GWEN TAYLOR, Comparative Politics

My name is Gwen, and I'm a fifth year doctoral student in comparative politics with a particular interest in African civil war. My thesis examines the microdynamics of participation in armed movements using Liberia and Burundi as case studies.

My dissertation will investigate why individuals participate in rebel movements. I look at five principle motivations: survival, fear, revenge, power and respect. I will explore the fact that participation is typically a very individual, isolated decision that is more often than not made without consulting family or the town leadership. This is striking, considering how involved family and community are in other aspects of African life. It will also demonstrate that the phenomenon of a soldier seeking fortune is fairly rareÑnot unheard of, but certainly not the norm that the international community seems to think it is. Participation is sometimes driven by material rewards, but typically in cases where survival is at stake. Issues of revenge, power, fear, respect and survival are most commonly at the root of decisions to fight.

The Burundi case study is being conducted as part of a larger survey project implemented by Michael Gilligan (NYU), Macartan Humphreys (Columbia), myself and Cyrus Samii and Eric Mvukiyehe, two Columbia doctoral students. Over the past two summers, we have surveyed over 3000 Burundian ex-combatants and done elite interviews with over 50 politicians, military commanders and community leaders.

The Liberia case study will be completed this spring. It, too, is a survey project implemented in partnership with the National Ex-Combatant Peacebuilding Initiative, a Liberian-based NGO. IÕm also currently writing a paper with CHF International, a Washington D.C.-based NGO, on the status of economic reintegration of ex-combatants in Liberia. This paper will present the results a survey of 1400 ex-combatants conducted this past spring.

Michael Gilligan, Leonard Wantchekon and Jonathan Nagler have been instrumental in helping me acquire skills and providing me with support to pursue this research.

KRISTIN MICHELITCH, comparative politics

A major advantage to our department is that it doesn't draw boundaries around International Relations, Comparative, or American. Faculty and students coauthor seamlessly depending on the research topic rather than within the confines of some tripartite feudal system. For example, I am currently working on a joint project with Professors Rebecca Morton and Josh Tucker, an "Americanist" and a "Comparativist" respectively. Additionally, classes include literature that bridges the traditional subfields. In two of my courses, Comparative and International Relations topics were mixed: in Leonard Wantchekon's Comparative Developing Countries course, we dealt with topics from ethnic conflict to corruption, and in Alastair Smith's Conflict course we dealt with comparative institutions and domestic determinants of war intra and interstate war. In Mik Laver's Comparative Developed Countries course as well as Josh Tucker's Political Behavior course, discussion material drew from both American and Comparative literature. We are also housed together with the economics department, allowing students to easily pick up an extra course from their offerings and enjoy the benefits of our shared Political Economy Seminar and Center for Experimental Social Sciences (CESS). Next year I will take a class on Experimental Economics and continue to attend our joint Workshop for Experimental Methods.

At the time of writing, I have just finished my first year at NYU. Like most first years, I enrolled in half "tools" courses - math, quantitative methods, and game theory - and half substantive courses. During this summer before my second year, I am working on three projects. First, I am designing and implementing an experiment on minority representation which has applications in political science, economics, and management science. In it, I am testing my model's predictions of agents' strategic behavior in tournaments when a prize quota is introduced for a subset of the agents. Second, I am working with Professors Rebecca Morton and Josh Tucker on an experimental study on voting behavior and partisanship formation. After conducting our experiments at NYU at the CESS, we would like to run them in countries with nascent party systems such as former Soviet countries. Lastly, together with two fellow first years, Sami Atallah and Fernando Martel Garcia, I am working on a paper measuring the value of clientelistic ties between Russian oligarchs and heads of government Yeltsin and Putin. Feral plans are in the works for a future project in Ghana with fellow cohort Robin Harding, in which we are designing a "lab in field" experimental approach to the relationship between ethnicity, information, and public goods distribution.

