PhD in poli sci with little experience: prospects?

[elorica]

Hello All,

I am thinking of applying to a PhD program in political science in the next couple of years, but I am a bit worried about my background.

I graduated from a top-three university with a 3.6. I majored in philosophy and minored in "European Politics" (a little bit of a BS minor here). I studied abroad, interned at the Carnegie Endowment, and also at a number of NGOs that do immigration advocacy. Next year, I'm going to enroll in a master's program at the LSE - Philosophy and Public Policy - a one-year program.

The thing that worries me most is that my background is in philosophy. I have taken very few political science classes (approximately five). My masters will give me a very good foundation in political theory, but I have almost no quantitative experience, and, though I produced a longish (80 page) paper for my undergraduate requirements, it was more a philosophy paper than a proper research paper that really employed the scientific method to test an idea. It did deal with issues of identity/political climate, but in a more cursory way.

I would be willing (and indeed I hope) to take a year off after the masters in order to work in a research position at a think tank. Do you think that this would give me enough research experience to apply to a PhD program in political science with confidence? Or, put another way, how serious a problem is posed by the fact that I did not study political science as an undergrad?

Thanks for your input.

[mv0027]

Yes. That would be enough. Some people on here might disagree, but haters gonna hate, you know?

[Penelope Higgins]

Can you connect your research interests to what political scientists study? If so, you will be fine, and time at a think tank, which will focus on policy or politics rather than academic social science, won't help very much. If you feel that research experience would help you refine your interests, that is a good reason to do it. But if you can articulate a research focus that falls in the arena of political science, you will not suffer for not having a political science background.

[mv0027]

I work at a think-tank and disagree! I've tried to get people's opinion on here before about it, and I got back mixed thoughts. Most professors I've talk to say think tank experience is a plus. Sure, it isn't the exact same thing, but it shows you have a general idea of what research is and that it is something you are interested in. Fellows at think-tanks are usually move back and forth between universities, so I'm not sure why people don't think it is helpful. Esp, if it a reputable think tank that isn't super ideological. So yeah, heritage institute isn't going to help, but a Brookings or Carnegie certainly are...

[Penelope Higgins]

I think we agree more than I made apparent. Think tanks can be a good experience in preparation for grad school, but such work is neither necessary for admission like work experience is in some fields, nor a way to make up for not having a political science background in previous education. That is what I was trying to say; apologies for not being clear.

[elorica]

Thank you for your answers! Very helpful.

[adaptations]

It seems to me that you have a good chance with or without the think tank or additional research experience. As Penelope Higgins noted, if you you can articulate your research ideas in a manner that is relevant and interesting to political scientists, that is all you are being asked to do in your application. You'll learn plenty about research methods once you're in a program (although it doesn't hurt to have more in advance). That said, the type of skills you'll be asked to develop in most quantitate/formal methods courses will not be enhanced by think tank style research. I would argue that any outside research is most likely to help you develop your research interests and general analytical skills, but will do little to develop your the quantitative methods you are worried about (but that's okay - that's what grad school is for).

[Oroborus]

I think your chances are very good. For one thing, it doesn't sound to me like you are intending to be a "rat choice" numberhead, so I wouldn't worry about your quantitative background. There are plenty of programs where more qualitative research would fit in nicely. And maybe you are a math wiz and just haven't taken the sort of courses that would apply to doing statistical poli sci research. Programs usually offer a "methods" course or course sequence so you could simply take one of those if number crunching is actually what you want to do (though I do not sense that).