Acceptance Chances for a MA in Poli Sci

[ColtonLong]

Hello all,

     Here's yet another topic about chances for acceptance to poli sci grad school programs. I've talked to my advisers about this but I also believe too much advice doesn't exist. So...

 

I'm applying for grad school (specifically a Master's in Poli Sci) for fall 2015. I'm currently in my senior year in undergrad and will be done by May. I'm considering applying to Georgetown, American, George Washington, George Mason, and Syracuse (I go to school in the general area near there). Based upon the following info, any thoughts? Thanks all. 

 

QPA: 3.91. 

Major(s): Political Science; Philosophy

Major GPA: 4.0 in both. 

 

GRE: taking them Nov. 6. Issue here is my quant skills are weak so I imagine they won't be amazing. Verbal/writing should be quite high though; those are my strong subjects. 

 

I presented a paper at a statewide poli sci conference last April on the impact of drone strikes on U.S.-Pakistani relations. I'll be doing the same conference again this coming April with a paper I wrote on political corruption in Belize (I spent part of June in-country doing research with two profs and other students). 

 

I'll have letters of recommendation from two poli sci faculty (both of whom I've closely worked with; one I did research for) and from my philosophy adviser. I also have a letter of recommendation from my university's president, who I worked with in Student Government. 

 

Not that it really matters for grad school, I don't think but...

 

Spent two years in Student Government; last one I was on the Exec Board as Parliamentarian (enforced Robert's Rules/drafted legislation). 

Tutor/Peer Leader and so on. 

Brother of Alpha Kappa Lambda 

News Editor of student newspaper 

 

 

 

[cooperstreet]

why do you want a ma in poli sci

[ColtonLong]

Put simply, I want to delve deeper into the discipline. I'm not content with just an undergraduate degree. Put another way, I ultimately intend to work in D.C. and a MA is not only a goal of mine, it also serves as a stepping stone to my future (potential) career. 

[ecm07e]

I think cooper means why a MA and not a PhD? amirite? 

[cooperstreet]

no i mean why a ma in poli sci and not a ma from one of those professional schools like SIPA or SAIS. Seems kinda silly to drop a hundred grand on a degree that doesn't qualify you for much.

[ColtonLong]

SIPA and SAIS aren't my areas of interest. I'd like to get a more practical (as opposed to theoretical) MA from a school in/around D.C. I'd prefer to work in American politics than in international relations, though the latter does interest me of course. 

[cooperstreet]

for many of us a practical political science degree is a contradiction in terms.

[J.Makarov]

If you want a practical degree, you should look into policy programs, not polisci. I am talking about MPAs or MPPs. The applicants for these programs, however, usually have some work experience after college, so you might consider applying a couple years later.

 

Political science is concerned with research. People with advanced degrees in this field typically get them to work in academia. If this is not your goal, then just don't bother. Getting only an MA, not a PhD, is a particularly strange idea, because MA will only get you qualified enough to teach political science in community colleges. Stand alone polisci MAs are good only for career changers who want to strengthen their profiles for doctoral programs, but don't have enough prior research experience.

Edited October 15, 2014 by J.Makarov

[cooperstreet]

to answer your question thought, MA political science admissions are not competitive because why would they be. who wants to pay for them?