Admissions to masters programs

I've looked around the forums but haven't really found what I'm looking for:

Basically, I'm a student at UC Berkeley who has one year left in undergrad and am looking to pursue a masters degree in international relations and am looking toward the UK. However, I'm not sure where to start in terms of figuring out what programs to apply to, specifically regarding how difficult it is to get into various programs.

ie, is there an expectation, as with American MBA programs, that candidates have work experience in the field before starting a masters program or do many people move directly from undergrad to gradutate programs?

Is admission more difficult when applying from abroad?

Do most admissions decisions come down to gpa? recommendations? extracurricular activities? writing skill? other things?

More specifically, advice regarding IR programs would be appreciated, but really any links to good sources for this kind of info would great.

~Darryl

Reply 1

Unregistered

Hi
try http://www.educationuk.org
you can search for courses from there
it gives you usefull information about the course, fees, and the university in general
good luck

Reply 2

JustaGuy

dgstein

More specifically, advice regarding IR programs would be appreciated, but really any links to good sources for this kind of info would great.

~Darryl

This thread might help abit, or at least get you started somewhere:

http://www.thestudentroom.co.uk/t94650.html

Good luck!

Reply 3

Teabag

The expectation that you have work experience is generally only for MBA programs. Going straight from undergrad to postgraduate in academic disciplines is very common.

Applying from abroad is not likely to make a difference as most masters' courses don't interview. Admission will be based on your personal statement, GPA and references. Most places won't ask that you take the GRE although if you have taken it they might look at the scores. Schools usually ask for at minimum a 2.1 degree (about a 3.2 GPA) - for the top schools you will need a First (maybe 3.5/6). IR-related subjects tend to have a lot of foreign students anyway, especially in London (e.g. the LSE). Oxford has a 2-year Masters in IR (you could apply for the Rhodes Scholarship for that). Most courses are one year. Total cost including fees is around 20,000 pounds ($40,000) per year for an international student. Hope this helps...

Reply 4

evilcitizen

dgstein

I've looked around the forums but haven't really found what I'm looking for:

Basically, I'm a student at UC Berkeley who has one year left in undergrad and am looking to pursue a masters degree in international relations and am looking toward the UK. However, I'm not sure where to start in terms of figuring out what programs to apply to, specifically regarding how difficult it is to get into various programs.

ie, is there an expectation, as with American MBA programs, that candidates have work experience in the field before starting a masters program or do many people move directly from undergrad to gradutate programs?

More specifically, advice regarding IR programs would be appreciated, but really any links to good sources for this kind of info would great.

~Darryl

You don't need work experience for an IR masters in the UK.

UK universities want more foreigners because they pay more. However, competition in the best masters progams in the UK is really intense now due to the dramatic increase in the number of foreigners applying.

Since you're already coming from Berkeley, you should only consider the top IR programs in the UK. Oxford and LSE are arguably the best places to do a masters in IR, especially if you want a program with international reputation. Considering the cost, and difficulty in getting funding, I'm not sure it's worth applying anywhere else when you could go to equally good programs in the US and secure funding much more easily.

Oxford
http://www.politics.ox.ac.uk/applicants/grad/

LSE
http://www.lse.ac.uk/Depts/intrel/InfoProspective.htm

Reply 5

LSE_PostGradQT

Hey DGStein,

I'm a post-grad at the LSE, and also lived in the US a long time (including for my undergrad). LSE has one of the world's best IR programs, and my friends in the program seem to be quite satisfied. If you are interested in the LSE, I'd suggest you apply in before December 05 for Fall 06 start. The course tends to close soon after.

They seem to look at a mixture of things- GPA is quite important (most of my American course mates have 3.7+), and very strong recommendations seem to also be up there. The application is quite short.

Though maybe 30% (rough estimate) of the applicants seem to come straight out of UG, it seems if this is the case, make your reccomendations/statement very strong. There's the general impression that you can still get in with a 3.5 GPA if you have some kickass work experience, but otherwise you better have a pretty strong case for why you want to start a MSc straight after UG.

I know you didn't ask this question, but I'd really advise you to consider whether it's a good idea coming to a master's program straight out of UG. My coursemates w/no work experience, always say they feel their understanding isn't as grounded/complex because they lack real world training. I personally worked 3 years in 3 different countries before starting with my Masters, and I doubt I would have gotten as much out of it other wise (ie in knowing exactly what my passion was/what questions I wanted to explore etc)

Hope this was helpful!