Advice for an Outsider

[FSOJN]

Hello all. Currently considering a pretty massive switch out of my current job (Foreign Service Officer) to go back to school for a PhD. Between that and the fact that I don't have an academic political science background, I feel like a somewhat non-traditional candidate and wanted some advice and suggestions from those who know the system much better than I do. In terms of long-term career interests, I definitely hope to return to foreign policy eventually, but I want to spend some time in academia and/or think tanks before then. 

 

Type of Undergrad Institution: Public Ivy (William & Mary)

Major(s): French studies, Music

Undergrad GPA: 3.85/4

Type of Grad: European Studies at Yale

Grad GPA: No GPA, but it would be around 3.9.

GRE: 167 V, 165 Q, 6.0 W

Any Special Courses: Undergrad poli sci research methods. Grad school courses on EU, counterterrorism, national security decision making, diversity law.

Letters of Recommendation: One from a tenured professor who could talk about my writing or from a tenured professor who could talk about my teaching, one from MA thesis advisor who is a big name in policy, one from a senior government official (previous supervisor) to talk about public service.

Research Experience: Several small summer research grants in undergrad, MA thesis on French counterterrorism policy, research and cable-writing as a diplomat (not public).

Teaching Experience: One semester teaching two sections of a history course at Yale.

Subfield/Research Interests: Comparative (France and Maghreb), focus on terrorism and radicalization

Other: By 2016, I will have had a total of four years working at the State Department, including two in the Foreign Service, working at the U.S. Embassy in Algiers, the Bureau of European and Eurasian Affairs (for which I won an award), the Office of the Secretary of State, and the U.S. Mission to the EU. Fluent in French, high professional competency in Modern Standard Arabic, proficient in German and Algerian/Maghrebi Arabic. 

 

I hope to shoot pretty high, and I've found some great potential POIs at a few of the top schools (Harvard, Princeton WWS, Yale, MIT). I'd be very happy to hear of other suggestions for places or how to think more generally about spinning my application/SOP. 

[law2phd]

You'll be fine.  Do not, however, completely bank on being accepted to a top three program.  Find another fit or two in the lower top 10 or T15 besides MIT.

[xolo]

A couple of simple suggestions.  Depending on your research interests, consider writing an academic essay that ties everything together (unless you already have done this in your courses). This should leverage your work experience. Second, consider getting an EU certification at C2 French and as high as possible in the other languages, hopefully C2, which would be great.

[FSOJN]

Thanks, you both.

 

law2phd: I definitely don't plan to just apply to the top three. I'm beginning my research process from scratch (and a little late), and I started from the top of the rankings. Working now to find other potential POIs at other schools as well.

 

eyepod: I was definitely planning on using a writing sample that can connect the work-me with the student-me––luckily I have some good bases from my work in grad school. I have ILR ratings in all my languages, from my State Department work. Are the CEFR levels more well-known than ILR? 

Edited July 4, 2015 by FSOJN

[xolo]

Well, I don't know about ILR, but since EU is not North America, I would think you are just fine. Because, here again, you are tying back to your work experience. Even better!

 

I am super non-traditional and I think what helped me the most to get into a top 30 school was the consistency of message and telling my story. You obviously have a good story. Good luck!

[AmericanQuant]

Ya, you'll be fine.  People come from much weirder backgrounds than yours and you have a very competitive profile.  Just make sure to convey in your statement of purpose that you understand the types of research questions posed in political science. 

 

Also, you should add Stanford to your list.  Lots of good comparative work on Europe happening there. Scheve, Hainmueller, Rodden, Laitin etc.

Edited July 7, 2015 by AmericanQuant