My path to NYU:

I earned a B.A. in Economics and International Studies at Emory University, finishing up with a thesis regarding public opinion on regional integration in Eastern Europe with Dr. Cliff Carrubba as an advisor. Subsequently, I wanted to acquire practical experience, and, as a comparativist, familiarize myself with individuals and institutions abroad. Among the highlights were working on an election observation mission to Indonesia's first presidential election with the Carter Center in Jakarta, backstopping projects on reducing ethnic violence and improving public goods distribution in the Philippines with NDI in Washington D.C., learning Spanish in Guatemala, and designing and implementing two grassroots voter turnout and vote-choice education campaigns in Germany with the BPB. I also enrolled at the University of Freiburg part-time to pick up skills in linear algebra and analysis in preparation for the doctoral program at NYU.

ALEXANDER HERZOG, comparative politics

I joined the Department of Politics in Fall 2006 and have just finished my first year in the program. Before I came to NYU I graduated from the University of Mannheim, Germany, with a degree in Social Sciences. My thesis was about strategic voting in Germany and showed evidence that voters are more likely to vote strategically if two parties signal their willingness to form a coalition government.

Before studying at Mannheim, I studied Politics and Management at the University of Konstanz, Germany, and was a one-year visiting student at Trinity College Dublin, Ireland.

My interests are probably best described as "comparative politics'' although the boundaries between the different fields are small in this department, as people define their work more by substantive interest than by the traditional field within political science. I am generally interested in mass and elite political behavior and especially in voting behavior, party competition and government formation. I am currently working on a paper about the relative influence of cabinet ministers in parliamentary democracies. This paper originated out of Prof. Michael Laver's comparative politics course, which I took in my first year. The focus of this paper is on the relationship between the inter-party portfolio allocation and the policy output of governments. More precisely, I am examining to what extent social expenditure is affected by the policy positions of the government parties, their joint policy position as a cabinet, and the allocation of certain ministries to certain parties.

Another paper on which I am working deals with the relationship between economic inequality and political behavior in the United States. Using the results of a large public opinion survey together with census data, I am able to analyze the effect of economic inequality on voting behavior and partisanship at the constituency level. This paper is supervised by Prof. Howard Rosenthal and based on previous work by Nolan McCarty, Keith Poole, and Howard Rosenthal (Polarized America, MIT Press, 2007). In a joint project we plan to extend this work into a comparative framework by analyzing panel studies from the United States, Great Britain, and Germany.

My research approach could be called analytical, by which I mean that I believe that formal models and quantitative methods are appropriate means to study political behavior. Additionally, I am interested in agent-based computer simulations in which social phenomena are modeled "bottom-up'' by letting individual agents with simple decision rules interact with each other. As a research assistant for Prof. Michael Laver I am working on such a simulation which aims to throw light on dynamic party competition within a spatial model.

NYU's strength in analytical methods and the rigorous training provided by the PhD program were among the main reasons why I came to this university. Foundations in math, game theory and quantitative methods are covered within the first two terms and subsequent courses allow for a more in-depth specialization in each of these fields.

These "tools courses" are mixed with substantive courses which can be chosen individually and allow students to concentrate on a particular field or interest. Given my substantive focus on political mass and elite behavior I took courses in comparative and American politics.

The distinction between "comparative politics'' and "American politics'' is somewhat awkward in that the same methods and theories are applied in both fields. Many in my department agree that every political science question ought to be answered comparatively, where people might differ in their country selection or might concentrate on a particular area or political system. This perspective is one of many advantages I see at NYU as it leads to a joint understanding and collaborative work between the traditional fields.

The courses I have taken so far are Comparative Politics I with Prof. Leonard Wantchekon and Comparative Politics II with Prof. Michael Laver, the former covering political behavior in developing countries and the later mass and elite behavior in established democracies. I also took Prof. Sanford Gordon and Prof. Howard Rosenthal's core course in American Politics which provided an excellent introduction into the most influential analytical models developed within the American Politics tradition. I chose to do an advanced seminar last semester with Prof. Joshua Tucker on Comparative Political Behavior in which we focused on voting behavior and partisanship in established democracies and newly emerging political systems of the former Soviet Union.

