International Relations Masters

My point is that places like NGOs, the World Bank, think tanks, and the like, are not going to discriminate between an IR and Global Politics graduate, on the basis of the departments' reputation.

Heh, then you haven't been on the DC side of things. You're assuming you know what's going on, but I will tell you from actual experience that that's not always the case.

Again, it's a matter of strategy. How do you position your studies in the overall arc of what you want to do, and how do you convey that. The World Bank especially is a place that puts a lot of stock on reputation. The point is, you never know what points an employer will look at, so it's good to know the overall contours of reputation and more importantly, everything else that will affect your enjoyment of a program.

Look, let's leave it at this: reputation matters, even something as minute as the reputation between departments. You never know what impact it's going to have on a future employer, and really you shouldn't be worried about that. But you don't do anyone any favors by saying these issues never factor in. They do, but it's up the individual - and his or her individual assessment of their situation - to weigh how much of an impact it will have, and whether it's even worth worrying about. In those calculations, it's a mistake to say that the reputation issue isn't there, but it's definitely a point to say that it shouldn't matter in your overall deliberations.

Chengora, if I remember correctly, you stated that you hire from LSE applicant pool.... If I apply and don't get accepted, how do you think a Manchester degree would look on a resume? I know studying abroad deffinately looks good on a resume, but will manchester be respected only because it's in England, or do you feel the qualtity of education at manchester has created a reputation for the school that will garner respect regardless of location?

Seriously? This is exactly what I'm talking about: the constant need to engage in personal attacks, when what you really should be discussing is the frame of experience that let's you say "this is the case".

And I didn't say that the World Bank wouldn't hire GP grads. Rather, they are more conscious than most of other employers. Look, I keep giving you nuanced points, how everything really comes down to the individual circumstance, and you're constantly misinterpreting what I'm saying. These are GENERAL trends, but as you should know from your methodology, general trends don't say anything about how specific instances will necessarily turn out.

And by the same token, you're making the same mistake when you say my behavior fits into a larger trend of what "IR students are like". From what I've seen on this board, you've got a persistent bias against them. I don't know why, and I'd be happy to introduce you to any of my friends who also did IR, are great people, and don't look down on students who went to different programs. Simply because you have your own stereotypes and hang ups, don't take it out on people you don't know. Stick to the issues, not the personal attacks. You sure as hell better figure that out before you start at the ibank (I think that's what you said you were doing?). My girlfriend works for one of the best in that field, and you'll go a lot further if you can get over this issue..

Shady, if you don't mind me asking what did you major in at Stanford, I have a friend majoring in I.R. out there, and it would be interesting to hear anoter perspective on Stanford's I.R. department. She's landed some awesome internships in oakland, and is doing the berlin internship that's being offered through Stanford this fall...

p.s. please excuse the crappy grammar, as i read through my post i feel like getting out the red sharpie!!

Look, I've been out of LSE for several years now. I'm applying for a Ph.D. in poli sci in the best programs in the U.S., I've worked in top jobs in top companies in foreign policy, and I've published several papers while working. I won two awards for my dissertation, and I was the student-staff rep my year and played a critical role in fundamentally revamping three IR courses. I regularly advise and talk with people about LSE, especially in comparison to other MA schools, because I hire from that pool.

What sort of dissertation topics are floating about at the moment?

British IR is much more history focused, which is great for many people of course. It's also very traditional, in the sense of state-centered analysis. In undergrad, we talked loads about the market, NGOs, and other non-state actors, but at Oxford that was kind of non-existent.

Although I would agree that British IR is much more history focused, I wouldn't say that it is necessarily dominated by state-centered analysis to the expense of alternative theories. Aside from the English School, there is a strong critical and postpostivist strand to British IR; something that rests on more philosophical and ethical concerns.

I'm looking at oil in relation to development. Basically I'm saying that oil's nature as a highly globalized commodity, combined with the historical role of sub-Saharan Africa in the global economy, explains the development trajectory of the region's oil exporters. Kind of framing the resource curse in historical perspective and challenging some of its assertions.