<p>There is probably a thread on this or there has been advice on this before so I am sorry if this might be another one of those posts.</p>
<p>Anyway. I wanted to know where most people go to graduate school if they graduate from a university that is considered a "top institution". Let me phrase it a better way than that for those of you who don't quite know what I am getting at. I go to Vanderbilt University (a well-known school that is ranked in the top 20 national universities via USNews). I don't ever rely on rankings or believe in their accuracy, but for all intensive purposes, the rankings show it to be one up there with the best. Vanderbilt has great name recognition (prestige) and wonderful academics (I am not glouting, I am trying to set the basis). </p>
<p>My major is Political Science along with a minor in History and my special specialty within my major is International Politics. I plan on getting my masters after I graduate in order to not only improve my chances at landing a job by concentrating on a specific field but to also give myself more options.</p>
<p>I've looked at schools with good graduate programs in Poli Sci, but am not sure as to what schools to aim for. My main question, though, is if I graduate from a school like Vanderbilt, would going to school such as the University of Colorado- Boulder, Penn State, or the University of Florida hurt my prospects in the long run? Would it look better on a resume with a masters from Duke or an Ivy? In other words, would it be better to shoot for a top notch graduate program or settling for a school that would be on a lower level?</p>
<p>What should I look for in a graduate program? Is there something specific that I need to make sure I look at? And for graduate degrees, is a masters really worth it or would a Bachelor's be sufficient enough to get a job at a government agency or international organization?</p>
<p>“The best” graduate schools vary widely by field. As meaningless as USNWR rankings are for undergrad, they’re even more useless for graduate education.</p>
<p>Talk to your professors. Examine leading journals to see which professors are doing research in your specialty of interest. Look at department Web sites for faculty CVs and research interests.</p>
<p>And no, a thousand times no, to your question about Florida, Penn State, etc. How on Earth would a graduate degree from such a school possibly hurt your job prospects?</p>
<p>Graduates from top places go to many different places. My daughter went to Brown and now goes to UW-Madison for grad school. It is a step up in ‘ranking’ as far as grad schools slightly, but really you have to look at good schools in your prospective field. </p>
<p>When you look at grad schools, you don’t much consider the undergrad ‘ranking’ or ‘prestige’. You look at the grad school and you ought to be able to research which schools have academic and employer prestige at that level. Get busy.</p>
<p>I don’t know anything about poli sci, so hopefully you will get a better answer soon. But most people try for the best schools they are qualified for and have some great backup schools.</p>
<p>There are soooo many factors that go into graduate school choices that it is impossible to say where students from “top institutions” would, or even should, go. You’ll find classmates going to tippy top programs in their fields and others enrolling in online master’s programs – and everything in between. You need to determine what’s best for you, including the timing of applying to graduate school, and then proceed from there without worrying about what others are doing. My own D went to a top LAC, and she turned down a program that people we know say, “What? She turned down THAT school?” to attend a graduate program that was much better for what she wanted to study/research. </p>
<p>Talk to your professors. They are the best gauge of your talents and potential, and they should know where other Vandy students with similar profiles had success. Ultimately, you’ll have to decide which programs are best for you, but at least they’ll be able to guide you.</p>
<p>When you use the term international politics, I am assuming you mean International Relations or IR. Is that right?</p>
<p>I am in the process of applying to grad school in both Poli Sci (comparative politics/IR combination) and Middle Eastern Studies. Many “top” programs in academic poli sci are only interested in doctoral applicants and even some schools that will accept MA applicants do not fund them. Since I need funding, that is a consideration for me. I graduated from an undergrad very similar to yours, a top twenty university that’s private. This year, I’m studying advanced Arabic in Cairo.</p>
<p>Are you interested in a policy degree in International Relations from a place like Fletcher at Tufts, the Elliott School at George Washington, the Walsch Foreign Service School at Georgetown etc. that helps prepare you for government jobs? Or are you mainly interested in an academic poli sci degree that specializes in International Relations?</p>
<p>Well I am hoping that I can secure a job within an agency that encompasses being an analyst. I have an affinity for the work that most analysts do in the Defense Department, CIA, NSA, that sort of thing. The basic requirements for these jobs entail at least a Bachelor’s with a minimum of a 3.0 gpa with the recommended majors (poli sci, something like Russian Studies, IR) So I am on the right track thus far, but I feel a masters is necessary in order to ensure that I can get a job. </p>
<p>I will have to talk to some of my professors and my advisor to see what graduate schools and programs they recommend and how successful these have been for students.</p>
<p>And yes I do mean International Relations, at Vandy they don’t have that specific major and include it in Poli Sci as International Politics.</p>
<p>Do you have any languages, especially what the government defines as “critical” languages? This would be a big plus…it actually adds points to your exam and file. One possibility is to apply for a summer Critical Languages Scholarship that will let you study overseas. For some languages, you must already be at the advanced beginner or intermediate level to do this. But there are some languages (Urdu, for example) where you can begin your study in the overseas program starting from square one.</p>
<p>I am actually in my 2nd year of Russian which is considered critical I believe.</p>