LESLIE JOHNS , International Relations and Formal Theory

I am a fifth-year Ph.D. student at NYU. This year I'm finishing up my dissertation, which consists of three papers that use formal models to examine the impact of exit options and the political biases of institutional actors, such as international bureaucrats and judges, on the design and functioning of international organizations. The first of these papers, "A Servant of Two Masters: Communication and the Selection of International Bureaucrats," was recently published in International Organization. Right now I'm working on a couple of papers about international courts. My dissertation committee consists of: Bruce Bueno de Mesquita, Mike Gilligan, Cathy Hafer, and Alastair Smith. Bruce and Cathy are the co-chairs of my committee, and I also work closely with Peter Rosendorff.

When I was deciding where to go to graduate school, I had many great options but I chose NYU because I wanted to be a part of a vibrant and dynamic community of scholars. Even though the department is full of top scholars, all of the faculty are still committed to producing innovative research and training young graduate students: no one rests on his or her laurels here. The department is very informal and there are no artificial boundaries that limit the ability of students to interact with faculty. Faculty work every day in offices with their doors open so that students can feel free to pop in with questions, and we even have a weekly Friday happy hour with lots of food, wine, and beer where faculty and Ph.D. students socialize!

I truly believe that NYU has the best Ph.D. program in IR. The faculty is both "deep" and "broad" in the sense that there are many IR faculty members doing a broad range of research. This is particularly true when you consider the very small number of graduate students admitted to the program each year. If you come to NYU, you will be getting lots of attention and support. The department is also very generous in providing for its Ph.D. students. We get offices (not cubicles!), we have two huge computer labs with free printing facilities, and each office has at least one desktop computer that is provided by the department and equipped with all of the latest software. All Ph.D. students are given full funding, so there is never competition amongst the students for funding, and we also have lots of opportunities for additional funding, like travel grants to go to conferences and summer research money.

Another great strength of NYU politics is the strong relationships that it has with other departments. We share an office-building with the economics department, and it's very easy to take classes there --- I personally have done course-work with Ariel Rubinstein, Douglas Gale, and Debraj Ray in the economics department, as well as auditing international law classes and seminars in the NYU School of Law. Even though I finished course-work already, I'm excited to be part of a political economy seminar in the economics department this year that is being led by Alessandro Lizzieri and Nicola Persico. NYU politics is a truly wonderful place to do formal theory and IR!

I have had a wonderful experience here at NYU and I hope that you seriously consider the program. Please feel free to be in touch if you have any questions about what it is like to be a Ph.D. student at NYU.

MICHAEL WOODRUFF, American/Judicial Politics

I came to the NYU Politics Ph.D. program having taken a few years to work in Washington, D.C., after graduating from Emory University. My central research interest is American government, particularly judicial institutions at the various levels of federalism. While the critical factor that influenced my decision to come to NYU was the rigorous methodological and rational choice training I would receive, I was also excited that I could supplement this technical side of my studies with resources at the NYU Law School. In particular, I recently took a colloquium there taught by John Ferejohn and Louis Kornhauser on law, politics, and economics, which was immensely useful for my research interests. Indeed, the class led to a paper idea for my core American Government course taught by Sandford Gordon and Howard Rosenthal, and I am currently expanding that paper into my qualifying paper. The study tests a theory of deliberation in American institutions by making use of variation across states in methods used to select their supreme court judges. Further, I have also been able to do research for Anna Harvey on the relationship between Supreme Court and Congress that has been helpful in refining my understanding of the two institutions and led to my master's paper on the subject. I truly feel I made the right choice with NYU.

