A career in security policy - advice needed
Hi there...
I'm not sure if this is something I can ask on the SWJ forum, or if I've put it in the right area of the forum, but I seem to be running into brick walls everywhere so I thought it would be worth a shot. If this post is either inappropriate, or in the wrong forum, please feel free to delete/move it.
I’m currently a UK citizen and have just graduated with a BA in Political Science. I know that I want to eventually live and work in the USA in a policy career but, having sought advice from every avenue available, I’m still unsure what the best route into that career is.
My original intention was to pursue a PhD in the USA, with a view to enhancing my research skills and gaining detailed knowledge of one area of policy (security studies, specifically counterterrorism and counterinsurgency) but I have been told by a few people in both UK and US academia that a PhD will only help me for a career in academia, and make me unattractive to potential policy employers.
I had hoped that I could use a PhD to work in policy and then go into teaching in later life, but that now looks like it isn’t a commonly taken path. I have been advised that an MA in International Relations or a JD would provide a better route into American policy positions.
I’m at a bit of a loss now as I’m really not sure what the best route to take would be. I have a real passion for politics and research, and I feel that doing advanced study of security issues would prepare me well for a career related to that field, but I worry that studying a JD would prepare me to be a lawyer rather than a policy practitioner and as an international student funding is also a big issue, and few MA courses offer a full-ride to international students. I've also been told that mentioning that I want a career in policy could be the kiss of death for any PhD applications.
My grades at undergraduate were good (I graduated with a First Class honours degree) and I have volunteered in the Middle East and worked as a Conflict Resolution intern at the Carter Center. I’m prepared to work as hard as it takes to get where I want, but I feel unsure as to where I should direct my energies.
Any advice at all would be hugely appreciated.
Thanks a lot.
My advice is as nebulous as ...
this ...
Quote:
I know that I want to eventually live and work in the USA in a policy career ....
which is not a criticism - it's just that there are a lot of policy careers.
One thing you have probably considered (I hope) is US citizenship. Some doors are closed without it (e.g., military officer and many equivalent agency officers).
My standard advice is a PhD (in a field that you really like and will spend the rest of your life in) or a JD (rather general purpose, as Schmedlap says).
My own school (and any top tier US law school) will have more than adequate course fare for someone interested in I Law and Comp Law. E.g., Center for International and Comparative Law. That can be expanded into a Dual Degree Program.
When I did it (40+ years ago), I went through three years of law school without a break. The first summer was spent on required courses, to allow a semester of optional and grad level I Law courses. The second summer (and a lot of my last 1-1/2 years at school) was devoted to ghost-writing appellate briefs - one to the US Supreme Court (SCOTUS, as is its want, declined to hear the case :)). For someone not intending to be a lawyer (i.e., "barrister", which was my want), the "vacation time" could be spent on something else.
So, if you do not have some definite field in mind, you should give consideration to a top tier JD, with possible inclusion of a dual degree program.
Now, having done my good deed for the day (realizing that no good deed goes unpunished), I shall return to sipping my shot of $200/bottle Irish booze (which my wife declares is "yucky stuff"). It's my birthday; and judging from the level in the bottle (and at one shot per year), I will have at least a decade more of bothering one and all here at SWC. ;)
Bonne Chance in your future efforts,
Mike
Ideas, you have youth and a lifetime ahead on your side
David's advice makes the most pragmatic sense, having read over everyone's inputs back to your original questions.
There are examples of one to any combination of programs anyone can bring up.
You need to focus on what you want to do and get started.
"Anything" is possible if you row your own boat positively, are intellectually honest, and work hard. No starting point is "too low"...those who are too good to do lesser level work are intellectual bums and never amount to much in my experience.
Again, I like David's advice. Listen to Dave, and maybe go see and talk with him. He has done well with Scotland Yard (now International side of same) is my perception.
Brainy despite deceptive blog name!
Schmedlap, you are indeed a "closet brain!"
I have to respectfully disagree
Quote:
Originally Posted by
George L. Singleton
Go for the law degree (JD) by all means. Over a lifetime top lawyers sail their own courses and many have ended up start to finish in careers in the US Dept. of State; US Treasury Dept.; US Dept. of Commerce; CIA; DIA; National Security Council...and of course in the busienss world with international law focused firms.
