MAPSS Program Revisited

[ViveLaLiberte]

I have applied directly to the MAPSS program and Political Science PhD at the University of Chicago, and by far I have only heard back from MAPSS which granted me half tuition fee ( I am more and more certain that I was not accepted to the PhD program). I am aware that there has been a huge debate on MAPSS in this forum; what I want to do is to ask and add something new.

I wonder very much how competitive admission to this program is. I am told by one of my friends that whether a program is prestigious and rewarding depends on the yield rate (the number of students accepting the offers/offers made), offers made, and the number of applicants. A high yield rate and a paucity of offers are always a good indication of how good and popular a program is. Then my questions are as follows, whose answers cannot, as far as I can see, be found in the official website. If you know anything about them, please do not hesitate to leave your comments.

1. What are the yield rates, offers made, and the number of applicants, wither direct or referred, in MAPSS admission? Even if the exact statistics is unknown, please give your answer and reasons if you have any speculation about these figures which are vital.

2. Some around here talked of the limited number of referred cases compared to a huge number of failed PhD applicants, and they contended by this that only some applicants whose merits are taken seriously by PhD committees were referred to MAPSS. Yet I think they failed to notice that some rejected cases were not referred to MAPSS because in these cases, applicants had stated in their application form that they do not want to be referred in case that their application fails.

Then my question comes whether or not PhD admission committees at the University of Chicago refer to the MAPSS program all of the failed PhD applicants who clearly stated in their application that they are willing to be referred to MAPSS if the application to PhD fails. What is the percentage, then, of offers made with regard to the whole pool of referred applications?

3. What is the percentage of students granted full or partial scholarships in regard to the number of offers made?

I will appreciate any sincere discussion on these questions and the program in general.