Timing when applying to PhD Programs

[irisave]

Hi all,

 

Please forgive me if this is not the proper subforum to post this thread...

 

I am currently a graduate student at American University in Washington, DC.  I will get my MPP in May of 2014, with roughly a 3.85 / 4.00 GPA.  My undergraduate degree is a BA, double in Economics and Political Science, from San Diego State University with a horrible GPA (~2.70).  I have very strong GRE scores (90th+ percentile in V and Q), and no published papers as of now.

 

My question is this:

 

Should I wait until next year with a degree in hand before applying to PhD programs, or should I apply this year?

 

My issue being... I have accepted that my undergraduate grades are baggage, but have done very well in graduate school and like I said, I have very good GRE scores.  I am trying to distance myself as much as possible from the BA.  Obviously, my degree will not be complete if I apply in the coming months...

 

Complicating the issue, I may have a research paper published in our school's peer-reviewed journal (nothing fancy or impressive, but good for the resume), but will not know for sure until after applications are due.

 

All else being equal (research fit, work experience, etc), will a year off after the MPP help my chances?  Or is it a positive to apply while still in school?

 

Thank you in advance for any help, the forum is awesomely helpful.  I feel like I am leaving out some helpful/relevant info, so please let me know if I can clarify my situation. 

[adaptations]

Assuming you are committed to going into a PhD program, then my recommendation would be to apply now. The biggest reason is that your application won't change drastically in the next year, and since your application has a notable weakness (undergrad grades) you're probably better off having two cycles to apply (this year, and then if it doesn't go well you can apply again in a year).

More specifically,the addition of the article published in your school's journal will have a marginal effect on the strength of your application and time away from academia after your MPP will not change your application. The additional semester of grades may help convince a committee that you're a strong student, but your first year of courses should do a reasonable job of signaling that. Your application will probably hinge on LORs and SOP, so as long as those are strong, there isn't much draw back in applying now (other than the cost of applications).

Best of luck,

adapt

[eponine997]

I went through a similar thing as to whether to apply in my second year of grad school or wait until after my thesis and degree were completed and I heard strong arguments from both sides.

 

I'd reiterate the points Adapt made in the previous post, but also note some other considerations that may or may not apply in your case.

 

The first is financial: yes there is the cost of the applications, but there is also the potential end of student loan deferment if you wait a year to apply. Waiting a year means you will need a way to support yourself financially (including potentially making student loan payments) for the year in between finishing your MPP and starting your PhD. Recognize that finding such a job may take several months... or you might get an offer the week after classes end... or you might have something already lined up. But its worth considering that if you choose to wait until this time next year you may be focused on the job hunt rather than focusing on putting together a strong application.

 

Conversely, the second is the time you can spend on your application: can you articulate your research interests well? might you be able to better articulate these interests a year from now? does your current workload prevent you from spending the necessary time on your applications? No one knows this better than you, though you may not (as I mentioned in the first point) have a clear idea of how much time you will have to work on your applications at this time next year. 

 

As for time away from 'academia' (by the strictest definition), it may or may not strengthen your application depending on how you use it (and what your research interests and long-term goals are). If you look at the previous cycle thread, you'll see the occasional post from applicants who spent a year or two at a think tank or doing research of some kind (even if it wasn't hugely relevant to their specific interests). Several commented on how this experience gave them time to help articulate their research interests or the opportunity to network - I know this is not everyone and time is ultimately what you make of it, but this is something to consider. 

 

The other thing I would mention is that the application cycle is a bigger distraction than you might anticipate.  Not just the applications themselves, but the time spent waiting for responses - it doesn't very easily facilitate getting other work done (on a thesis, on school work, on a job search, etc).  Others may feel differently, this is just my .02.  

If you are concerned about the effect the publication will have on your application in the next cycle v. this one, mention that you have a paper under review in a peer reviewed journal in your SoP (or gently persuade one of your recommenders to bring it up in the LoR). At the very least it will send the signal that you recognize this as an important aspect of graduate school/academic life - how strong of a signal will probably depend on your audience. 

My general advice would echo what Adapt said with a caveat, apply this cycle unless you somehow think it would prohibit you (financially) from applying next cycle, if for some reason you don't anticipating having 1-2k to spend on applications at this time next year if you spend it now, go for which ever cycle you believe you will be able to put forth the strongest application with all the above considerations in mind. 

 

Good luck!