Welcome to the 2015-2016 Cycle!

[IndEnth]

9 hours ago, Determinedandnervous said:

I didn't post my SOP because I didn't want adcoms from the schools that I applied to to identify me. Anyone can PM me for it though if they wish to see it.

Again, very honest question: Why would that be a bad thing?

(And, follow-up: If they really, really wanted to, couldn't they already from other info on the board?)

[PoliSci2016]

Anyone have any info or advice on the Freestanding MA at Columbia & moving onto the PhD program from the MA? Any info on the program, admissions, etc. is appreciated.

[PoliSci2016]

8 hours ago, Sbrail2 said:

Got my unofficial acceptances to LSU and UGA after speaking to the GDs, so that's exciting. Still waiting to hear back from Georgetown and American and have only got a funding offer from one school, so I'm more anxious now than ever.

Congrats! Are you the LSU admit in the results page?

[kafcat]

I am seeing a ton of Chicago rejects  on the results page..I haven't received anything...anyone in the same situation?

[yasir8959]

On 3/1/2016 at 1:34 PM, Stressedandcarefree said:

I'm desperately trying to decide between UW, WashU, and UC Davis. All good research fit, all good enough stipends, really just coming down to me making a decision. Does anyone have any advice to offer?

Since research fit and stipend is comparable, it comes down to city, weather and cost of living i guess.

[yasir8959]

7 hours ago, IndEnth said:

Again, very honest question: Why would that be a bad thing?

(And, follow-up: If they really, really wanted to, couldn't they already from other info on the board?)

Hello- You had a good cycle. I'd appreciate an opportunity to read your SoP.

[IndEnth]

2 hours ago, yasir8959 said:

Hello- You had a good cycle. I'd appreciate an opportunity to read your SoP.

I'm not the best person to look at if you want to get into a top-10 program - didn't make it into any of those But if a decent, still higher-ranked uni is what you're looking for, then I think I booked a couple of those (and several safety unis too).

I'm planning to post my SoP publicly as soon as I have decided where I'll go.

[Sbrail2]

15 hours ago, PoliSci2016 said:

Congrats! Are you the LSU admit in the results page?

Yep!

[ultraultra]

On March 1, 2016 at 4:09 AM, IndEnth said:

Can I just ask: Why did people stop posting their SoPs on the wrap-up threads? I know it was increadibly helpful for me -- the non-American with only non-US degrees from really tiny no-name places where professors had never even heard of the unis I'm applying to, let alone ever seen an application to any of those places -- to peruse those old samples when preparing my application. I'm sure many of you did the same thing. But then three years ago or so, people seem to have suddenly gotten very secretive about this, and stopped posting them publicly.

Did everyone suddenly get paranoid that someone else would steal their topic? I mean, everyone who got admitted has a topic, so changing tracks and jumping on yours seems unlikely. And next year's applicants are far behind, so there's no way someone could snatch it from you considering that you'll plant your flag long before them.

Or did people suddenly feel insecure about the fact that they got into a good school with an SoP that's actually not magic and witchcraft, but just a down-to-earth piece of work? You got in, so your application was good - there's no reason to be shy about it.

The only other explanation I can come up with off the top of my head is that people didn't want to share to not provide the next generation of applicants with a head-start that they themselves might not have had, which would simply be sad.

Please, people, enlighten me. Am I missing something essential here?

For me, I think it's a few things. I think the biggest disincentive is that I personally didn't find other peoples' SOPs all that useful. I perused some of them too, and imho, the ones that got people into great schools were often quite different from one another, and sometimes they had a whole lot in common with the ones of applicants with less success. It wasn't really easy to parse out some sort of 'perfect SOP formula' from previous SOPs (whereas its somewhat more feasible to determine a 'perfect applicant formula' from info on research experience/recommenders/GPAs/GREs etc). So except for the general structure (of which there are already many examples on this forum and off of it, and which I explained in my results post), I generally didn't think it would really be all that helpful to post my SOP. And I didn't want people in the future to read it over and over again looking for some non-existent magical formula for getting into Harvard. Not to mention that my sense is that SOPs aren't even that important relative to the things you actually put into them in terms of research experience. So altogether I decided that posting a detailed account of my file was more useful than posting my SOP.

As for other reasons... there are a few. Thousands of people lurk these forums, and while I'm a bit nervous about people stealing my ideas, I am much more nervous about someone potentially stealing my SOP, as in copy-pasting it in its entirety and then replacing my accolades with theirs. I write with a somewhat distinct and personal 'voice,' so I found that possibility pretty unnerving. There's also the anonymity aspect. I'm sure if someone knew me well IRL, they could probably figure out who I am from my results post (and actually I recognized a now-friend from their posts here), but I do generally appreciate the shred of anonymity I have to post about my anxieties about the process here, and posting a very personal life story document would undermine that a lot. Related to the fact is that my SOP is basically just me listing all of my projects and accolades, so by the time I redacted enough of it to curb my desire for anonymity, it would have been a shred of a document. 