MAT COAKLEY, political theory

NYU is one the best places to do political theory and political philosophy in the English speaking world. As well as having an array of thinkers here that consistently puts the university at or near the top by peer-rankings globally ( e.g. the philosophical gourmet report), I'd say its real strength for me at least has been the sheer breadth of intellectual exposure. I'm now in my third year, and before coming here had studied political philosophy and political history at Cambridge as an undergrad, and then War Studies at King's College London for an MA (ethics or war, legitimacy, conceptualising terrorist negotiation etc.). Thus I'd covered what I thought was a fair amount of ground. Yet in the last few years I've broadened and deepened my understanding immensely, especially in how politics and value theory are affected by a range of methodological and epistemic concerns (How do we think about strategic interactions? What criteria for rational, reasonable or publicly expressed belief should there be? What information might we need to make collective decisions over institutions and policies? How is morality affected by the very human traits - doubt, reliance on testimony, uncertainty in outcomes, lack of time or understanding - that plague all of us to varying degrees?).

The Department has the twin advantages of being small (and very friendly), thus you get great access to Professors, and yet also being part of a series of bigger groups that allow exposure to a huge range of thinkers (in the philosophy and law departments, in Colloquia, via other universities in New York). The small size also means that all the theorists here across the years know each other well and we advise and help each other on papers. We also meet (over wine and nibbles) every week or so to discuss an article or some ideas one of us has, which is a useful opportunity to try out an argument and see what others think.

In addition, having fellow non-theory students who are researching ongoing empirical political controversies - whether over democratisation, economic policies, interstate conflict, ethnic politics or whatever - hopefully helps keep us as theorists with one foot on the ground. Because moral philosophy in particular seems frequently to operate at a high level of abstraction, being in a politics department can be useful in giving you a sense of the range of situations and tasks we might hope to ask of a decent value theory and theory of moral action.

Overall, I'd recommend doing theory here in the strongest possible terms (the fact this is also a great place to live is a bonus). If you want to know more about the course, how things work, etc. then do drop me an email.

MICHAEL KATES, political theory

There is no typical student studying political theory at New York University: we come from a diversity of backgrounds. Here is how I came to NYU.

Born and raised in Montreal, Quebec, I graduated with a B.A. (First-Class Honours) from McGill University in 2003. Immediately thereafter, I continued my studies at McGill by pursuing a Master's Degree in Political Science (with a concentration in Political Theory). My Master's Thesis was entitled, ``Institutional Egalitarianism and its Critics: A Defense of Rawls' Focus on the Basic Structure.'' I received my M.A. from McGill University in the summer of 2005.

Presently I am entering the third year of my Ph.D. program in the Department of Politics. I have research interests in both contemporary political and moral philosophy and the history of political thought. In particular, my current research centers on the question of the place, if any, of emergency powers within constitutional democracy, and, more generally, the puzzle of what is the just way in which to meet injustice when non-ideal conditions obtain.

Given my interests, I feel that NYU is the ideal place to study political theory. For not only does the Politics Department offer a wide range of challenging courses in political theory (taught by, among others, Profs. Bernard Manin, Russell Hardin, and Dimitri Landa), but graduate study at NYU also enables one to take advantage of the wider philosophical community in the New York area. To take one particularly exciting example for those interested in the study of political philosophy, I had the privilege of enrolling in the annual Colloquium in Legal, Social, and Political Philosophy at NYU taught by Profs. Ronald Dworkin, Thomas Nagel, and Jeremy Waldron. There I had the rare opportunity to engage with some of world's most brilliant philosophical minds, including Jurgen Habermas, Thomas Scanlon, and Samuel Scheffler. Studying political theory at NYU is, in short, a truly rewarding intellectual experience.

ANDREA POZAS-LOYO, political theory

The Department of Politics at NYU is a superb place to do graduate studies in Political Theory. It combines characteristics that are hardly met elsewhere: the possibility to work with and learn from some of the most influential political thinkers alive, and a program that combines academic rigor with the freedom to pursue one's research interests, taking advantage of the impressive combination of resources offered by the department of Politics, NYU as a whole and the academic consortium of the New York area. In the four years I have been here I have greatly benefited from these conditions.  

