Questions for Current T20 Students

[ohhemingway]

Hi everyone! I know there is a thread on contacting individual students who are already attending through PM, but I thought it might be helpful to have a forum to discuss common questions that come up about top departments. Specifically, it would be good to know (because of guaranteed anonymity!) what the worst things are about your department -- i.e. what are the cons of going where you go? Quite often it's easy to hear about all the good stuff about a place, but very little of the bad stuff, which is strictly insider info. Even if you love where you go, there must be common refrains you hear from your colleagues about certain things. Is a particular professor not great to work with? Is the stipend not enough to live on comfortably? Does the department place a too-heavy emphasis on certain methodologies? Is the location of the department less than ideal? Thanks in advance for your opinions. 

[Ella Simmons]

Hi everyone! I know there is a thread on contacting individual students who are already attending through PM, but I thought it might be helpful to have a forum to discuss common questions that come up about top departments. Specifically, it would be good to know (because of guaranteed anonymity!) what the worst things are about your department -- i.e. what are the cons of going where you go? Quite often it's easy to hear about all the good stuff about a place, but very little of the bad stuff, which is strictly insider info. Even if you love where you go, there must be common refrains you hear from your colleagues about certain things. Is a particular professor not great to work with? Is the stipend not enough to live on comfortably? Does the department place a too-heavy emphasis on certain methodologies? Is the location of the department less than ideal? Thanks in advance for your opinions. 

 

This is a good idea.  I am pretty torn between Berkeley and Yale.  I know the econ people at Urch do "Where should I go?" threads but that didn't seem to be a thing here, so I appreciate a transition on this forum from "Where will I get in?/Where am I getting in?" to "Where should I go?"

[RWBG]

This is a good idea.  I am pretty torn between Berkeley and Yale.  I know the econ people at Urch do "Where should I go?" threads but that didn't seem to be a thing here, so I appreciate a transition on this forum from "Where will I get in?/Where am I getting in?" to "Where should I go?"

Not to be a Michigan shill, but I'm a little surprised that Michigan hasn't made your shortlist of choices there given the interest in American politics/political psychology. If Michigan has a specialty it's known for, that's it.

[cooperstreet]

This is a good idea.  I am pretty torn between Berkeley and Yale.  I know the econ people at Urch do "Where should I go?" threads but that didn't seem to be a thing here, so I appreciate a transition on this forum from "Where will I get in?/Where am I getting in?" to "Where should I go?"

 

Uh, ever been to New Haven?

[AmericanQuant]

Uh, ever been to New Haven?

New Haven is great.  Not that expensive, best pizza in the country, decent bars, can take a train to NYC. I don't get all of the hating on New Haven, it's not the 80's anymore, New Haven is a great place to be a grad student.

[packrat]

 

 

New Haven is great.  Not that expensive, best pizza in the country, decent bars, can take a train to NYC. I don't get all of the hating on New Haven, it's not the 80's anymore, New Haven is a great place to be a grad student.

 

I've heard this pretty universally from people who've been there in the past few years. I think a lot of its bad rep is from a generation ago.

 

 

 

 

Not to be a Michigan shill, but I'm a little surprised that Michigan hasn't made your shortlist of choices there given the interest in American politics/political psychology. If Michigan has a specialty it's known for, that's it.

 

+1. I'm no expert in that subfield, but as I understand it Michigan is easily amongst the top political psychology programs (more so than Yale). 

[RWBG]

I mean, off the top of my head, amongst faculty you have Arthur Lupia, Don Kinder, Ted Brader, Nick Valentino, etc. W. Russel Neuman's also at Michigan, in a different department.  That group has trained so many of the American political psychology types - also off the top of my head, Jamie Druckman, Adam Berinsky, Cindy Kam, Yanna Krupnikov. We also just placed a political psychology type at UNC this year. Lots of research areas I could see the argument for Yale or Berkeley over Michigan, but I can't see it for political psychology/American (although I am, admittedly, in a very different subfield).

[RWBG]

New Haven is great.  Not that expensive, best pizza in the country, decent bars, can take a train to NYC. I don't get all of the hating on New Haven, it's not the 80's anymore, New Haven is a great place to be a grad student.