There are a few other minor reasons. but I'd say that's the main rationale.

Edited March 2, 2016 by ultraultra

[democracy stirs]

11 hours ago, gatoski said:

I am seeing a ton of Chicago rejects  on the results page..I haven't received anything...anyone in the same situation?

I haven't heard anything yet, either. 

[PoliPixie]

It's been quiet this week. Hope everyone is holding up okay! 

[IndEnth]

4 hours ago, ultraultra said:

For me, I think it's a few things. I think the biggest disincentive is that I personally didn't find other peoples' SOPs all that useful. I perused some of them too, and imho, the ones that got people into great schools were often quite different from one another, and sometimes they had a whole lot in common with the ones of applicants with less success. It wasn't really easy to parse out some sort of 'perfect SOP formula' from previous SOPs (whereas its somewhat more feasible to determine a 'perfect applicant formula' from info on research experience/recommenders/GPAs/GREs etc). So except for the general structure (of which there are already many examples on this forum and off of it, and which I explained in my results post), I generally didn't think it would really be all that helpful to post my SOP. And I didn't want people in the future to read it over and over again looking for some non-existent magical formula for getting into Harvard. Not to mention that my sense is that SOPs aren't even that important relative to the things you actually put into them in terms of research experience. So altogether I decided that posting a detailed account of my file was more useful than posting my SOP.

As for other reasons... there are a few. Thousands of people lurk these forums, and while I'm a bit nervous about people stealing my ideas, I am much more nervous about someone potentially stealing my SOP, as in copy-pasting it in its entirety and then replacing my accolades with theirs. I write with a somewhat distinct and personal 'voice,' so I found that possibility pretty unnerving. There's also the anonymity aspect. I'm sure if someone knew me well IRL, they could probably figure out who I am from my results post (and actually I recognized a now-friend from their posts here), but I do generally appreciate the shred of anonymity I have to post about my anxieties about the process here, and posting a very personal life story document would undermine that a lot. Related to the fact is that my SOP is basically just me listing all of my projects and accolades, so by the time I redacted enough of it to curb my desire for anonymity, it would have been a shred of a document. 

There are a few other minor reasons. but I'd say that's the main rationale.

Cool.

Well, I guess I'd also be a bit annoyed at the thought of someone just copy-pasting my SoP considering how many days of work went into writing this statement, which I also hope does not read entirely generic but reflects me and my style a bit.

But for me I think what has more weight is the fact that as the outsider that I was when I started this process (as in, haven't been a student in so many years, only in Europe and Asia, no mentors/professors/advisers to go to for help, don't know any PhD students to contact, etc.) it just made me feel soooo much better so see a couple of examples of how it's actually done. And of course I didn't think that the clue of how to get into Harvard is hidden in one of those sample SoPs here somewhere. It just was good to know how (un)specific the research questions were worded, how much of the SoP people devoted to their background vs. to explaining their fit, etc. Probably basic for someone who's part of the circus already. But for me, that was all extremely valuable. It also made me assess my chances of succeeding in the application process much more realistically to see where people got in with what sort of SoP/experience/etc.

So yeah, I guess considering all that, I'm very much convinced that I want to post my SoP publicly, even if I'll be the only one.

Consider it me giving back to the community

Edited March 2, 2016 by IndEnth

[wb3060]

I'd like to get some thoughts on this... when professors give you their phone number and say to call any time, do you think you should still set up a time to talk via email first? 

[noumenope]

On 2/25/2016 at 4:43 PM, Tvent1986 said:

5 hours ago, wb3060 said:

I'd like to get some thoughts on this... when professors give you their phone number and say to call any time, do you think you should still set up a time to talk via email first? 

I would take them at their word, but only call during normal office hours (9-5).

[noumenope]

Weird...it wouldn't let me delete that quotation of "Tvent1986" for some reason.

[abed]

On 3/2/2016 at 10:24 PM, gatoski said:

I am seeing a ton of Chicago rejects  on the results page..I haven't received anything...anyone in the same situation?

 

12 hours ago, democracy stirs said:

I haven't heard anything yet, either. 

In the same place. It looks like in previous years, some PhD applicants who didn't make it were considered for Chicago's MA Program in the Social Sciences (MAPSS), so perhaps that could explain the delay?

[yasir8959]

3 hours ago, noumenope said:

 

You press Ctrl and then right click, it gives you option to clear the quote. 

[yasir8959]

SoP is used to introduce your research idea. How closely does it resemble to research proposal as required to be submitted in European universities for PhD?

[yasir8959]

I need input from you guys. What are the prospects of receiving a PhD in Pubic policy/Affairs/Admin from average university say not in top 50 in US. What kind of jobs can it get you (not strictly academic jobs). Do you see it worth it on its own? What if ones reasons are pretty ideological as opposed to pragmatic? And factors that one is considering are pursuit of happiness and freedom from current trajectory of life/place? I know it all sounds too weird but still it'd help me a long way! 

You get to learn and have good time learning stuff and you can maybe drift and live not according to a plan. Maybe just without a fallback. Not locking in the options and thinking through before doing what one is doing. Just aesthetic appreciation of life. Would it ever make sense?

[Sbrail2]

Does anyone wanna claim that most recent UGA admit? I have a question for you

[yasir8959]

1 hour ago, Sbrail2 said:

Does anyone wanna claim that most recent UGA admit? I have a question for you

Hi Sbrail since u have applied in american, and pol sci PHD is dealt by SPA department, can you please tell me if their public administration PhD results are out yet or not?

[Sbrail2]

1 minute ago, yasir8959 said:

Hi Sbrail since u have applied in american, and pol sci PHD is dealt by SPA department, can you please tell me if their public administration PhD results are out yet or not?

I have no idea, my field is American politics

[CarefreeWritingsontheWall]

Re: SOPs and final dissertation resemblance: I would say that every US program expects your project to change. More generally, people's interests usually stick to the same substantive issue areas, but their approaches and puzzles of interest are highly subject to change given exposure to new concepts and scholars. That said, my MA supervisor wrote on the same thing he was interested in in his SOP - he also finished in 4 years but that's certainly a huge exception to the norm.

Re: PhD's in public affairs - my sense is that these types of programs aren't that numerous outside the US. Speaking as a Canadian, I know that most policy schools here are based around MPPs and MPAs, though a few model themselves off SAIS & HKS and have a PhD in policy. Policy degrees are more far practical, hands on, type degrees and the work tends to be heavily normative and prescriptive (the best policy option is x etc.) vs a political science degree which is more about, in this case, why certain policies were chosen (not necessarily whether they were the right choice). In terms of jobs, you would have a lot of options in private consulting but those connections don't tend to come from the program itself - you'd have to pound the pavement to earn the network. You could potentially work for government, but they much prefer MA level policy degrees - the pay bracket for PhDs is higher, and thus fewer positions tend to be offered (along with the sense that PhDs can be overqualified or less in tune with policy on the ground). I personally don't see the value in it - an MPA would get you into all of the same jobs a lot quicker for a lot less. Policy PhDs tend to offer much less funding as well. I'm not sure what you mean when it comes to being ideological vs. pragmatic. A policy degree is certainly more hands on, and far less about academic research and the development of theories. If you're more interested in policy, in being on the ground and making choices, it offers a very different lifestyle than a PhD in the social sciences. The program requirements will likely also differ, as will coursework. Policy programs can be cross-affiliated with politics departments, but many of them are completely separate. If you're attending a policy program in Europe, you will almost exclusively be taught by practitioners, which in and of itself also offers a very different type of class with far less regular meetings and less reading. But again, this depends on the program.

On the learning and having a good time doing it, without following a set plan, I'd say graduate school in any sense offers that - it's one of the biggest draws for me. My MA has already let me travel a ton and make abrupt life choices.

Two years ago I looked into it, and I did apply out but I didn't get in anywhere. Having internships and field experience was very important to everywhere that I applied. SAIS wrote me a personalized rejection letter saying they felt great about everything in my profile except that I was 21 at the time and I had never spent more than a day outside of Canada. So, that said, the applications also look different, and if you apply to certain schools they'll also look for you to submit a policy memo as opposed to a writing sample related to academic research. Being multilingual is also important. I just didn't fit the profile as much as I thought I did, and after a 2 year academically oriented MA I personally know that I am far more inclined to academic research and teaching.

If you're looking outside of the US policy schools, program reputation still matters as well. Centrally located programs like NPSIA and GPSIA in Ottawa (at Carleton U and Ottawa U respectively) will be natural feeders into local policy positions. There's also IHEID, and the Central European University, as well as the Hertie School. These places also tend to be less transparent about where their students go after they graduate in terms of placement so that's another thing to consider.

 

Edited March 3, 2016 by CarefreeWritingsontheWall
typos - need to double check next time I write something so long

[yasir8959]

41 minutes ago, CarefreeWritingsontheWall said:

 

 

Best reply ever man. You took so much time. I cant give it more than one likes. Thinking about all this will keep me occupied for some time. Thanks a lot. 

[Ganzi]

Am I the only one that applied to only one school and got into that only one school? Was too broke to make applications and that school was my perfect fit.