MPA/MPP/IR 2012 Applicants

[fenderpete]

I may be jumping the gun on this one a little, but figured it wouldn't hurt to get a jump on this, as I'm aiming to get all my applications finished in the next month or so (I don't fancy relying on having free time if I deploy overseas). But I thought it wouldn't hurt to get this out there.

Program Applied To (MPA, MPP, IR, etc.):

Schools Applied To:

Schools Admitted To:

Schools Rejected From:

Still Waiting:

Undergraduate institution:

Undergraduate GPA:

Last 60 hours of Undergraduate GPA (if applicable):

Undergraduate Major:

GRE Quantitative Score:

GRE Verbal Score:

GRE AW Score:

Years Out of Undergrad (if applicable):

Years of Work Experience:

Describe Relevant Work Experience:

Languages:

Quant:

Strength of SOP (be honest, describe the process, etc):

Strength of LOR (be honest, describe the process, etc):

Other:

I'll start us off.

Program Applied To (MPA, MPP, IR, etc.): Int. Dev, MPA, IR, IA and Conflict Management - basically a post-conflict, development focus.

Schools Applied To: GWU Elliott, Columbia SIPA, SAIS, American SIS, WWS, Fletcher, George Mason

Schools Admitted To:

Schools Rejected From:

Still Waiting: Mainly waiting for them to open the applications up for 2012!

Undergraduate institution: University of Nottingham

Undergraduate GPA: 3.9 equivalent

Undergraduate Major: Politics

GRE Quantitative Score: 690

GRE Verbal Score: 710

GRE AW Score: 6.0

Years Out of Undergrad (if applicable): 3

Years of Work Experience: 2.5

Describe Relevant Work Experience: International election observer in Guinea and Côte d'Ivoire (2010), interned with two large international NGOs and volunteered in the West Bank.

Languages: French (professional, almost fluent for listening), beginner Spanish and Arabic.

Quant: Virtually non-existent at undergrad, so I'm currently taking a diploma in Economics which includes micro, macro and econometrics. Hopefully that'll give me a big enough boost to interest the more quant focused schools.

Strength of SOP: Currently working on this, but hoping I can get something pretty punchy that ties together all my life experience, work experience and aspirations. The main challenge is going to be getting enough research done on all my schools to show good 'fit' and read up on the work of potential advisors. The biggest challenge so far is getting back into the academic mindset and remember authors I enjoyed at undergrad. I should be able to get a pretty strong statement of both experience and academic potential - I just wish my GRE quant was a touch higher, but oh well.

Strength of LOR (be honest, describe the process, etc): These should be good as I'm going for one professional and two strong academic. One from a well known prof. who should give me a good recommendation and one from a prof. who knows me really well and I know will describe me as one of his top students. My professional reference said in my evaluation I was the 'best intern he's ever had'. Going to email them my latest CV and first draft personal statement to see if they want to punch things up.

Other: I've learned so much in the last few years since undergrad - both professionally and in terms of the application process. I'm a million miles away from where I was as a naïve undergrad applying for PhD programs in PoliSci. I just hope that'll all come together on the page and result in some good offers that include generous financial aid. Most of all, I hope I get in SOMEWHERE - the prospect of an extra fallow year before grad school doesn't appeal too much in this job climate.

Edited June 14, 2011 by fenderpete

[bgreenster]

Hey, I'm also a bit ahead of things, but I'll be finishing up Peace Corps late fall and don't anticipate having too much time to do things at that point, so am also trying to get as much taken care of now as I can...

Program Applied To (MPA, MPP, IR, etc.): MGPS (dual with Latin Am Studies), MPP, MPA, MEPGA - hoping for PP with focus on International Dev and NGOs

Schools Applied To: Texas - MGPS, Duke - Sanford, UMD - MPP, UVA - Batten, American - SIS (EPGA) Tennessee - MPPA

Schools Admitted To:

Schools Rejected From:

Still Waiting: Also waiting for those application forms!

