<p>I’m want to go to graduate school to major in International Relations, but I’m not sure if I’m ready or not. I currently attend a college that has not been very challenging to say the least and I’m not sure how much this will help me if/when I go to graduate school.</p>
<p>Right now I’m a economics major with a 4.0 GPA. I have junior standing but should be a sophomore, but had a lot of AP credits transferred in.</p>
<p>Things look like I will be graduating in 3 years. I know many people say you should get professional experience of some sort if you’re graduating early, but I have that. Before I graduated high school, I was hired on by a foreign government agency who agreed to pay for my undergraduate studies. Meaning I am an employee and I get all the benefits. I work full time during the breaks and part time the rest of the time.</p>
<p>The only thing I am worried about is the lack of challenge from my current school. Maybe I’m just a genius and I don’t know it yet…Some of the schools I’m interested in for graduate studies are: John Hopkins, Columbia, American University, George Washington.</p>
<p>The questions I have are:
- Am I’m ready for graduate school?
- How hard is it to get accepted into one of these schools?
- How hard is graduate school?
- What can I do to better prepare myself for graduate school? </p>
<p>I don’t think staying at this school is going to challenge me any more than it already has (or has not). So I’m wondering: what do I do???</p>
<p>Let me get this straight: you want to go to grad school because you don’t feel challenged enough? That’s not a good enough reason. </p>
<p>You state your employer is paying for your undergraduate education. Are you taking any other electives (especially in international relations?)? Look at your options before you apply to graduate school. How long does your employer want you to stay with them after you finish the degree? Do they want you to pursue a graduate degree?</p>
<p>The International Relations MA programs are very competitive. Econ Grad School (especially the PhD level) is for serious folks who can’t see themselves doing anything else but math and economics.</p>
<p>No, I want to go to graduate school because that’s the career path I want to take. My only dilemma is I don’t know if my undergraduate studies have prepared me for graduate school.</p>
<p>As far as electives are concerned, my school doesn’t have any courses that relate to the international relations field of study…although I don’t think that will hurt me, since the professional experience more than makes up for it.</p>
<p>Even though it’s not mandatory, my employer would prefer a year of work per year of school. But as time goes on I’m considering more and more of making it a career since there are a lot of incentives that come with the particular program I am under.</p>
<p>You won’t know until you get there in terms of preparation for grad school. Sometimes if you tell your professors are you want to get your MA, they might try to step up their game and challenge you a bit more in their classes.</p>
<p>Mainly just read A LOT, anything related to what you’re interested in studying.</p>
<p>I agree with tensighs- check with your employer to see if you have to work for them for a couple years before you’re off the hook. If you do, you have plenty of time to think about going to graduate school. You don’t have to go right away…</p>
<p>After some talking to various people I was able to find that my school does have an International Relations class and one other political class but they don’t open it unless you inquire about it. So, I will be taking both of them.</p>
<p>My employer doesn’t care whether I go to graduate school straight away. They are even considering paying for graduate school. What I’m actually hoping to do is get into a school close enough so I can continue to work part time…</p>