They also have a nice cigar bar, if you want to be a really pretentious grad student. Yale stipends being what they are, you might be able to make it work.

[catchermiscount]

Dude,  Cigars are totally not-pretentious, except for when other people smoke them.

[astreaux]

They also have a nice cigar bar, if you want to be a really pretentious grad student. Yale stipends being what they are, you might be able to make it work.

If he wants to be a really pretentious grad student, Kermit Lynch's wine shop is in Berkeley. It's the mothership of traditionally made wines., and it's already in my Berkeley pros column

[Ella Simmons]

Not to be a Michigan shill, but I'm a little surprised that Michigan hasn't made your shortlist of choices there given the interest in American politics/political psychology. If Michigan has a specialty it's known for, that's it.

 

...

 

I mean, off the top of my head, amongst faculty you have Arthur Lupia, Don Kinder, Ted Brader, Nick Valentino, etc. W. Russel Neuman's also at Michigan, in a different department.  That group has trained so many of the American political psychology types - also off the top of my head, Jamie Druckman, Adam Berinsky, Cindy Kam, Yanna Krupnikov. We also just placed a political psychology type at UNC this year. Lots of research areas I could see the argument for Yale or Berkeley over Michigan, but I can't see it for political psychology/American (although I am, admittedly, in a very different subfield).

 

I am definitely giving Michigan full consideration and am going to the flyout, but it seemed to have the lowest concentration of POIs for me--maybe I need to look at the faculty again.  Perhaps when I visit we can have a lively chat about the program!

 

And, I will say, this is exactly the kind of thing that I would hope to get out of this thread and forum--information I hadn't considered, lists of professors I somehow missed.  Thanks very much for your reply!

Edited March 3, 2014 by James Alcott

[RWBG]

I am definitely giving Michigan full consideration and am going to the flyout, but it seemed to have the lowest concentration of POIs for me--maybe I need to look at the faculty again.  Perhaps when I visit we can have a lively chat about the program!

 

And, I will say, this is exactly the kind of thing that I would hope to get out of this thread and forum--information I hadn't considered, lists of professors I somehow missed.  Thanks very much for your reply!

Sure thing. Feel free to PM me as well if you have any questions in advance of the visit weekend. 

[ohhemingway]

Bump.

[jarovization]

Hi everyone! I know there is a thread on contacting individual students who are already attending through PM, but I thought it might be helpful to have a forum to discuss common questions that come up about top departments. Specifically, it would be good to know (because of guaranteed anonymity!) what the worst things are about your department -- i.e. what are the cons of going where you go? Quite often it's easy to hear about all the good stuff about a place, but very little of the bad stuff, which is strictly insider info. Even if you love where you go, there must be common refrains you hear from your colleagues about certain things. Is a particular professor not great to work with? Is the stipend not enough to live on comfortably? Does the department place a too-heavy emphasis on certain methodologies? Is the location of the department less than ideal? Thanks in advance for your opinions. 

 

I am at a top 5 program, but would maybe answer about half of those questions on an internet forum. This is really what informal sessions of recruitment weekends (parties, food, bar) are for. All the formal sessions are just informative show. As I posted elsewhere, you need to make sure you are not just talking to 1st year students, but also advanced candidates, who don't necessarily participate in these kinds of activities (too busy.) Email one or two with similar interests and see if they will meet you for coffee.

 

And learn to read between the lines of what people are saying to you. Ask direct and specific questions, but expect cagey responses, especially from those with the best information.

[catchermiscount]

I am at a top 5 program, but would maybe answer about half of those questions on an internet forum. This is really what informal sessions of recruitment weekends (parties, food, bar) are for. All the formal sessions are just informative show. As I posted elsewhere, you need to make sure you are not just talking to 1st year students, but also advanced candidates, who don't necessarily participate in these kinds of activities (too busy.) Email one or two with similar interests and see if they will meet you for coffee.

 

And learn to read between the lines of what people are saying to you. Ask direct and specific questions, but expect cagey responses, especially from those with the best information.

 

This.