<p>Well, this is absolutely stunning superseiyan. Thank you very much to find and share that! At least, it reflects really what employers think, and not some comments mostly based on impressions and nothing real. It’s also very precise!</p>
<p>Just one point: did you find any mention of a date? Do you know when it was published and made? I didn’t…</p>
<p>BriikL1,</p>
<p>thanks for your response! i’m not sure if Tata or Booze Allen recruit directly from SAIS? maybe i’ll have to return to india first and then apply?</p>
<p>money is not an immediate concern tbh, but i think good compensation must be a part of any meaningful occupation in the long run.</p>
<p>also, i need to complete the macroeconomics prerequisite prior to attending SAIS and was wondering if you have any recommendations for an online self-paced course for the same?</p>
<p>thanks!</p>
<p>I’m wondering if anyone has any experience with the MPP program, International Policy and Development track, at the Georgetown Public Policy Institute. I’m interested in international development and ultimately want to work abroad with and NGO or USAID. How is the program regarded for that type of work?</p>
<p>I’m in an unusual situation. I returned from a few years of volunteer work abroad and applied to several of major IR programs. I was accepted to U Chicago, Duke, and SAIS. However, I recently got a job in the development field with an organization I really like, so I’m planning to defer school for a year anyway. However, if I stay at my job, I could have free tuition for grad school, so now I’m looking at other possibilities. SAIS or Georgetown MSFS (which I didn’t apply to yet) would be my ideal degree, but neither has a part-time option, which GPPI does. </p>
<p>Much as I would love to go to SAIS, and would rather go to grad school full time than try to balance a full time job and part-time grad school, I have to consider finances. A free MPP versus $80-100 grand in debt, going into a field where I’m not going to be making a huge salary, sounds too good to turn down. </p>
<p>I hear a lot about Georgetown SFS, but not much about PPI. Anyone familiar with the program? Any current students or alum like or dislike it? How is it regarded among employers, especially in the international and international development sectors? Does it even matter that much where the degree is from in this field? Should I consider part time International Development programs at American and GW as well (assuming those exist, I haven’t looked into them yet)?</p>
<p>Comments on what you would do in my situation are also welcome :).</p>
<p>Anyone know if I can study English & philosophy for undergrad in the UK (UCL or Uni of Edinburgh most likely) then get my masters in international affairs without too much of a problem?</p>
<p>global,</p>
<p>My attitude with grad school is that not paying is always better, all else being equal.</p>
<p>iwantivies,</p>
<p>That shouldn’t be a problem. Both are great, respected universities.</p>
<p>Just a few more questions:</p>
<p>What about language? That’s important, right, for IR? Should I try to switch from the English & Philosophy program to English & Spanish at Edinburgh? Or from the English program at UCL to Spanish & English? Or should I just try to switch to International Relations? </p>
<p>I want to ultimately get my IR masters and get some sort of job with that, but I would like to also study English. Is it possible to have my cake and eat it too? </p>
<p>I also have a great offer at GA Tech–I’m a President’s scholar there. They have an innovative International & Economics major that appeals to me, lots of job opportunities in Atlanta, and a work abroad program with the UN. The only problem with Tech is that it’s definitely not a typical IR school and I can’t really study English there. In a bit of a dilemma.</p>
<p>iwant–are you going to be an undergrad? Not too familiar with the British system, but is it possible to double-major in English and IR? Also, I would take a few language courses if possible but it’s not going to be a dealbreaker (especially Spanish, people who can speak that fluently are a dime a dozen).</p>
<p>I’m currently at Georgetown and will graduate with a 3.1.-3.4 GPA, haven’t taken GRE yet
International Business/Finance Majors.Economics Minor</p>
<p>International volunteering in Guatemala, Indonesia, Ghana, (hope to add one more)
Study Abroad in Spain one semester, (hopefully working in London another); plenty of travel experience</p>
<p>Economic Research Assistant,most likely Global Wealth Mgmt intern at Merrill Lynch this summer as well a development organization in the fall.</p>
<p>That is a ROUGH breakdown of where I’ll be. Given this, how hard is it to get into Pitt’s International Development program? I am from near Pittsburgh originally. They have a partnership with the University of Geneva International MBA as well.</p>
<p>It is a two year program only $18000 tuition for in state and 20% acceptance rate out of undergrad. So, does it look likely I would have a chance? The program is cheap ( I have about $70k debt form GTown when I’m done+$40kish (assuming no aid) from Pitt) I’m looking at around $110k for my undergrad,masters, MBA? Does this seem reasonable?Any feedback on the program would be great, thanks.</p>