My main research interests are constitutionalism, the relation between politics and law, and the enforcement and maintenance of norms. I've been privileged to work closely with and learn from some of best scholars in this area: Russell Hardin (who is my advisor), Pasquale Pasquino (with whom I have co-authored), Bernard Manin, Adam Przeworski, Stephen Holmes and John Ferejohn. The program's flexibility has allowed me to take courses in other NYU departments to complement my academic training; so for instance, I took a theory seminar on power with Steven Lukes at the sociology department. My intellectual development has also been complemented by NYU's intense academic life; in addition to the Politics Department Seminar, I have attended the Colloquium in Legal, Political and Social Philosophy (which last year was run by Ronald Dworkin, Thomas Nagel, and Jeremy Waldron), and several lectures with world renown scholars, judges and politicians. We are also encouraged to present our work in conferences; I have had the chance to present in APSA, MPSA, and in the LASA meetings and in three specialized conferences on my research interests in Buenos Aires, London and Beijing. I've also taken some courses that have provided a solid basis for Political Science in general (e.g. Math for Political Science with Catherine Hafer) and for Political Theory in particular (e.g. Political Theory Core with Dimitri Landa). Last, but not least, the Department of Politics is a nice place to be: the faculty is friendly and accessible, and the fellow students are very good colleagues and fun. In sum, being a Ph.D. student in NYU Politics Department is not to be missed.

ANNA BASSI, formal theory

I grew up in Italy, where I received my bachelor's degree in Political Science from the University of Florence, my master's degree in Economics from Bocconi University, and my Ph.D. degree in Economics & Management from the SantÕAnna School of Advanced Studies in Pisa.

I'd been visiting scholar in the Department of Politics at New York University on several occasions during my graduate studies and the challenging and stimulating time that I experienced here made me decide to enroll in the Ph.D. program. I'm now in my 3rd year and am interested in Formal Theory and Experimental Political Science. I have just submitted my first experimental paper on Voting Systems and Strategic Manipulation and I am now working on a formal model of legislative bargaining able to reconcile the theoretical predictions of rational choice theory with the empirical evidence. I've taken Formal Theory classes with professor Brams, Hafer, Morton, and Wantcheckon.

Because of the broad range of my research topics, I have been invited to present my work to conferences on a variety of topics: among them Experimental Economics, Formal Theory, Methodology, and Law and Politics.

Overall, the thing I've appreciated most about doing Formal Theory at NYU is the excellent training in Game Theory, an exciting seminar sequence in Formal Theory and Political Economy and interacting with a stimulating group of researchers constantly at the forefront of the field.

ALEJANDRO QUIROZ FLORES, international relations

Hi. My name is Alejandro Quiroz Flores and I am in my fourth year of the PhD. I came to NYU after getting my undergraduate degree in political science at CIDE in Mexico City and spending some time at the University of Oxford. I specialize, in very general terms, in international relations and political methodology. In more specific terms, however, I focus on political survival and how it is related to international and domestic institutions. On the methodology side I concentrate on econometrics, particularly limited dependent variable models, as well as on survival analysis and the development of new econometric methods.

I am currently working on several papers, and some of them are under review in political journals. First, I am working on a paper on the joint political survival of national leaders and their agents, and how this is related to international and domestic institutions. Second, I am working on the development of copula functions and bivariate distributions. Although this paper is mostly of an econometric nature, it has extensive and fun applications to political science. Both of these papers use a new data base that I collected myself and that will be part of my dissertation. In addition, I am working on a paper on human rights and repression, and on a paper on internal balancing and war.

All of my papers originated as final class papers. The papers related to my dissertation were produced in classes with Bruce Bueno de Mesquita and Alastair Smith. Yet, they all borrowed from my methodology classes with Neal Beck and Bill Greene from the Business School. I also took elements from my classes with Michael Gilligan, Adam Przeworski, and George Downs. Thus, although you can say that most of my classes have been on IR and methodology, I also have a solid background in political economy and comparative politics.