Undergraduate institution: UVA

Undergraduate GPA: 3.2

Last 60 hours of Undergraduate GPA (if applicable): 3.3

Undergraduate Major: English, Spanish with Religious Studies minor

GRE Quantitative Score: 700

GRE Verbal Score: 680

GRE AW Score: still waiting for score

Years Out of Undergrad (if applicable): 5 (will be 6)

Years of Work Experience: 5

Describe Relevant Work Experience: ESL teacher and volunteer abroad, Peace Corps

Languages: Spanish, Azerbaijani, low-intermediate Turkish

Quant: Took Micro and Macro in undergrad, but didn't do so well, so taking an online Micro course this summer/fall, also took 2 semesters of accounting

Strength of SOP (be honest, describe the process, etc):

Strength of LOR (be honest, describe the process, etc): Great professional, not so hot academic (didn't really get close to any profs back in the day)

Other:

[bgreenster]

I can't figure out how to edit a post with this new format, so just adding on...

I got my AWA score - 5.5, which was a relief.

Otherwise, currently flipping out because I'm having a hard time finding a recommendation from a professor. I'm really concerned I might not be able to get one, and I don't want to wait another year so that I can take BS classes in between just to get a random reference. I understand the idea behind these recs, but I feel that professional ones should be sufficient if you have been out of school awhile and aren't going into academia. Ugh, this is honestly what kept me from considering grad school previously - if only I didn't need a Master's degree!

[Hodor]

I can't figure out how to edit a post with this new format, so just adding on...

I got my AWA score - 5.5, which was a relief.

Otherwise, currently flipping out because I'm having a hard time finding a recommendation from a professor. I'm really concerned I might not be able to get one, and I don't want to wait another year so that I can take BS classes in between just to get a random reference. I understand the idea behind these recs, but I feel that professional ones should be sufficient if you have been out of school awhile and aren't going into academia. Ugh, this is honestly what kept me from considering grad school previously - if only I didn't need a Master's degree!

I was just talking about this, I really think it creates more problems than it solves. For those out of school, it becomes completely impossible to get a really detailed reference that indicates the student's strengths.

[bgreenster]

I was just talking about this, I really think it creates more problems than it solves. For those out of school, it becomes completely impossible to get a really detailed reference that indicates the student's strengths.

Agreed. The programs are all about wanting experience and not just kids straight out of undergrad, while making it more stressful for those of us who have done something since UG. I dig that they want graduate students who have proven themselves in the classroom, but I think my employers and colleagues could much better speak for my abilities and drive - it's not that hard to see who might take school seriously enough. (and believe me, I'm a MUCH better candidate and potential student now than I was 5-6 years ago).

Luckily, one of my English profs just wrote back and is going to help me out, so I can stop having panic attacks (until the next oh crap! moment comes up)

[KJ90]

As someone that wants to go directly into SAIS after undergraduate, your profiles are certainly intimidating. My academic background is on target with heavy focus on U.S.-China relations though I am lacking in the quant area. Crossing my fingers already that my volunteer/work experience will impress.

I'm glad that I do not have a problem with LOR since I'm still in undergrad.

Edited August 2, 2011 by KJ90

[MYRNIST]

Program Applied To (MPA, MPP, IR, etc.): Security Studies type stuff, exact degree depends on the school. Also want some graduate certificates in Russian Studies, Chinese Studies, Homeland Security... again depends on the school.

Schools Applied To: Princeton WWS, Harvard KS, Georgetown SFS, G.W. Elliot, Tufts Fletcher, Johns Hopkins SAIS, American SIS.

Schools Admitted To: n/a

Schools Rejected From: n/a

Still Waiting: all

Undergraduate institution: University of Michigan

Undergraduate GPA: 3.8

Last 60 hours of Undergraduate GPA (if applicable): 4.0

Undergraduate Major: Double major: Political Science, Russian and Eastern European Studies

GRE Quantitative Score: 770

GRE Verbal Score: 800

GRE AW Score: 4.5 (lolwut)

Years Out of Undergrad: 1-2

Years of Work Experience: 3-4

Describe Relevant Work Experience:

Executive Board, Michigan Journal of International Affairs

Russian-English translator

Research internship at the Hudson Institute, Center for Political-Military Analysis

Freelance writer (published in a couple academic and professional journals)

English teacher in China

Languages: English (native), Russian (advanced/fluent), Chinese (will be intermediate/advanced by next year)

Quant: Macro, Micro, Stats, Modelling Political Processes, Political Economy. No calculus, but hopefully my GRE quant should convince adcoms I can handle the work.

