<p>Hi all,
Currently I attend Old Dominion University in Norfolk, VA and I am working toward my B.A in Political Science. I REALLY want to go to UNC (Chapel Hill, of course) for grad school to get my M.A.T. Following this route will allow me to teach Government/other secondary education history classes.</p>
<p>My question is- I know it's a bear to get in to UNC if you're OOS, so I know that I have that working against me...but either way, do I have a chance?</p>
<p>I have a 3.8 GPA and haven't taken my GRE's yet, but will be soon. I am a substitute teacher at Chesapeake Public Schools, and have interned in several major and local political campaigns. Anyone have any advice?</p>
<p>Also, I do have really great letters of rec…some from professors and two from people with pretty high up positions politically throughout my state.</p>
<p>no matter how esteemed these two “people with pretty high up positions politically” may be, they wont mean a thing; send in academic recommendations only.</p>
<p>Don’t listen to fatpig. Apply – and see what happens. I don’t know how competitive the M.A.T. program is – but a 3.8 will count for a lot. Your LORs from professors are also of utmost importance. Don’t bother asking people outside of academia for letters since they won’t have much weight. The program will want to know if you are academically suited to graduate studies.</p>
<p>Okay, thanks a lot for the encouragement. I’m hoping to do well on my GRE’s, I’ve prepared a lot for them and do well on the practice tests so hopefully that will help me out. I know if I was coming from a more well known, more “prestigious” school, it would look better…but ODU is close to home and I couldn’t afford to away for my undergrad so it worked.</p>
<p>t113, Letters of rec for MAT programs can be of two kinds: from former professors, and from teaching supervisors. When a program asks for two or three letters, it is usually best that the primary letters (one or two, as the case may be) come from former professors and testify to your academic abilities. The additional letter may come from a teaching supervisor. You should only use this supervisory letter option if someone (a principal or lead teacher) has observed you in the classroom several times.</p>
<p>Your undergraduate institution should have little bearing on admissions. What counts much more is what you did with the opportunities you had where you were.</p>
<p>Thanks Prof X (and everyone else) for the advice regarding the LOR. I have great ones from some of my professors too so hopefully that will work. I’ve been pretty discouraged from applying because I feel like I definitely don’t have a shot- and I guess I’d rather not apply than to be rejected? Silly I know, just me building it up in my head I guess haha.</p>