Best Programs for....

[vigilante]

1) East-West: I have always loved this topic and want to examine the difference between Eastern and Western nations, Huntington etc

 

2) Studying Community: In the spirit of Rober D Putnam, the evolving notion of community over time and how it affects societies - social trust etc

 

 

Would appreciate your help and detailed advice, along with Professors. Looking for top 10-15 programs.

[jkhgkhgitbuyfyrdbjhgcj]

Best programs for people who don't want to do their own research. Ready, go . . .

[polisci12345]

If you are looking at top 10-15 programs, then there are only 15 of them at most. You can definitely handle looking into their faculty without outsourcing this task

[catchermiscount]

If you are looking at top 10-15 programs, then there are only 15 of them at most. You can definitely handle looking into their faculty without outsourcing this task

 

This is good advice, though we should let the original poster know that there are:

 

• Roughly six top five departments.
• Roughly thirteen top ten departments.
• Roughly twenty two top fifteen departments.
• Countless top twenty-five departments.

I didn't come up with it.

[jmu]

This is good advice, though we should let the original poster know that there are:

 

• Roughly six top five departments.
• Roughly thirteen top ten departments.
• Roughly twenty two top fifteen departments.
• Countless top twenty-five departments.

I didn't come up with it.

 

I think the equation is something like y=x^1.1 when you're trying to figure out how many top x schools there are.

[catchermiscount]

I think the equation is something like y=x^1.1 when you're trying to figure out how many top x schools there are.

That sounds about right---I would also suggest rounding up ;-).

[vigilante]

 I appreciate your good sense of humor, and understand why I would be maligned, but please let me allow to elaborate on my reasoning:

 

1) Research: If anything, I have research too much and have gotten in a place where I am overwhelmed, leading to a state of paralysis (my main focus is Sociology, but some of my interests go outside in PoliSci, and I can see myself in these departments). I have browsed these forums for over a year, and appreciate the good insight that many young scholars can offer, often providing names for academics that I might not have come across (1 post informed me about a scholar at Brown University which I wasn't aware of).

 

2) Top 10-15: This will look because of prestige, but more so because of practicality. My goal is to attain a TT in Canada, which tends to be much more selective in the urban cities because of the location and lack of private colleges. Example: McGill, UBC and the University of Toronto essentially only hire from top departments.

 

 

With this reasoning, I would greatly appreciate your support and advice, and prefer if you could keep the negative comments aside. Thanks for your time.

[IRToni]

So how about you provide us with some of the departments you've looked at? Then, people might be able to better grasp what kind of scholarship you're interested in, and point you to some other examples (plus, help you evaluate those that you've looked at).

 

Also, notice that Sociology and Political Science are completely different, and in particular the kind of courses needed for it will be very different, so you should be really aware of what you're getting into!

[Guest hopefulfool]

In all honesty, when I first read what your research interests are my first thought was "oh crap, this prospective student is in trouble." Political Science as a whole has changed a lot over the years (especially from when Putnam and Huntington were in school). I am not familiar with Sociology at all, but I would caution against doing a PhD in Political Science just because some of your interests intersect with what Political Science used to be. Sociology, History, and Political Science are fields that are intertwined at some points, however, you need to decide where your MAIN interests will be most appreciated. 

[vigilante]

Good points. I was using Putnam and Huntington as examples, and I am very aware tha Soc is different from PS, with the exception of immigration and collective movements, which can often be in the latter.

East-West: I am fascinated by the differences in government's and the role it plays (centralized vs allowing a strong free market) and it's corresponding impact on human relations, social trust, ethnic/racial tension ect. I have followed examples in US, Canada, India and Singapore and am very interested in seeing how the decisions at a top-level affect individuals on a day-to-day level. "Choice" tends to be a micro-level belief that vastly differs between the East and the West.

 

Please let me know your thoughts. Thanks.