Pursuing Graduate Studies at "Wonk University" - Book Review

Pursuing graduate studies is difficult regardless of your chosen field of study, which is why there are loads of guides, books, magazines, and websites to help you select the right school for you. This is true of medical schools, law schools, social work schools, art schools... Yet there are very few resources dedicated to graduate studies in public policy and international relations. Instead, potential applicants of such "wonk" programs must search through university propaganda, random alumni connections, and subsections of online discussion boards (Grad Cafe, for me). Most of these applicants quickly realize that they are map-less in a forest of competing acronyms and buzzwords.

Until now, that is, as someone took a shot at making a map for those very applicants. That someone is Dan Perez and that map is Wonk University - The Inside Guide to Apply and Succeed in International Relations and Public Policy Graduate Schools. Dan, a graduate of Columbia's Schoool of International and Public Affairs, wrote an excellent overview for applying to "wonk" universities. Dan defines these schools to include Master degrees in public policy, public administration, international relations, international development, and more. Think MPAs, MPPs, MIAs, MAIDs, MDPs... you get the idea. He breaks down every part of the grad school process, from school research to comparisons to selection to applications to actual attendance and job searching. This book attempts to fill the void that "wonk" applicants have felt for years as they tried to manage these processes more or less alone. So, does it succeed?

When I received a copy of the book to review, I was a bit skeptical. Having only graduated in May, I have not yet fully determined my own feelings on the grad school experience. It took me and most of my grad school colleagues many months to find good job fits for ourselves. Even once we found those fits, they were usually lower-level than we would like. Some grads returned to their old jobs or ones very similar. Others took low-paying fellowships or jobs. Still others remain unemployed. As grad students, we pull ourselves out of the work force for two years only to return to a seemingly more-competitive job market. On top of all of this, many students I have met do not really know what they want to get out of grad school, and are therefore a bit lost. Or they felt like their experience was not "as good" as their colleague's and they must be doing something wrong. I often find myself wondering if everyone who applies to grad school should be there or if they just feel they "had" to go. This is what makes offering "wonk" grad school advice so challenging - each person has a different set of experiences, plans, and goals. How could someone write a book to address them all?

Well, this book eased my concerns in the first of its ten big lessons:

Everyone's experience in a Wonk University is their OWN. To enjoy the experience, first understand YOUR needs, then find the University that meets them.

Alright, you hooked me. This book is meant to be a starting point for everyone, a way of addressing the common questions while also allowing room for personal reflection and decision-making. Each of the book's chapters could be a book unto itself, but instead the author sticks with an overview format that is short and easy-to-read. It is up to the reader to follow-up on any one specific chapter.

The book specifically addresses 12 universities, including Columbia SIPA, Harvard Kennedy School, Johns Hopkins SAIS, Princeton Woodrow Wilson, Tufts Fletcher, and a few others. This means your personal school-of-interest might not be in here. But do not worry, it is in good company with the likes of NYU Wagner or London School of Economics (in fact, only schools in the United States are focused). Yet the beauty of this book is not in the detailed data for the select programs, but rather in the advice that is applicable to just about any "wonk"-type grad school. You can find reasonably-reliable data for your particular school elsewhere, but here you get generalized (yet useful) advice, such as:

• "You learn more from your 20 closest classmates than any professor." (Which I have been preaching since I first arrived at SIPA)
• Don't choose a school based on a specific professor. (Anyone in my graduating class who was expecting a class at SIPA from a certain poverty trap-breaker would have been wise to just wait for the Coursera course)
• Personal networking is more likely to land you a job then anything else.
• Free food is the lifeblood of grad students. (In my experience, mostly cheap pizza. Do NOT hesitate or you will miss out)

There are still a few thoughts I would love to see addressed in future editions, in addition to including a few more schools. Some of the sections seem to encourage putting your own career development above all else. It is important to be determined and know what you want from grad school, but there are other aspects you need to focus on to both grow personally and professionally. These aspects include keeping commitments to group members (which you will have so, so very many of during your studies) - I have known too many people who put their own personal commitments above group commitments, which makes you wonder how they will operate in the workplace. Also included is the need to network in a genuine social sense and not a cold, calculating one. At times, I felt like the book was suggesting students choose colleagues based on how helpful you think they will be later in life. There are definitely people like this in grad school (and in life, as anyone at a happy hour in DC can tell you), but this strategy was always a huge turn-off for me. Still is, matter of fact.

Finally, I would like to see more attention given to whether or not potential applicants should be going to graduate school at all. Perhaps a discussion of alternative ways to break into a specific sector or reach a certain job-level would be useful. I know it seems like everyone has a master's degree in certain places (cough cough, DC) or certain fields (ahem, international development), but there needs to be a discussion of what other options are out there for people. I am curious to hear more about alternative methods of study or career advancement (*).

Overall, I liked the book, even though as an alum I am no longer the target audience (though I know a few colleagues who may still benefit from the job search section). This book is a great first step for anyone considering master's-level grad school in development / policy / international relations / etc. I think it would be especially useful for those who are attempting to research grad schools while working overseas with poor internet resources; as someone who applied to grad school while in rural Madagascar, I could have definitely used this book as a starting point.

So if you're considering grad school but don't know where to begin, try this book. If you'd like to learn more, check out the website, wonkuniversity.com.




(*) Duncan Green is asking similar questions on his blog - so perhaps that is one starting point.

[Speaking of grad school, for Development Grad Students it is not too late to read Jennifer Ambrose's resolutions]



A few disclaimers: I also attended SIPA, though did not know Dan. I received a free copy of the book to review, but with no strings attached. Just FYI...