My favorite thing about IR at NYU is my relationship with my advisors and professors. They are not only at the forefront of the discipline, but are willing to share their thoughts and research ideas with their students. In addition, they do not hesitate in helping me with my papers and teaching responsibilities, but on how to manage my PhD in general. This has given me very positive expectations over my future in academia.

Housing

MARCO ANTONIO MORALES BARBA

There are basically two important moments for housing as an NYU graduate student: the (first) year at NYU housing, and the years after. Fortunately for us, beginning the PhD program does not have to involve looking for an apartment: you can simply accept the offer to share a nice apartment with other NYU graduate student at the Stuyvesant Town housing complex, just at the top of the East Village. The rent you will pay for the apartment is fair; you are within walking distance from campus, you are immersed in the graduate school community, and a door-knock away from discussing homework with classmates. (Trust me, this is an undervalued asset). You can always say no to NYU housing during your first year, but it makes little sense unless you have a place sorted.

It is no secret that the housing market in New York City can be a hassle that is complicated by competing with potential tenants that may have higher income or even better credit history. But rest assured that it can be done. The first thing to do is set your priorities straight. Is it more important to live close to campus, or live in a nice neighborhood with plenty of coffee shops to serve as alternate workplaces? Is it more important to have a large apartment, or to get home quickly after a long day of work? The question is relevant because there is a proven relationship between closeness to

Manhattan, the size of the apartment, and its price: the closer to Manhattan, the higher the price to be paid for an apartment holding size constant. But also the closer to Manhattan, the smaller the apartment holding price constant. Always keep this in mind when deciding where to look for an apartment.

If you are really serious about being close to campus (and you don't care about the size of the apartment) then Manhattan is the place to be. All you need to do is choose a neighborhood. If you care about nightlife, open restaurants, and lots of people, stay close to campus on the Village. Pricy, tiny rooms, but definitely close. Nature lovers should not despair, you can live close to Central Park in a nice part of town by moving to the Upper East side. Add a bit more flavor and move some blocks p to Harlem. As school is located downtown, traveling times are not bad at all, for those living off Manhattan commutes to school vary from about twenty-five to about forty-five minutes, with the longer times obviously being for the cheapest areas with the much bigger apartments. You can afford Manhattan on the stipend, but it will probably be wise to get roommates to lower costs.

But if you are not crazy about walking everyday to school, are not concerned about spending some time on the trains, or care about larger apartments, choices abound in other boroughs. Brooklyn is perhaps the more accessible one. You can live in the hip-but-still-affordable Williamsburg, or have nice apartments in brownstone buildings near nature in Prospect Park and Washington Heights. It would usually require a twenty to forty-five minute subway ride to campus. For a more suburban taste of life you could also try Queens, the most ethnically diverse borough in the world! Not to mention its real Greek, Mexican, Colombian, Indian enclaves, and the best Thai restaurant outside of Thailand. Still close enough, with a commute of about forty-five minutes to an hour. And, if you are more adventurous, New Jersey is also an option. Connected to Manhattan by the PATH train, crossing the Hudson River is not a problem, and you can find affordable housing, larger apartments, a suburban life and still be close enough to Manhattan.

Ultimately, housing is what you make of it, especially with the huge range of available alternatives in New York!

Life in New York City on a Grad Stipend

HANDE MUTLU

Coming from a big city (Istanbul) myself, initially I was worried about affording living in New York, but overall I've been pleasantly surprised. Many people, especially those who come from less expensive places, have similar concerns when they move to New York, but almost everyone manages to live on the stipend and still enjoy the city.

Overall, we get about $25,000 a year (or it was this in 2007, it goes up each year, usually by $1,000 or so). We also get full free healthcare and free access to all NYU facilities (all the sports courts, gyms etc.) When we are on TAship stipend we get paid on a bi-weekly basis between the start of the Fall semester and the end of the Spring semester. During semesters in which we are on fellowship, we get paid on a monthly basis. While these two sources of income sum up to the same gross amount, they may slightly differ depending on the taxes withheld. During summers, we also get a summer fellowship. In return for the fellowship, we are expected to engage in a research project with a faculty mentor in addition to working on our papers. Some students also engage in research assistantship opportunities during the academic year for up to 10 hours per week. These research assistantships can thus be another source of income in addition to the $25K.