<p>Double majoring is not really available in the British system. :/</p>
<p>Patterson School of Diplomacy and International Commerce-</p>
<p>Im looking at applying to this school along with some other options. I was wondering if anyone has any experience with this school? Also how hard is it to get into? Thanks.</p>
<p>Hi, Hopefully, you can offer some advice. I want to get into a top or decent school for a MA in IR. My gpa is a 2.9 (bombed my first year b/c my parents split) & I graduated with a BA in criminal justice. Originally, my plan was to go to law school. I worked as a paralegal for 2 yrs in narcotics @the DA’s office in ny. Then moved onto the Dept. of Education, where I’m currently working as a para for the General Counsel’s office: negotiating settlements & investigating special education cases.But, I realized that I want to pursue a master’s degree in IR after volunteering for 2 wks at an orphanage in Kenya.I don’t know if my legal experience is relative, & was told my volunteer trip won’t count. I’m not too sure where to go from here. I’m 29 and was thinking of applying for the Spring '12 or Fall '12 semesters, but I’m not confident. My GRE score is mediocre so I’ll take it again. Also, I don’t know a foreign language, at least not enough. What do you recommend I do next?</p>
<p>Come to the UK. 1 year MA programs, no MFL requirements.</p>
<p>UKdude, did/do you go to Patterson School? I know the program is 18 months which is one of the reasons I like it. Could you give me any more information on it? Thanks.</p>
<p>@ideal33</p>
<p>I think that because your GPA is below the typical minimum requirement (3.0) as well as not having course work in anything IR related you should explore a post-bac program, not too familiar with them though, or a least a solid semester at a community college full of IR related classes, such as political science, economics, history, foreign language, or even anthropology and multicultural studies…subjects of that nature. You should definitely research the schools and programs you are interested in and then contact the admissions office and ask them what they would recommend for you to do if your BA is unrelated to the MA you want to pursue. Before you do that you can look at the school’s websites and look at their average stats for admitted students. But keep in mind that these numbers are averages and that there is generally a wide range of stats, which is good. </p>
<p>There is also a big experience factor when applying to these types of professional programs. I’ve just been through the application process and I’m headed to The George Washington University for an MA in International Development this coming Fall, my stats aren’t stellar, I was admitted off of the waitlist, but still I got in, this school is my dream come true…not to sound too cheesy 
My gpa is 3.35 and my GRE scores were just OK, but of course everyone interprets their scores differently, my OK might be someone’s good or mediocre. But see the thing is that my BA is in International Studies, so the connection and relevance is obvious, I had a semester abroad, and plus, this is what got me in for sure, I was a Peace Corps volunteer, I spent 2 years in Ukraine teaching English and ended up with an advanced level of Russian language, I also studied Russian in college for 4 semesters though. But proficiency in a foreign language is not required for admissions to all programs, it’s not for GW but you’ll have to pass an exam before you graduate and it’s not a part of the curriculum so it’ll be something extra that you’d have to do during the course of the program. It is required for admission though to George Mason’s Global Affairs program and you’ll have to submit proof as part of your app. I don’t know how reasonable it is for you to get any more work or study experience abroad but if you’re in NY maybe you can volunteer, intern, or whatever at some kind of international organization.</p>
<p>Another reason to take classes and get solid grades before you apply is because you’ll need good letters of recommendation. Those letters should come from professors that know your abilities in IR related classes. This all might seem a little daunting, but if you just start with researching schools and their programs you’ll figure out exactly what you’ll need to do. And don’t forget that this whole thing takes a lot of time, but just stick it out, it’ll be worth it if it’s what you want. I mean the Fall admission cycle has just closed so you literally have from now until around Jan/Feb to complete requirements for applications. Plus when you put together a statement of purpose which is a very important component of the application where you get to be more than just a collection of data, you’ll have to be able to explain what you want to do in IR beyond “I went to Kenya for 2 weeks and know I want to change my career path”…trust me, I’m not trivializing your experience, that’s actually an awesome thing to do, I’ve wanted to visit Africa for a long time and do something productive there. That’s just how it might look to admissions committees that read thousands of applications from people who have years worth of study and experience in the field. It is certainly something you can put in the SOP, the thing that got you started on this path and it will have value, but you’ll need something much more substantial and that’s what you’ll get from taking classes. You’ll have to put in a lot of work for a top school but it’s by no means impossible, you might want to consider schools that might not be considered at the top, but still decent, George Mason is one. Good luck…don’t hesitate to ask anything else.</p>