Strength of SOP: still working on it. Besides, this question is a little pointless: who is going to say their SOP sucks?

Strength of LOR:

1) Professor who was my advisor when writing my senior thesis in undergrad... knows me well, and is quite a high profile academic.

2) Senior Director of the think tank I interned at. P.H.D, direct involvement in the field, and again knows my work well.

3) Founder/CEO of a company I worked at post-undergrad... not related to IR, but should be a good endorsement of my analytical abilities, work ethic, etc.

Edited August 2, 2011 by MYRNIST

[northxnorthwest]

Program Applied To: Development-esc

Schools Applied To: G.W. Elliot, Tufts Fletcher, SIPA, American SIS, Brandeis, King's College, UCL, Oxford, University of Washington, NYU, University of Denver

Schools Admitted To: n/a

Schools Rejected From: n/a

Still Waiting: all

Undergraduate institution: Small liberal arts university (public)

Undergraduate GPA: 3.75

Last 60 hours of Undergraduate GPA (if applicable): 3.85

Undergraduate Major: Environmental Policy and Planning (Cum Laude) (Honors College)

GRE Quantitative Score: Will take in two weeks

GRE Verbal Score:

GRE AW Score:

Years Out of Undergrad: 1-2

Years of Work Experience: 1-2

Describe Relevant Work Experience:

Model United Nations at the regional, national and international level (multiple award-winning). Internship at UN organization in Iraq, 1 year working for international technology firm in Jordan (current).

Languages: English (native), Arabic (intermediate), French (basic)

Quant: Macro, Micro, Stats, Energy economics, pre-calc

Strength of SOP: Still working on it, though it mostly focuses on the role of foreign, small-business enterprise in sustainable development

Strength of LOR:

1) Professor who nominated me as our department's outstanding graduate and spoke at the award ceremony on my behalf

2) Head of my university's honors department. Have known for five years and nominated me for the Truman Fellowship

3) Founder/CEO of a company I currently work for. We BBQ

I would appreciate if I could get some feedback from you guys such as: 1) what are my weak spots; 2) am I missing any other relevant programs; 3) do I have a shot at any of these schools I am currently applying to?

Cheers

[AndreaAce]

Program Applied To: MPA / MPP

Schools Applied To: Columbia SIPA, Georgetown (GPPI), Berkeley, Michigan (Ford School), WWS, NYU Wagner.

Schools Admitted To: n/a

Schools Rejected From: n/a

Still Waiting: all

Undergraduate institution: International university (top school in Colombia).

Undergraduate GPA: 4.35/5 (3.5/4 in US system)

Undergraduate Major: Political Science and History (double major), French (minor).

GRE Quantitative Score: 740

GRE Verbal Score: 580

GRE AW Score: 3.5 (since I have no quantitative background I concentrated in that section and neglected a bit the AW, I regret it now.)

TOEFL iBT: 104/120 (30 reading, 29 listening, 24 speaking, 21 writing)

Years Out of Undergrad: 1-2

Years of Work Experience: 2.5 by fall 2012 (plus internship)

Describe Relevant Work Experience:

8 months internship working with a Colombian Congressman, 1 year at a local (Colombia) NGO that works promoting public leadership, 1.5 years (by fall 2012) in consulting (also in Colombia, mainly public opinion, some political consulting). Semester abroad in France.

Languages: English, French (fluent), Spanish (native).

Quant: Stats, Intro. Economics, now taking Calculus, planning on taking micro next semester.

Strength of SOP: Still working on it, I’m using as a draft the one I sent to Fulbright (I’m still waiting to hear from them, I’m already at the last round).

Strength of LOR:

Academic: from my senior thesis advisor who knows me pretty well and has great academic credentials (UCSD PhD and MPhil from Oxford).

Academic: a professor from undergrad who knows me well (2 courses, I was his TA for 1 semester).

Professional: the CEO of the consulting firm where I work. Since it’s a small firm I have work closely with him and he could write a good LOR. He’s pretty well known in Colombia (ex director of the National Statistics Department).

Other: I’m worried about my chances at the schools I want. I would appreciate if I could get some feedback, is my GRE AW score going to affect my chances? What are my other weak spots?

Thanks!!!!!

