Comparative Politics programs

[ms123]

Hi everyone,

I'm really overwhelmed by grad school options. I am interested in Comparative Politics, with a specific interest in Eastern Europe/Central Asia. One way to identify programs is to look at National Resource Centers, but I'm having trouble identifying programs beyond the 16 centers.

I have the following GRE scores: 170 verbal and 161 quantitative. I have a 3.7 GPA from a decent state school.

What would be some realistic options for me? It seems like the schools that have the best Comparative programs in my region are out of my reach, and I'm having trouble identifying the "mid range" schools.

I am particularly interested in human rights, democratization, and conflict resolution in the region.

Any tips would be great!

Thanks!

[Helix]

I'm not sure your GRE scores necessarily would drop you out of the running for all the top programs, but some places that aren't quite top 10 with good comparativists working on Eastern Europe/Central Asia might be:

Indiana University

Wisconsin-Madison

Minnesota

Cornell

GWU (check out some of the folks at the Elliott School as well)

Georgetown

UNC

[Zahar Berkut]

I agree with Helix-- fit matters a lot, so look carefully at some of the "top programs" you have in mind before ruling them out completely.

Also consider UT Austin. Look especially closely at Minnesota if you're interested in Central Asia. Kathleen Collins is there and she does some fantastic work.

[ms123]

I will probably apply to a couple of the top programs, but I really wanted to develop a strong list of alternatives. Indiana, Madison, and UNC are already on my list, but I will definitely go through your suggestions, especially Minnesota.

Thanks to both of you for your responses!