PhD or MA for someone who aspires to work at a US-based foreign policy think tank

[twodrifters]

I am currently trying to decide whether I should apply for PhD or MA programs. I am an international student who graduated from an American college with an academic background in Chinese politics, Asia-Pacific security, and US-Asia relations. I will be happy either becoming a professor or working at a think tank, with a slight preference toward the latter. I have read through several of the posts in the forum suggesting that an MA program is more tailored for future policy wonks. However, given the fact that I am a foreign national and need visa sponsorship to be able to work legally for any employer, should I go through PhD training just to "play it safe" since sponsorships at think tanks can be quite hard to obtain even with a masters degree? When I say it is hard, I do not really know how hard it is, but all the foreign nationals I know who hold masters degrees unanimously experience great difficulty in nailing down positions at think tanks. It might well be the case that their credentials are not strong enough, but I do suspect for good reasons that their need for sponsorship worked against their candidacy. Will obtaining a PhD ameliorate the hiring situation? I'd be most grateful to receive any insider advice!

Edited September 20, 2012 by twodrifters

[Zahar Berkut]

To have a strong position at a think tank, I believe you need to have either a PhD or extensive policy experience-- preferably both. A PhD in public policy is more effective to that end than a PhD in political science-- see, for instance, the PhD programs at SAIS, HKS, and Fletcher. Many of these require you to be an MA student or already have a master's.

[adaptations]

twodrifters - I also recommend you read the following discussion:

Although I don't think a 5+ year investment in a PhD with the hopes of getting a think tank job is "playing it safe", if your only concern in the probability that you get a job at a think tank in the next ten years, then maybe it is a good choice. I doubt that there aren't other viable paths to getting such a position that would likely be more lucrative along the way, while also exposing you to other lines of work. For example, attempting to build experience so that you have truly impressive professional credentials, plus a master's degree may be a possibility. Of course, the credentials would have to be quite impressive to secure a career-style position at a think tank, but the work required to achieve that may be commensurate with the work that will go into getting into and then completing a PhD program, not to mention you could likely be making a decent living along the way.