Anyone here thinking of going to Chicago CIR?

[strangertimes]

..and are you going to be at the Open House on Monday?

[strangertimes]

Bump! ANYONE?

[Bdeniso]

You my find more people over at the Political Science forum as CIR is slightly more targeted towards that. I lurk in both because I am currenty in a "government affairs" masters and going to a PhD program in Political Science next fall.

[strangertimes]

Thanks! I'll head over there...

[verdigris]

I'll be attending CIR next fall, however, I live overseas so I will not be able to attend the visit day. Fortunately, I had the chance to visit the department several months ago while I was in Chicago, so from my perspective I already feel like the place is a good fit. Have you accepted your offer, or are you still thinking about it?

[strangertimes]

I'll be attending CIR next fall, however, I live overseas so I will not be able to attend the visit day. Fortunately, I had the chance to visit the department several months ago while I was in Chicago, so from my perspective I already feel like the place is a good fit. Have you accepted your offer, or are you still thinking about it?

I have not yet accepted my offer, because I have a similar offer from AU and am weighing between the two options. What did you like about CIR (as in, what informed your decision to say yes)? If you don't mind me asking.. Also, did you get the feeling that the faculty was friendly and accessible to MA students? At this time this is my major concern.

[verdigris]

I have not yet accepted my offer, because I have a similar offer from AU and am weighing between the two options. What did you like about CIR (as in, what informed your decision to say yes)? If you don't mind me asking.. Also, did you get the feeling that the faculty was friendly and accessible to MA students? At this time this is my major concern.

Good choices! I liked the AU program although I did not ultimately apply there myself. As for CIR, I dropped by the department on a whim while I was visiting Chicago last year (with very little notice) and was able to meet with the staff, one of the preceptors and a faculty member. For lack of a better expression, I felt a very "genuine" atmosphere at UChicago given that most people whom I spoke to were not expecting me yet were able to take the time to chat at length about the program and how my interests might fit in there. While this might not necessarily reflect upon all of the CIR faculty, I found this experience very telling by comparison to some of the Washington schools I am familiar with.

The program is also very well-suited to my academic goals since I want to keep my PhD options open, come out of the program with a strong thesis and have the freedom to choose my own curriculum to a large extent. Plus they're offering me a fair bit of cash and the prospect of emerging from school relatively debt-free is an appealing one as well.

I think the one thing about the program that gave me pause is the 1-year length, but I guess there's always the 2nd year specialization option to consider.