Out of our stipend, a big chunk usually goes on rent. The remaining money is usually plenty Ðunless you spend ridiculously!- for other regular expenses such as attending cultural events and eating out. Indeed, you donÕt have to spend a lot of money in order to enjoy New York: free events run at all times in every corner of the city.

Living in NYC

LIAM VON-THIEN

As a graduate student at NYU living in New York, you'll have a pretty full academic and non-academic life, in a city where anything you may wish for is available.... No matter what your extra-curricular interests are, it is likely that you will be able to satisfy them in NYC. The city has a lot to offer and succeeds in amusing the inner geek that sleeps in each of us. The department already counts salsa dancers, fans of subtitled Russian theatre, soccer players, opera buffs and a number of bon vivants. Join them, do your own thing and meet the thousands of NYC that make this city so great.

To give you a taste of what is waiting for you, here are just ten reasons why we love NYC.

1) Starting with the obvious, NYC has amazing entertainment possibilities. Opera, theatre, dancing, ballet, film festivals, cinemateques, summer outdoor events, professional sports, Rock concerts. Name it, it is right here. Bars and restaurants so numerous you will wish you could stay 10 years. All the excitement of the big city at affordable rates (try the NYU ticket central for cheap student offers).

2) Be a graduate student in a graduate city. Most students here really enjoy the freedom and the capacities that they get from living in a more anonymous environment. Importantly, living in the city allows you to interact with people that DO NOT spend their days in libraries and computer labs. NYC is a very peculiar mix of artists, businesspeople and expats that can all show you a good time in their own way. Unless you are really addicted to campus life, it is very likely that it is time to move to NYC!

3) Safety first! As you will hear over and over if you live here and torture yourself with local news, NYC is the safest big city in America. Walking the streets of Brooklyn and Manhattan at night has never been so safe.

4)New York is probably the world capital of good-cheap ethnic food, and thus a food haven for grad students. Because NYC counts more communities than any other city in the world, the possibilities are literally limitless. Eat old-school Italian in Brooklyn or be even more adventurous and try Arab and Ethiopian delights uptown...

5) Intellectual and political life. There are a number of major research institutions in and around NYC (Columbia, New School, Princeton...) that you will be able to benefit from in a number of ways. There are probably more talks and conferences on topics likely to interest you in the area than anywhere else in the country. Add the UN, think tanks and visiting speakers, and you will realise how stimulating the NYC intellectual life is.

6) Sports and Physical activities are easily available. New-Yorkers are very sporty, and you can also take advantage of the (free) NYU facilities, which include swimming pools, gyms, squash and basketball courts, and much, much more. The main sports centers are also conveniently located a few minutes from the Department. Alternatively, do the tour of Manhattan on your bike, ride a horse in prospect park...

7) Costs: contrary to common views and the outrageous amounts tourists pay, NYC is not that expensive a city to live in. Once your rent is paid (which clearly - will make you feel lighter), lots of things are cheaper than in most American and European big cities (think about food, laundry, services in general). And add the fact that you won't have a car.

8) The highest proportion of single young people in America (prisons excepted). NYC is a great place to meet friends and lovers. Life and all that, you know, in between papers.

9) Brooklyn and Queens. The two major - and still neglected - outer boroughs are worlds apart from Manhattan and a reason enough to live in New York. Visit them, know them and you will surely love them. Commute times to reach the department are not that long, typically in between 20 to 35 minutes.

10) Finally, you will spend your working days in what must be the best work location of any department in this country. Washington square and the West Village are literally steps away: the area is really pleasant; you can stroll around the park in search of new ideas, or just take breaks in the neighborhood great cafes.