PhD in political science question?

Question

I am finishing my MA in International Relations soon and would like to apply for my PhD. The problem is that I did not do great on my GREs, average on verbal and 6.0 on my analytical, but very poor in math. My GPA is also kind of low for a grad student (about 3.2). I was curious as to how likely my chances would be of getting into a decent PhD program, like top 20 or so? I've been looking at a few good schools, like UCLA, Boston College, Northwestern, George Washington, Vanderbilt, etc. Any chance of someone with grades and scores like mine getting in here? I'm just not sure of the quality of schools I should be focusing on, thanks.

Answer 1

I strongly advise you to retake your GREs. Don't worry so much about the math score, but you've got to do much better than average on your verbal score when it comes to PhD admissions. 80th percentile or higher should do it.

(Your GPA is low, so you need to compensate for that somehow. At the schools you've mentioned, most other applicants will have much higher scores and GPAs.)

I also suggest that you include in your applications an absolutely outstanding example of your written work (perhaps a chapter of your Master's thesis). Ask the Director of Graduate Studies of each program to which you are applying if you can include this.
Make sure it demonstrates your facility with theory and method. Your personal statement should also be impeccably written, and should clearly delineate your specific area of focus.

If your letters of recommendation are extremely supportive, that will help a lot, too.

Best wishes to you!

Answer 2

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