I got rejected from SAIS (Johns Hopkins) and Georgetown.
I got into LSE, GWU, and American -- all for International Relations Masters programs. So, I want to ask TL (if any of you go to these schools): what are your opinions of them... what do you know about the schools' respective reputations, etc.
I guess my plan is uh, I want to pick the school that has the best reputation I guess, and can offer me the best quality education. Just wanna get some opinions from TLers since I'm pretty sure there are a few from each of these three schools.
LSE meaning London School of Economics? You got rejected from GT and Hopkins and got into London?! I don't even know how this world works anymore.
Pick a country you'd like to work in. I don't feel like GWU and American are really all that close in supposed caliber. My roommates are all doing their IR grad stuff overseas currently In Germany, but they are not very big on American's program.
Congrats Xeris! Seems like you're in a good "bad" situation.
Yea if LSE is London School of Econ that's pretty impressive and if you feel you can take the time to go to London, I'd suggest that.
If not, I'd personally choose GWU over American. They probably have more contacts with government and international figures (I don't think I met a prof that didn't work at or know a lot of people in government, pretty common talks from foreign diplomats etc) and are pretty solid in politics & foreign policy being right in DC obviously. On the other hand, Americans also close to the city and cheaper (but I personally feel GWU is better but that's just my subjective opinion)
On March 24 2011 11:37 Xeris wrote: So I applied to several grad schools ...
I got rejected from SAIS (Johns Hopkins) and Georgetown.
I got into LSE, GWU, and American -- all for International Relations Masters programs. So, I want to ask TL (if any of you go to these schools): what are your opinions of them... what do you know about the schools' respective reputations, etc.
I guess my plan is uh, I want to pick the school that has the best reputation I guess, and can offer me the best quality education. Just wanna get some opinions from TLers since I'm pretty sure there are a few from each of these three schools.
Anyways, help me out!
A friend of mine goes to American and she says it sucks, but I don't know about postgrad stuff. I'd definitely say LSE has the best reputation though, if you wouldn't mind leaving the States.
I go to GWU, and I know the International Affairs program is HUGE here. Very big, everybody gets jobs working on The Hill and stuff, also partying is big here, theres plenty to do here, theres a bunch of DC area nerds as you well know.
I don't feel the need to talk about the starcraft side of things, as I'm sure yoru decision will be strictly academic, but what I can say is GWU's IA academics have to be at or near the top.
On March 24 2011 12:06 Sleight wrote: LSE meaning London School of Economics? You got rejected from GT and Hopkins and got into London?! I don't even know how this world works anymore.
Well, I had always heard that the LSE was top tier shit; however, it appears that it's really just a corrupt institution and people (i'm assuming more than 1) have literally plagiarized their thesis and have received a degree. A huge scandal has occurred from what I understand, when evidence emerged that Gadafi's son had basically purchased his thesis and the school turned a blind eye.
I feel bad for those ppl in LSE that worked their asses off, because now their degrees are worth substantially less after this whore house was uncovered.
Had you gotten into Gtown, i would have recommended it. I'm currently about to finish my 2nd semester in the International Law and Global Security MA, and I'm really enjoying it.
Out of the one's you've gotten into, I'd go with LSE, assuming you can get funding/loans. if not, GW.
Another wrinkle: I got 22k financial aid from AU, and seemingly none from GWU (in my admissions packet, I got a sheet of paper telling me my financial aid from AU and nothing like that in the GWU letter, so I'm assuming no aid from them?)
On March 24 2011 12:34 Xeris wrote: Actually choosing my school based on which has the best CSL team, so I guess GWU by default! lulz!~
Lol I'm guessing we're the only school of the three with a team then, seeing as how we went on a terrible streak to end our season like, 5-10 or so lol
I'd go on about the pros and cons of GWU, but I'm a spoiled bitch from norcal so I might be biased, plus I have 3 midterms tomorrow so maybe later
I'm kinda surprised you're asking her for advice. Grad school is a very specific thing. Grad school is where you will truly learn a specialization. Presumably you already have some kind of idea of what area of your field you are going to specialize in (e.g. if you were, hypothetically, going into grad school in physics you wouldn't just think "oh, who has a good physics department?" but instead think "oh, which schools are working in quantum computing?"). A faculty of even 40 or 50 people will actually feel incredibly small after working there for 2-3 years since most of them will be doing work very different than what you do.