[fenderpete]

I wanted to edit my 'Experience' section but don't seem able to. Anyhow, just to say I'll have an added ten months of experience by the time grad school starts as I've just landed a job overseas

[wasistdas]

Program Applied To (MPA, MPP, IR, etc.): changes depending on program, focused on security studies

Schools Applied To: Georgetown, Tufts, George Washington, American, UT-Austin, Texas A&M

Schools Admitted To:

Schools Rejected From:

Still Waiting:

Undergraduate institution: St. Mary's College-CA

Undergraduate GPA: 3.7

Last 60 hours of Undergraduate GPA (if applicable):

Undergraduate Major: History

GRE Quantitative Score: 780

GRE Verbal Score: 650

GRE AW Score: 4.5

Years Out of Undergrad (if applicable): almost 6

Years of Work Experience: 6

Describe Relevant Work Experience: worked for four years at an internet start up in San Francisco. Got tired of the work, decided to move to Istanbul for the adventure. Have been here two years teaching, working for an NGO (project manager) and volunteering at a camp for Iraqi refugees.

Languages: English (native), Spanish (intermediate), Turkish (beginnger)

Quant: Macroecon, stats, calc

Strength of SOP (be honest, describe the process, etc): a lot of experience abroad

Strength of LOR (be honest, describe the process, etc): as long as I can use at least one of my professional references I expect very strong recs. being that I am so far removed from college, it is a bit gamble that the profs will write really stellar recs.

Other: any feedback would be appreciated.

[fenderpete]

Godlessangel - Your profile looks great (really jealous of your Iraqi refugee work!) and you should be competitive everywhere you're applying. With that length of time abroad schools would be crazy not to look at you seriously imo.

[beefmaster]

Program Applied To (MPA, MPP, IR, etc.): IR

Schools Applied To: The usual suspects....but I welcome suggestions!

Schools Admitted To: Sciences Po, Paris (Int. Security)

Schools Rejected From:

Still Waiting:

Undergraduate institution: Top British University

Undergraduate GPA: 1st (no idea in GPA)

Last 60 hours of Undergraduate GPA (if applicable):

Undergraduate Major: History

GRE Quantitative Score: Not taken.

GRE Verbal Score: Not taken.

GRE AW Score: Not taken.

Years Out of Undergrad (if applicable): 2.5

Years of Work Experience: 2.5

Describe Relevant Work Experience: 2.5 years NGO work in the MENA region.

Languages: English (native), Arabic (working knowledge), French (intermediate).

Quant: No official classes but I have been working in project development / implementation so I have had to work with budgets etc. I guess this is something that could let me down for some schools?

Strength of SOP (be honest, describe the process, etc):

My NGO work in the MENA region, experience of living and working throughout the 25th January Revolution in Egypt, MENA travel, and languages.

Strength of LOR (be honest, describe the process, etc):

2 professors from my undergrad institution. (possible to also get a supervisor from my current employer)

Other:

Basically does anyone have any suggestions on where I should apply? I would need somewhere with a high level of funding as I would be unable to pay the fees at a US institution. On the other hand I already have an offer from Sciences Po, Paris to start in September 2012 and the fees are affordable for me due to being a EU citizen.

Edited September 6, 2011 by beefmaster

[wasistdas]

for funding, I would look for schools outside of the DC/Boston/NY metro area. For whatever reason, schools in the midwest and west coast seem to come through with much stronger financial aid packages. Unfortunately, those three metro areas are where many of the top schools are located.

Where were you in Egypt during the revolution? I was on a flight to Luxor the day after everything started and got stuck down there for a week until flight started back up (plus none of the ATM's were working, so ful and kushari for every meal).

[beefmaster]

for funding, I would look for schools outside of the DC/Boston/NY metro area. For whatever reason, schools in the midwest and west coast seem to come through with much stronger financial aid packages. Unfortunately, those three metro areas are where many of the top schools are located.

Where were you in Egypt during the revolution? I was on a flight to Luxor the day after everything started and got stuck down there for a week until flight started back up (plus none of the ATM's were working, so ful and kushari for every meal).

Yeah I was in Egypt throughout the revolution. Things were mostly OK even in the centre of Cairo so I decided to stick it out.

What schools in those areas would you recommend?

