an_internet_person

This is the only appropriate response in this thread. Your goals, as stated, are quite broad. Harvard GSE is intended for students who are, or are planning to be, immersed in the education field with absolute certainty. If you want to leave the door open for international development work and a PhD, the degree at LSE is a superior option.

Stanford or Berkeley? How about Lakers or Celtins? Kate Upton or Mila Kunis? 100 dollalrs now, or 100 dollars tomorrow. These are non-choices. The difference between both schools for your long term research and/or professional desires is pretty damn non-existent. They are both top schools. . .IN THE FUNKING WORLD.

This has to be a joke thread, with the overemphasis on rankings.

BERKELEY FUCK YEAH!!!! You made the right choice sir, you really really really did. Enjoy it. Its one of god's gifts to humanity.

Eh, Berkeley stipends are not always so great. Mine, for example, is just shy of $18k/yr before taxes.

I used to live in San Francisco, and I agree Berkeley is a dream place and a legendary school -- while Harvard, where I've been to campus, is all old-school and uptight, at least by Northern California standards.. Boston is also snobbish and boring. The rest, you know yourself... I can see how one could go to Harvard in similar circumstances -- vanity simply prevails. I would have probably done it. But Berkeley is also Berkeley - I think there is a good chance the money will be there, after all. If you are into Berkeley and the Bay area and such like, I think you should go with your heart ))

as someone else so moved TO the east coast from california, you won't regret it! on a side note, berkeley carries a lot of prestige itself in this field of work. sure, UC's don't have ivy league money, but the caliber of work, students, and faculty is second to none. good luck and congratulations!

What are the chances of you getting funded in subsequent years? How successful have other students in your program been in getting funded beyond their first year? These are the questions I would be asking your PI, and the Director of Graduate Studies if appropriate. My program only provided funding for 3 years, but they have been historically successful wrt their students finding funding for the remaining years through a variety of public and private sources, so I decided to take a risk and come anyway (and indeed, I have funded the remainder of my time here, as has everyone else in my cohort).

Edit: Whoops, didn't see that you had decided already. Congratulations on your decision and I really hope it works out for you!

as someone who moved from the east coast to berkeley last year... you won't regret it. it is amazing out here.

Hey!

I'm making the same decision (Harvard v. Berkeley), though with a very different set of complicating factors. Berkeley doesn't have and never will have Harvard money, but they were reasonable enough with my funding package that I don't see that as a deal breaker. One thing you should do if you haven't already is talk to current PhD students about how they get by. One of the Berkeley students in my department pointed out that everyone makes it, no one drops out or does badly because of lack of funding. That doesn't mean it will be as easy as it would be at an Ivy League school, but it was still reassuring to hear.

But I completely understand the whole superficial not wanting to say no to Harvard thing. There is something very exciting about the prospect of telling people that I go to Harvard. I think you just have to bracket that and realize that it will probably be exciting at first and then maybe again on a few scattered occasions for the next few years, but that going to a school means spending every day there for years, most of which will not include anyone oohing or awing at your prestigious affiliations. When you're out sunbathing on your roof in 70 degree Januaries in Berkeley (I live there now and that's how I spent this last winter) then you probably won't care.

Personally, I'm at the point where I really wanted to want to go to Harvard, but I just think Berkeley is the right choice for me.

Anyway-- good luck with the decision!

No. