potential_phd

Hi, I am a US Citizen doing a PhD at a Canadian University. I have been searching quite a bit for summer study funds and have come up with a couple options, but I am looking for more. If anyone has any tips or ideas for me, let me know. I have been accepted to two separate summer sessions (one in Italy, one in Germany).

Right now I am in a doctoral program and I have funding of about 27,000/year. This seems like a lot but I have children to support - my partner is currently doing his thesis and his funding JUST ran out. Do any of you have any tips on scholarships that either a) support dissertation completion, since my partner is almost done or b)could supplement my package? I am a US citizen studying in Canada, if that helps. I do not have Canadian permanent residency yet. My partner is a Canadian permanent resident with EU citizenship. I have done a search on my school's website but the only scholarships that have a deadline coming up are SSHRC, which I am ineligible for. Any help appreciated. Thanks!

Anyone have any tips on the best way to move? Just a couple of details on my specific situation: - I am moving from Vancouver, BC to Calgary on the weekend before school starts (sept 7th/8th) - We cannot rid all of our belongings, especially the keyboards, books, and scores, but can replace nearly all of our large furniture and replace with IKEA, etc - We cannot drive; I am having a baby the week prior to moving and we will be flying on a plane to get to Calgary - I would love to not have movers do everything as it is really expensive - We are exploring options for shipping some of our stuff, or truck-sharing, etc Does anyone have any ideas? It seems really complicated. Last time I moved we just drove a truck for 8 hours from Oregon to BC...

Everytime I feel like I have made the right decision and I am happy with it, something tells me I have screwed up. I cannot go back now and I am unsure of what to do. Does anyone else go through this? One of my current advisors has told me that once I choose an institution that I should not second-guess myself, but I still have feelings like I am making the wrong decision. I feel like I should be happy and proud of the school I am attending, and I am not. Is this a red flag?

Thanks guys, I think I will be fine - it is probably a good thing for me to have a change of scenery. I have done a bit of research and it seems like other than the freezing, it won't be so bad. It is apparently even possible to get by without a car there if you try.

Have you considered looking into IBR (income-based repayment) as an option and using that to help your choice?

I was struggling between UCalgary and UBC for quite some time. I attended UBC for my Master's degree. I feel like Calgary is a better academic fit and I have way more funding there. However, I cannot help but feel bad about leaving UBC. I am really not looking forward to living in Calgary (especially after living in Vancouver) and I am starting to second guess my decision because I think I will be miserable.... What should I do?

I also don't know much about the academics of either school, except that at the U of O certain departments are thought of quite highly. I did live in Eugene for over 10 years so I can speak about the city. Cost of living is reasonable - for example, a 900-sq foot apartment in a good part of town is about 700-800/month. It does have a certain "hippy" culture and definitely feels like a west coast city - complete with organic food, local farming, many health movements, etc. There is decent housing both on and off campus, and if you have a vehicle it is not difficult to live off campus and transit to campus at all. I will say that if you don't have a car you should be careful of where you live; transit can be strange there, especially if you need to transfer busses, etc. Food is pretty cheap and fresh produce is plentiful year-round. Also, the weather is pretty nice, if you don't mind rain during the winter. Good luck with your decision!

I think it is difficult because my field isn't generally "ranked", so no matter where I look I can't seem to find any information about my department itself. All I really have to go on is the school rankings. I know the professors in my field that teach there are well-respected, but I don't know if that makes a difference.

TakeruK, I actually did my undergrad in the US and moved to Canada. Part of the reason I applied to Canadian schools only for my doctorate is because I am applying for permanent residency (through my partner) and I don't want to leave Canada - I am a US citizen. I have small children so I really do not want to be in the states, for several reasons. If you want more detail, I did my Master's at UBC, and I am deciding between UBC and Calgary for my doctorate. There are reasons why the program at Calgary would be a better fit for me research-wise, but it is so much lower ranked that I get nervous about accepting their offer when I have one from UBC. And thank you, that is all very good information!

wtnfffts, my advisors actually told me they couldn't really tell me either way because of their affiliation with one of the universities I was considering. It might not be against policy, but maybe they just felt uncomfortable.... and yes, all the schools I applied to are in Canada.

That makes sense. Both of the places are a really good fit for me, so I'm not sure what to do. Although if funding is looking bleak for next year, maybe I should just count my blessings and take the funded offer?

I cannot talk over anything with my advisors or professors because one of the schools I am considering is the school I am already at and so it is a conflict of interest to them. I am really torn on what to do and I don't want to commit academic suicide by taking the better-funded but less prestigious offer. So I am kind of in a strange place.

54 million cut from funded research worldwide? Where does this number come from? I have an offer from a well-known and highly ranked school but with little money, and an offer from a less-regarded school with loads of money. I am considering maybe re-attempting next year to apply to more schools in the UK and Australia, although I don't know the funding situation. I don't think I could get better funding from any school in my country than the offer I have from the less-regarded school (in my field anyways).

Have any of you ever heard of or experienced anyone declining all of their offers and re-attempting applications the following year? I am seriously considering it.

You can sort of get your foot in the door with publications by attending conferences to start with, because usually they publish the works presented somehow. While this isn't a big academic journal, you then have publications on your resume that you can use to get published in a large academic journal.

I am not on a committee so I cannot say for sure, however I can tell you this - I did my undergrad at a state university that is only top 400 (not a bad school, but not super prestigious). The Master's students usually ended up at top schools with huge packages for their doctorates because the department worked so hard to make them look like good applicants. I attended a top 50 university for my Master's, ranked 2nd in its country. I cannot think of a single Master's student in my program that has graduated here and moved on to a good school with full funding - I know there have been some, but much less common. The department just does not prepare you for applications - perhaps since they are so prestigious it is just not a concern and they think the name will carry enough.

I know of a couple of people in my field that have done that, but they balanced it out with residencies, summer programs, and being active in the community. Doing a post-doc somewhere else can also help. I think it might depend on the reason why you stay at the same school as well - I knew someone who stayed at a certain school for all three degrees for family reasons (I believe it was an extremely ill relative) and by the time she started her post-doc she was able to move and now is successfully employed.

So here is my con vs con comparison: UBC - they are closing a lab after this year that aided my area of research - the funding is considerably low - I have already attended the school, so something new would be good - department is losing funds - comprehensive exams are easier/less intense (yes, this is a con for me) - degree is less research-focused, more practical - more coursework than Calgary - public schools aren't as good as in Alberta (I have 2 children) Calgary - In city of Calgary (small and freezing) - department is smaller - less opportunities for me around the city - school is less prestigious - harder to visit my family, who live on the west coast (not in vancouver though) - more faculty dedicated to my area, but less faculty overall in the department - less distinguished alumni because the school is so young - would involve a major move, and take me away from vancouver I am not sure this brought me any closer - they seem to be pretty equal in terms of cons

Thank you all so much! this is a lot of good advice. To answer a few questions: Regarding alumni: this is actually quite tricky. The master's program has been around longer than the PhD program, and the master's students are well-placed historically. I know of several doctoral students who have gotten positions or post-docs (quite a few in the UK actually), but the doctoral program is still young. Also, quite a few of them work in the field professionally - I am in a field where a large portion of grads might not go into academics. About the tuition: UBC does not give a tuition waiver, our department does not have them anymore from what I can tell. My partner did his doctorate here and last year his stopped; I will not receive one either. I will double check with FOGS, however, to make sure I have received the correct info. And yes, part of the dilemma is that I generally did not like Calgary as a city, but it really is mostly about the prestige. Even though my department there is good, I don't know how proud I would feel to say I am starting a doctorate there. It seems like it is extremely easy to get in. (I might be wrong). If it were my Master's I would probably feel differently.

Hi everyone. I am having a sort of dilemma. I applied to 4 schools this season for my PhD: SFU (Simon Fraser), UBC (where I am completing my Master's), McGill, and U Calgary. I got a complete rejection from McGill, accepted by SFU with good funding, accepted by UBC with not-so-good funding, and accepted by Calgary with amazing funding. I met with the faculties of SFU and U Calgary and I really didn't get seem to click with the faculty at SFU in my department, or the particular direction the department was headed. So I have narrowed my choices down to UBC and Calgary. Here is my dilemma: I keep hearing bad things about Calgary, whether it be how low ranked it is, or that the city is terrible, and that the university in general is not good. I really liked the profs in the department I would be in, and my specific department seems to be doing pretty well at that school, both in terms of funding, development, and recent student achievement. However, I can't help but think that I would hate not living in Vancouver (I am a PNW gal, through and through), and that I would miss the prestige of UBC. However, UBC (at least the department I am in) refuses outright to give 4-year fellowships to returning students and since my department here is not well funded my departmental scholarship is quite bad Here are the hard facts: Funding: UBC: 10000/yr (when including TA) for 2 years Calgary: 20000/yr for 1st two years, 15000/yr for 3 and 4 Calgary Pros: Department is new and improving Technology area is significantly more developed in my department than at UBC There are fewer grad students and yet more dedicated faculty to my particular area The research potentials are greater, and the degree is more rigorous Calgary cons: Its in Calgary, need I say more? The city seems a bit small and po-dunk The school is lacking in prestige and seems to get bad reviews; most people on the internet seem to think it is an awful place the school is really small the weather is awful UBC Pros: It is in Vancouver, a wonderful city the university is big and prestigious Vancouver is all-around cleaner than Calgary I know the faculty and my research interests fit well More networking opportunities UBC Cons: My particular department is kind of falling into shambles lately the school I am associated with is resistant to change really expensive, especially given my funding circumstances Getting my doctorate from the same place as my Master's Anyways, what do you all think? Sorry this is so long, I have to make a decision soon and I am so torn.