While this was true in the past, and is still true to a degree, this is rapidly changing. If you want to be a lawyer, then by all means get a law degree, otherwise it is not worth your money. 120k$ would be tuition only at a top law school, and would not include books, housing, travel etc. Even in a place like NC which has a few top schools that can easily top 200k$. If you are looking at Cambridge, Mass. you might even top 300k$. A law degree won't hurt you, but it won't help you any more as a non-lawyer than a MA from a good program, which will be much cheaper.
Something that you might not know is that many top schools now offer 1 year MA's in International Relations. I just graduated from one at the University of Chicago and it was a perfect program for finding out what I wanted to do. I previously had worked for a DoD agency for some time, and I discovered that while I liked that, I like research a whole lot more. The advantage of these programs is that they really help you to sort out what you really like, without costing a fortune, and give you a great head start on whatever you want to do afterwards. Many people will get some financial aid, and the burden won't be terrible.
As far as the PhD goes, if you want to end up in the U.S. and ever hope to teach, then an American PhD is the way to go. There are a few schools in Europe which are viewed well, but the lack of course work generally means that American PhDs get primacy in hiring. If all you ever want to do is to work in politics, then you probably only need an MA to start, and can get a PhD later on.
There is, however, a big advantage to the PhD, and that is money. If a school really wants you, they will give you a fellowship. That is true at almost all of the top schools. There are programs out there, like George Mason (a great institution) which actually don't give a lot of fellowships, but generally rely on local students who will pay the residential rate. Those would be great for a person who mostly wants to go into policy, but would be prohibitively expensive for a Brit, without financial aide.
Regardless the route that you choose, I cannot stress enough that you should try and go to a top school. If you end up in policy it really won't matter where you got your degree, but if you are unsure about what you want to do, or you want to keep your options open (and you really should), going to a top 10-20 school will really help. Moreover, they are top programs for a reason, and you will have better peers to learn from, and better teachers to work with, and a better alumni association to tap into. Of course, you have to do a cost benefit assesment, but when push comes to shove, a person applying from a top program will always have a leg up.
Be advised that because of the economic downturn there will be many more applicants to school this year, especially law and business schools. However, if you have any more specific questions, feel free to PM me. Also, I am still at the University of Chicago, which has a PhD both in Public Policy and in Political Science, and I would be happy to answer any q's about that as well.
Considering all that has been said ...
a feasible and conservative course of action is that suggested by my friend David - a short stay in the UK at whatever you fancy as the 25m target. While you are working on hitting that, you can assess such things as US citizenship and the timeframe required; as well as determining the 50m and 100m targets for the future.
No disrespect to law school
I mean no disrespect to law school. It is the best way to become a lawyer, by far. Schmedlap is dead on about the importance of the alumni network as well. If someone is in the military or already has a set gig lined up, then it doesn't matter as much, but boy does it matter early on. I cannot speak overly knowledgably about working summers, except from those of my friends who are in law school tell me that if you want the big bucks those summers are very important where you intern. Nowadays, those internships are not highly paid if at all, so you can't plan on working summers to pay off student loan debt. Unfortunately, jobs in the policy world don't take into account your student loan debt in hiring. In the end, it is a cost benefit analysis, and the cost of law school is high relative to its benefit for entering a policy position, but low relative to the benefit of becoming a lawyer.
I do think that a MA program would be a good idea, and if you are on the fence, staying in Britain is not a bad idea. However, if you are certain that the US is the place for you, then it is better to make the leap now. Like I said, there are several one year, American MA programs which will have a much lower cost. Go to the best one you can. Truthfully, you can probably learn as much on your own, but hiring is almost always better coming out of a top program. Is it right? No, but that is the way it is. For a good discussion on the US application process, and all of the intricacies of applications go to The Grad Cafe.
Finally, I didn't get my MA until I was 32. I don't feel one bit behind the 8-ball, and actually my experience has made it a lot easier in some ways. Don't feel rushed. There is plenty of time.