<p>I’m currently at a top 20 LAC on the east coast, and will graduate in a year with a GPA of 3.6 ish. (However, do the admissions only take your GPA into account until first semester senior year?) Planning to take the GRE in late July. I am international myself, but with no working experience. Native speaker of Chinese, advanced level of Spanish. Would it be possible for me to go to programs in schools with a sound name, eg. SIPA in Columbia?</p>
<p>I am a Political Science and French major and I’ve decided that I want to (eventually) pursue a Master’s in International Relations OR Public Policy (with an international focus). I went to a grad school far not too long ago and quickly learned how much you have to specialize for said degrees which scares me a bit! I’m interested in… everything. I’m really more interested in the Middle East and its relations to Europe and the U.S. (I guess most people are?) and also have a strong background with France via studying the language and studying abroad. I’m doing my senior research on Algerian colonialism and the relevance to the current situation with Islam in France. Does anyone have any suggestions for what kind of specific program I could do that would encompass all of my interests, whether academic or policy focused??</p>
<p>I want to take 1-2 years off before grad school to do something abroad. I’m applying for PeaceCorps, Fulbright ETA in Morocco, the French embassy teaching program, and hopefully I can find other things like that. I have a pretty solid GPA (3.76 which I will be working on bringing up a bit) and have been really involved on my campus. I’m taking the GRE in January. What are my chances of getting into a top ten IR program??</p>
<p>Assuming you get good GRE scores, probably pretty good.</p>
<p>I was wondering what people thought about Kentucky’s Patterson School. It definitely looks good. I know I cannot get into the top 15 programs or so, but I am looking at smaller schools. I go to Georgia Tech and was wondering what people thought about our INTA program as well.</p>
<p>I’ve given some serious thought to applying to programs for the Fall 2012 semester, but seeing the backgrounds of many of the applicants here is making me reconsider…here’s my situation:</p>
<p>-3.35 GPA in Foreign Affairs & Economics (with a clear upward trend, however) from a top 25 school</p>
<p>-I took the new GRE this month, so the eventual score will be somewhere between 130 and 170, but I was told that my V & Q totals would both be between 750-800 on the old scale</p>
<p>-A semester abroad, as well as three years living overseas as a child</p>
<p>-Decent proficiency in French, but nowhere near fluency</p>
<p>-Worked for 2 years as a paralegal with the DOJ while I was still considering law school, currently volunteering with a non-profit on human trafficking issues</p>
<p>Is it even worth trying this year, or should I get some more experience abroad and improve my foreign language skills before giving it a shot?</p>
<p>Hey guys,
It’s been a few months since I last visited, so its good to see this thread is still alive. </p>
<p>I am living in South Korea for the next year. I decided to move here and teach English in the hopes that it would fill in at least a little bit for my lack of foreign work experience. I also thought that becoming proficient in Korean would help my chances since language skills are so important for an IR degree. Unfortunately, it wasn’t until I arrived in Korea that I learned how freakishly difficult it is to learn the language. From everything I’ve heard/read, it takes about 2 years to reach a basic conversational level (short, short sentences). Obviously, 1 year is not going to be enough to get me to any significant level. </p>
<p>That being said, is the value gained from a tiny bit of language skill worth the trouble of studying 20ish hours a week? If schools like AU or GW wouldn’t value me any more with that little bit of proficiency, then I don’t think I’m going to bother putting in that kind of work. I’ll still practice out of necessity, but certainly not to that high a level. </p>
<p>So, yeah. Is reaching that low a level of Korean worth it to me?</p>
<p>Thanks.</p>
<p>PS
I would have posted this as a new thread, but this one just gets way more traffic and response than any other new threads I’ve created. I apologize.</p>