Also I was hoping that my relatively unique and current work experience would help me get some funding? E.g. for the MA Arab Studies at Georgetown. I have been living and working in Cairo, Egypt for the past 2.5 years for an NGO, I lived through the revolution, and afterwards I have worked closely with the development of youth groups / political parties through my NGO. I have no idea if this sort of experience is special enough to get me an acceptance and funding at a top school in the US.

Edited September 7, 2011 by beefmaster

[wasistdas]

The funding seems to be different by school. For some, it seems to be a holistic look at the student, for others it seems to be a simple math equation of GRExGPA=$. Obviously the more competitive schools are more selective with their money.

For the mid-west/west schools that I have heard of giving good funding are: Cal, UCLA, Michigan, Wisconsin, the Texas Schools, University of Denver.

I would say that your experience is very unique and would give you an excellent chance of receiving some aide. However, from reading this board, not all decisions that are made by schools seem to be logical. Some of the amazing stats that people post about themselves and still don't get into various schools make this whole process a bit nerve-wracking.

[clover123]

I was wondering the same thing. I'm planning to apply for MPP in the US. I'm from India, and funding is a huge deciding factor for me as well. I did my undergrad in the US and have had about 2 years work ex. Any ideas on what schools give good funding?

Also, I'm not a huge stats/quant person at all, and I want to focus more on Human rights./Intl Development. So any advice on what programs would be suitable??

Thanks in advance

[TypeA]

Program Applied To (MPA, MPP, IR, etc.): MPP

Schools Applied To: U of Michigan Ford School (Top choice, only applying here this round. I realize this is a gamble, but have my reasons.)

Schools Admitted To: Ford, also Michigan's School of Public Health (pursuing MPH/MPP dual degree)

Schools Rejected From: N/A

Undergraduate institution: U of Michigan (I haven’t decided whether or not this is going to hurt me yet)

Undergraduate GPA: 3.35

Last 60 hours of Undergraduate GPA (if applicable): Not sure. A bit higher, I think.

Undergraduate Major: Brain, Behavior, and Cognitive Science. Minors in Political Science and History (American)

GRE Quantitative Score: 710 (72nd)

GRE Verbal Score: 720 (98th)

GRE AW Score: 6.0 (99th)

Years Out of Undergrad (if applicable): 0.5? I graduated last April.

Years of Work Experience: Worked part-time in a biomedical lab for two years, worked full-time for two summers and part-time for two semesters in an autism clinic, and am currently working full-time. However you choose to quantify that.

Describe Relevant Work Experience: Although the autism clinic work itself was mostly administrative in nature, it did give me a firsthand knowledge of how pediatric mental health coverage works (or—more to the point—doesn’t work). The clinic served two very disparate populations: those covered by Medicaid, and those who could afford to pay tens of thousands of dollars per year out-of-pocket for therapy. Mental health/substance abuse policy is one of my areas of interest. Currently, I'm working as a regulatory coordinator in clinical research, which means I'm responsible for ensuring that the studies I oversee comply with human investigation policy.

Languages: Enough French to graduate (four semester proficiency).

Quant: Calc 1 (A-), Intro Stats (B+). No econ, but I’m planning to take micro (and possibly also macro) during the winter term at a state university; my job offers tuition assistance.

Strength of SOP: I’m feeling fairly confident about my SOP. It's done and I've sending it around to as many people as possible for revision; I've gotten both positive and critical feedback, but overall I'm pretty satisfied. I haven't started the "personal statement" yet, so we'll see how that goes.

Strength of LOR: I'm most worried about these. Due to the nature of my program (glutted with pre-meds), I can count the number of classes I had with less than 50 people on one hand, and I've never had more than one class with a professor. Two of my LORs are coming from poli sci profs from my senior year, and the third is coming from my current supervisor (a well-known PhD in neuropharmacology), who is also the director of the autism clinic.

Edited March 17, 2012 by TypeA

[ajl]

Howdy all--

Lurking this forum has really helped with application stress relief, so here goes my first post:

Program Applied To (MPA, MPP, IR, etc.): MPA, MIA, MALD, whatever they're calling it

Schools Applying To: GWU Elliott, Columbia SIPA, JHU SAIS, Princeton WWS, Tufts Fletcher, Georgetown MSFS

Undergraduate institution: Notably less-than-stellar large public. But our football team was pretty good.

