UCLAri

I think that the breadth and depth of course offerings is a big deal, especially when you start studying languages that plenty of schools only offer 2 or 3 years of (UCLA offers 4 or more of all of them.)

Also, the quality of the instructors and professors. There is a big difference, in my eyes, between someone with no real pedagogy education and a person who's done significant studies into how language is actually learned.

tonks

Help! I want to go to Japan my junior year........but I'm a chem major and I don't know how to speak any japanese yet. I talked to the EAP ppl, and if I want to go on a year-long plan (which I do! the full year!) and actually take upper div chem classes there, I need to have at least three years of japanese........so I've got a year and a half to learn "3 years" of japanese, whatever that means...

I'll do whatever it takes...study every single day...
but I need to know whether it's realistic at all to self-study and test out of a few quarters of japanese

I'm really, really serious about this...people keep telling me to just go for a summer, but I can't really adjust to Japan in 6 weeks...

UCLAri

tonks,

Here's a battle plan.

You have the summer, right? If you can test out of 1, 2, and 3 by the summer, you can do accelerated 4, 5, and 6. Then, you can do 100A, 100B, and 100C the next academic year.

Then, you have 3 years.

The trick is to do 1, 2, and 3 and test into accelerated year 2. Good luck!

tonks

thank you! i'm gonna do it! where can i find out about 4-5-6 in the summer?

UCLAri

I think it's just "intensive Japanese 2" or something. Check the summer listings when they come out.

Altema

Is it required to have taken that much Japanese to study abroad? I want to study abroad next winter quarter (for only one quarter) and chances are I would have finished Jap 4 or Jap 3 by that time.

UCLAri

Altema,

I think that tonks needs more because of her major. You should be fine with 3 or 4 for most stuff.

H4MOR

Hi UCLAri!

I already posted this in another thread, but as you seem to be one of the most informed people in here concerning IR I couldn't hold myself from asking here as well. I'm a bit desperate about my future plans and would really appreciate some tips!

I'm about to graduate in European Studies (Major Pol Sci, Minors Law and Recent History) in Germany and want to do a MA in IR. Now I also think about applying for some programs in the USA. But there are some points that cause doubts, mainly because of the different education systems.

First, I'm not sure if my 3-years-BA will count as much as an American one and will affect my competitiveness adversely.

Second, in Europe we typically do the MA directly after the BA. The chance to get a job with only a BA is very poor. Now I'm wondering how this lack of work experience does effect my chances to be admitted to a US-program.

Third, in Europe generally the GRE isn't needed for an MA and I'm not too keen on taking it. Now I won't have the time for that any more anyway. I found some programs where the GRE is not compulsory: JHU, Pittsburgh, American, Monterey and Columbia. How important is the GRE to boost the chances to be taken? Are my chances evanescently low if I apply without it?

Of course I would wanna try to get into some of the top programs as for a mediocre one I could just as well stay here in Europe. My final GPA will be somewhere between 3.5 and 4.0, whereas the average grade of my exams might be about 3.3..Well it's not that clear how to convert the grade systems.

Considering these facts I'm not quite sure if it's even worth applying and if I got serious chances. This brings us back to the question how important it is to have a prestigious US-school on the resume. There are still quite a few good programs around the world (which are also way cheaper). I also think about going to the UK, the Netherlands or Australia (where the Australian National U, U of Melbourne and U of Sydney have a pretty good reputation).

UCLAri

H4MOR,

I'm pretty sure that most American MA programs want 4-year or 4-year equivalent degrees. I'm not sure how degree programs work in Germany (sorry!), but I suspect that a 3-year-BA will probably be okay for a number of programs. I started to read over the wikipedia page on German college education, but it's rather long-winded and convoluted, so I'd appreciate the basics if you don't mind.

However, I think that JHU and American are most certainly good programs that will get you good offers. Where do you plan on working in the long run?

H4MOR

Thanks for the quick answer UCLAri!
Well the problem with the german BA/MA-system is that it is just being introduced, so it's really irritating for us, too. They introduce the BA/BA programs in order to make it worldwide comparable, which actually just isn't the fact.
Basically we have a 3-year-BA, followed by a 2-year-MA (There are no 4-year-BAs or 1-year-MAs in Germany), which you usually directly attend after graduating. The problem with finding a job with your BA is that the new degrees are still unknown to the employees, so they expect an MA which is more or less equal to the former Diplom.
At my university's international office they told me that a lot of American universities officially state they wouldn't accept 3-year-BAs, but in most cases they do actually accept them inofficially.
So my main concern is that my applications might have no chance in top programs like SAIS, SIPA or SIS just for not handing in a GRE and not having several years of work experience. From what I've read in this forum this is exactly what's highly essential.
In the long run I would like to work in an international organization or NGO, but I also think about making a PhD and beginning an acadamic career.

UCLAri

My experience is that you need at least 1 to 2 years of work experience for top 10 programs. The GRE is absolutely essential, for better or for worse. Many will take the GMAT, however.

My opinion on this is that anything that isn't top 10 amongst the IR programs really is not worth dropping the money on. You'd be better off working two years and reapplying with the intent of getting into a better program.

In the US, name matters quite a bit. I don't know how much name matters in Germany, however.

H4MOR

In Germany names don't matter as much as in the US, as the differences between the german universities aren't as big. If you wanna make a difference you get a degree from abroad, which will give you great advantages. But you definitely kick ass with a degree from a US-top-programm. And as I plan to work in the international arena I have to look what employees expect worldwide anyways. That's why maybe I should really consider to start working after my BA, although I'd prefer to continue studying. Tough decision..

Terr

How hard is it to get onto the English or Art History course at UCLA?

I'm applying for a year abroad there (I study at University of Edinburgh). I'm also thinking of possibly transferring after this year is done.

Any advice? I know that UCLA is a difficult school to get into. But I'm thinking that, academically, I should be alright since some people who get into Cambridge aren't even given offers from Edinburgh.

UCLAri

Terr,

I'd LOVE to give you help about transferring from the UK, but this is a subject that is far FAR outside of my area of knowledge. Here's what my GUT feeling tells me:

Coursework that's 2.1 and above will be necessary. Where you transfer from is pretty meaningless. You'll probably have to spend the money to change your honors into 4.0 scale grades.

Or is Edinburgh on the 4.0 system? I apologize if it is, but I don't honestly know which schools in the UK are and are not. I absolutely know that Edinburgh is a fantastic school, so I wouldn't be too worried about the reputation.

As for specific major (we call it major in the US), don't worry. Admission is not decided by major, but by the college. In your case, you're trying for Letters and Science, which is not the hardest to get into.

Terr

Ah, I see.
No Edinburgh is not on the 4.0 scale. We use letter grades as well as degree numericals (1st, 2:1, 2:2 and 3rd)

It's all a bit different, but my coursework is all definitely above 2.1 so far. And it's so odd that Letters and Science isn't one of the harder ones. It's heavily over-subscribed over here.

Maybe I can use this to my advantage.

Thanks a lot for your advice!