

[fadeindreams]

I was planning on joining the peace corps after getting my degree, but I'm guessing that's doing it backwards?

Yep.

You'll want to clarify your goals more before going into graduate school. Hell, I had five years of experience and I still find my career goals more than a little murky.

[lvt]

It might be a little backward. Most of my cohort when I was in the PC were looking to get into grad school in IR/ID. I think if you really want to do the Peace Corps (and if you do, let an RPCV try to talk you out of it first), do it before you go into grad school because you'll have a better handle of how international development works out in the boondocks.

I've been planning on joining the Peace Corps for a long time but I backed out last year (totally regretting it now). But from what I understand, it's really frustrating in the sense that you don't accomplish anything but very beneficial because the Peace Corps is well known and it looks good on your CV. Am I right?

Yep.

You'll want to clarify your goals more before going into graduate school. Hell, I had five years of experience and I still find my career goals more than a little murky.

Well I want to go into post conflict development, specifically in Africa. Is that too vague or specific?

[pushpin]

I've been planning on joining the Peace Corps for a long time but I backed out last year (totally regretting it now). But from what I understand, it's really frustrating in the sense that you don't accomplish anything but very beneficial because the Peace Corps is well known and it looks good on your CV. Am I right?

Well like most things in life, it's what you make of it. It's totally not worth if you just want to do because it's well-known and looks good on your CV. Thinking about a pretty CV will not keep you in-country for long.

PC does get you in the villages, talking to real people in their language, trying to work out projects with the locals as opposed to sticking around in an air-conditioned office in the capital with USAID folks who may not have ground-level perspective and sit in meetings all day (paraphrasing the USAID folks I met).

That being said, it's a frustrating experience because you are on the ground, feeling at times helpless and incompetent, and most likely having projects explode in your face left and right... but, you do gain a lot of insight into your field from all that failure, hardship and occasional success.

[lvt]

Well like most things in life, it's what you make of it. It's totally not worth if you just want to do because it's well-known and looks good on your CV. Thinking about a pretty CV will not keep you in-country for long.

PC does get you in the villages, talking to real people in their language, trying to work out projects with the locals as opposed to sticking around in an air-conditioned office in the capital with USAID folks who may not have ground-level perspective and sit in meetings all day (paraphrasing the USAID folks I met).

That being said, it's a frustrating experience because you are on the ground, feeling at times helpless and incompetent, and most likely having projects explode in your face left and right... but, you do gain a lot of insight into your field from all that failure, hardship and occasional success.

That's actually the reason why I didn't finish my application. My professors advised me to go straight in a MA program because they were saying that the Peace Corps only looks good on paper. But it sounds like from what you're saying that the PC is exactly the type of experience that I need in int'l development.

[abraxas]

I'm going straight into an MA (well, I took a year off, but when you apply in the fall you don't have much experience anyway). I got into some good IR MA programs (GWU Korbel, CIR) with offers of funding, but didn't get into my top picks (Yale, Fletcher, SAIS) because of lack of work experience. However, one of my friends from college got into SAIS straight away, so make of that what you will. If you have tons of study abroad, internships, etc, you might get into a top pick right out of your BA.

[Diesel2011]

I've been planning on joining the Peace Corps for a long time but I backed out last year (totally regretting it now). But from what I understand, it's really frustrating in the sense that you don't accomplish anything but very beneficial because the Peace Corps is well known and it looks good on your CV. Am I right?

Well I want to go into post conflict development, specifically in Africa. Is that too vague or specific?

I spent over 2 years in Darfur right out of college doing stuff very similar to PC work but with an NGO. I think that at this stage in your career, what you learn and how you grow from the experience is much more important than what you accomplish.

If you spend those 2 years in the peace corps before going back to school, your grad school courses will be much more meaningful as you apply real world professional experiences learned in the field to what you are studying in the classroom. I think you will get more out of it with prior work experience.

Post conflict development in Africa is basically the same thing I am doing. I think that focus is defined enough for most graduate programs, but it would make you a stronger candidate to flesh that out a little bit. For example, I worked on a UNDP project for peacebuilding and post conflict development in Sudan, and I used that experience as an example in my personal statements for what I want to do with my career. Really, if you go overseas to a post-conflict zone for 2 years, it will help you define that interest further and build some concrete experiences as evidence of your commitment to that type of work.

[LadyinWaiting]

Previous posters have already given great advice. Without knowing anything else I would definitely recommend doing at least one year of work experience.

That said, it might also depends on your financial situation. If your schools have offered you amazing aid packages that you can't defer for the following year, I would consider going right to the MA. Chances are, you'll be an even greater asset to these programs with added work experience, and you might even get more aid. However, you never know what admissions will look like year to year and you might also risk losing some or all of your money. Definitely worth a chat with a finaid officer to see what s/he recommends and if there are many students in your situation.

Best of luck!

[pushpin]

That's actually the reason why I didn't finish my application. My professors advised me to go straight in a MA program because they were saying that the Peace Corps only looks good on paper. But it sounds like from what you're saying that the PC is exactly the type of experience that I need in int'l development.

Along the same lines as the previous posters, i have to agree that its important to get your feet wet first. I'm not sure what your undergrad exp was but how do you know you want to do international dev until you get a taste of it?

Career-wise, I think you'd be better off with at least some work experience before graduating. Employers are more likely to go for field-tested candidates rather than fresh MA grads. If you're both, all the better