Undergraduate GPA: 3.77

Undergraduate Majors: International Business, Management [Honors]

Study Abroad: a semester in Germany, a semester in Spain, a month in Guatemala

GRE Quantitative Score: 680-780 [Did they make the new GRE quant harder?]

GRE Verbal Score: 750-800

GRE AW Score: don't know yet...

Years Out of Undergrad (if applicable): 4

Years of Work Experience: 3?

Describe Relevant Work Experience: One year teaching ESL in Korea [government program], some management experience if that matters, internship with a political advocacy group [unpaid], internship with international development nonprofit [unpaid]

Languages: Spanish [proficient], Korean [intermediate, quickly forgetting], German [uG minor, intermediate], Indonesian [beginner, just for fun]

Quant: One calculus class in UG, a couple economics and stats. They don't tell you when you're good at math as a kid that you should NOT skip courses and do as little as possible.

Strength of SOP: Also currently working on this, will probably be decent. My work experience isn't incredibly relevant, but I've done tons of travel and am hoping to draw on that.

Strength of LOR (be honest, describe the process, etc): Two profs should be very good, one nonprofit director may not be as strong.

Other: Ditto about just hoping to get in SOMEWHERE. And about being light years ahead of where I was a couple of years ago.

Recently I went to a grad school event and the admissions officials for WWS and Fletcher actually used the words "crap shoot." [Or is it "crap chute?" I've always wondered this.] Browsing the threads from last year's pool, it looks like competition is stiff... But I've been lucky so far, so hey, why not?

Y'all think I have a shot?

Edited October 30, 2011 by ajl

[MYRNIST]

Y'all think I have a shot?

Good GPA. Good GRE. Relevant work experience. Foreign language ability. Lots of foreign travel. With a good SOP, I'd say you're competitive at most places. Disclaimers about the top schools being a crapshoot still apply. (oh, and it's definitely

"shoot" - comes from the game of craps, where victory depends on a random roll (shoot) of the die.)

[meichen_l]

Program Applied To: IR, MPP (only for HSG)

Schools Applied To:HKS(mpp), Tufts(Fletcher's, MALD), Gtown (MA of international law and security) , GWU (elliot, IR) , Syracuse (Maxwell, IR), Stanford (Intl policy studies), SIPA (MIA), U Chicago (CIR, IR), Southern CA, JHU (SAIS, MA)

Undergraduate institution: top 50 LAC ( as an international student)

Undergraduate GPA: 3.66 (major 3.77/4.0)

Undergraduate Major: Poli-sci + statistic

GRE Quantitative Score: 780 (163 for new g)

GRE Verbal Score: 710( 167 )

GRE AW Score: 4.5

Years Out of Undergrad (if applicable): 0 directly apply as a senior

Years of Work Experience: 0, only two internship outside U.S

Describe Relevant Work Experience: No full-time working experince, but have two internships in China, in one large national engineer company, office assistant, and legal assistant in a famous local law firm. Did interns during the summer back home:p

Strength of SOP (be honest, describe the process, etc): talk about extensive study aboard exp, been to around 10 countries and study in U.S., strong stat. background, decent econ background (micro/marco) can speak Chinese/English/French, plan to work in International humanitarian org, (UNHCR, ICRC), interested in international law, more specifically, international humanitarian law.

Strength of LOR (be honest, describe the process, etc): all from my poli-sci profs. took at least two courses with each of them..

Questions: 1. do I aim for too high? I mean my prof. recommend those school for me, but all of the 10 schools are top schools in the field ( except USC i guess?). I'm worried if I will be rejected by all of them... should I apply for more safe schools?

2. I'm currently an international student in undergrad, and I'm wondering if i will be considered as intl applicants in grad application or not? My nationality is not U.S but i will get BA from U.S college... awkward~

.... thx a ton!

[MYRNIST]

Ni3 shi4 zhong1guo3ren2 ma?

1) I think you would be a great candidate capable of going anywhere - in about 2 years.