Considerations I think you need to reflect on:
1. As a general rule, the less you know about exactly what you want to do the larger the department you're going to want to be in. You want to have your adviser working in a similar avenue of research to what you do (and in fact it's pretty typical for your first pub to be co-authored with your adviser and you may even continue co-authoring with them even after graduating). Smaller departments mean fewer possibilities. Not a problem if you know what you're doing but if you just have a vague notion... well...
2. Your grad school life is probably going to lead to you being strapped for cash unless your parents are giving you a fuck ton of money as cushion. It really is something kind of like this:
Are you being offered money by these schools? In math/science/engineering, if a grad school wants you they will hire you to be a GTA and waive your tuition. I don't know what it's like for humanities but I presume something similar. Consider cost of living as a serious priority because it is.
3. You'll find that your social life is pretty much hanging with other grad students in your department. They might mingle with another department but it's very likely that they won't. Think specifically about your feelings of the department and not your feelings of the university as a whole when you make your decision.
4. Politics. You cannot escape this, and not just Republicant vs Demagogicrat but internal politics of the school. Even in math/sci/engineering you cannot escape this. In the humanities? Hoo boy.
It will help you a lot to pick a department where your own philosophical beliefs fit in fairly nicely. Again, be much more specific than just "right" or "left." I shouldn't have to tell you that there's a big difference between "left libertarian" and "socialist" and a lot of professors will take umbrage if a snot-nosed grad student comes along and vocally disagrees with their life's work. And many of them will think of it that way regardless of what they say about being tolerant of beliefs of others. Departments tend to gravitate towards certain schools of thought and you should be aware of this before you go there.
I don't mean to scare you with this (you shouldn't be scared; you should be excited) but it's a pretty big consideration. and just knowing the political leanings of the general student body really is not adequate since whatever the undergrads are doing has little to no bearing on your life as a grad student.
It will probably help you a lot to do a little research into what the faculty of the department are researching and what conclusions they draw from what data. Focus specifically on faculty you are likely to have interactions with (e.g. ones you might want as an adviser based on area of study). This will also help you when you get there since it will make it easier for you to impress people.
I think a rule of thumb is that do not go to a grad school that does not fund your education.
I know sometimes you may encounter a (highly prestigious) university offering such a non-funded position, but know that, first of all, a master's degree offers little pay-off, and secondly, the majority of reasonably strong applicants will choose to go to places with fundings, leaving the non-funded positions for the "losers".
I am a little biased, however, as Canada funds masters a lot more often than in the US. So I could be wrong. LSE is pretty good, so if they give you money, just go there.
On March 24 2011 12:53 Xeris wrote: Another wrinkle: I got 22k financial aid from AU, and seemingly none from GWU (in my admissions packet, I got a sheet of paper telling me my financial aid from AU and nothing like that in the GWU letter, so I'm assuming no aid from them?)
I didn't get my financial offers my from my grad school until much later. Sometimes they want until they have established who is accepting before making promises. I am on the largest direct funding available at my school and they didn't even let me know til late April, so I would call GWU before making any decisions.
Also, checked with my buddies and they really pushed for GWU and LSE over American.
LSE. Obviously, unless there's a money issue this shouldn't even be open for questioning. The connections you'll make there will last you not just a lifetime, but your children's lifetime as well.
On March 24 2011 13:46 Sufficiency wrote: I think a rule of thumb is that do not go to a grad school that does not fund your education.
I know sometimes you may encounter a (highly prestigious) university offering such a non-funded position, but know that, first of all, a master's degree offers little pay-off, and secondly, the majority of reasonably strong applicants will choose to go to places with fundings, leaving the non-funded positions for the "losers".
I am a little biased, however, as Canada funds masters a lot more often than in the US. So I could be wrong. LSE is pretty good, so if they give you money, just go there.
I'd disagree with that statement when it comes to MA programs. Very few MA programs offer funding, whereas almost all PhD ones will. If you get funding for a MA, that's fantastic, but it's so rare you shouldn't make it a prerequisite to attending. Hell, MBA's pretty much don't ever get funding, and yet getting one is still extremely valuable.
As far as job "pay off" I'm extremely happy with what I'm getting from Georgetown. I know for a fact that my job prospects and earning potential have improved in my time here. I'm accruing debt, but a feel quite confident I'll be able to pay it off with the improved job opportunities I'm getting from my time here.
Back to the OP - if you are getting funding at American, that bumps it up a lot in my book. Still, I'd try to see if you can make LSE work, especially if you're planning on going for a PhD after your MA.
EPT
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