Work experience related to IR is an absolutely critical part of admissions. It shows your dedication to the field, indicates what areas you'd like to professionally specialize in, and generally makes sure a candidate has had some professional and life experiences before tackling grad school. According to the above profile, you have zero IR work experience. This is a problem, especially as you are coming directly out of undergrad. Exactly for the above reason, most MPA/MPP schools admit very few people coming straight out of undergrad (check individual schools' admissions stats if you don't believe me), and those that do managed to gain very substantial work experience while in school - multiple governmental internships, started own NGO, deployed to Iraq, etc.

I strongly recommend you take a few years to try some different IR-related things before going to grad school. You can make sure you know what field you're interested in, will be a much stronger candidate, and a generally more mature, well-rounded person.

2) For financial aid, which is probably the area where international/domestic matters the most, you are international.

Edited October 31, 2011 by MYRNIST

[meichen_l]

Ni3 shi4 zhong1guo3ren2 ma?

1) I think you would be a great candidate capable of going anywhere - in about 2 years.

Work experience related to IR is an absolutely critical part of admissions. It shows your dedication to the field, indicates what areas you'd like to professionally specialize in, and generally makes sure a candidate has had some professional and life experiences before tackling grad school. According to the above profile, you have zero IR work experience. This is a problem, especially as you are coming directly out of undergrad. Exactly for the above reason, most MPA/MPP schools admit very few people coming straight out of undergrad (check individual schools' admissions stats if you don't believe me), and those that do managed to gain very substantial work experience while in school - multiple governmental internships, started own NGO, deployed to Iraq, etc.

I strongly recommend you take a few years to try some different IR-related things before going to grad school. You can make sure you know what field you're interested in, will be a much stronger candidate, and a generally more mature, well-rounded person.

2) For financial aid, which is probably the area where international/domestic matters the most, you are international.

haha yes i'm chinese

thanks for the reply! i will seriously consider that. I do realize that my lack of work exp will be probably my fatal weakness (especially given the fact that all schools i'm apply are very good schools). When i chose program, I tried to look for program that requires few yrs of work exp... haha i guess when they say "strongly recommend" , what they mean is "require" LOL

guess i will have to look for job+doing application then. Thx~

and for the FA, i stand ready to pay it myself ......

Edited October 31, 2011 by meichen_l

[ajl]

Good GPA. Good GRE. Relevant work experience. Foreign language ability. Lots of foreign travel. With a good SOP, I'd say you're competitive at most places. Disclaimers about the top schools being a crapshoot still apply. (oh, and it's definitely

"shoot" - comes from the game of craps, where victory depends on a random roll (shoot) of the die.)

I should qualify my apprehension a bit, though. My work experience is international, sure, but not on the level of some of these wild people. Just read WWS's 1st year class bios, and I can't help but think, "Oh my GOD, who ARE these people?" I've also noted that almost everyone seems to come from a pretty sweet school, whereas mine was only ranked well in Maxim magazine for having some of the "hottest coeds." But all we can do is try, eh?

You seem pretty knowledgeable--or at least more confident--in this area. Thanks for all the stuff you've posted. Crap shoot.

[readyornot]

Would love to be evaluated as well!

Program Applied To: MPA, MPP

Schools Applied To: CMU, GW, Penn, GPPI, American, Pitt, Hopkins, Berkeley, UMd, Wagner

Undergraduate institution: top 15 liberal arts

Undergraduate GPA: 3.7

Undergraduate Major: Music, anthropology

GRE Quantitative Score: 740

GRE Verbal Score: 580

GRE AW Score: 5.0

Years Out of Undergrad (if applicable): 3+

Years of Work Experience:3+

Describe Relevant Work Experience: Spent 3+ years working at a health related nonprofit, doing mostly programming work, rose to project management position

Strength of SOP (be honest, describe the process, etc): I haven't started this yet (ack!) but plan to write about my growing interest in a nonspecified sector, how my volunteer and work experience has greatly aided me in this.. I really need help here :/

Strength of LOR (be honest, describe the process, etc): 1 from current boss (should be good), 1 from past professor, not sure if should aim for second academic or 2nd work related being over 3 years out?

Questions: I think for the most part I at least have a decent shot at getting into most of these schools based on the stats they release, but what I am really worried about is funding. Do I have a shot? It's a motley crew of schools too, am I correct in my assumption that I have a better shot at funding from the 'less popular' of those schools?

Edited November 1, 2011 by readyornot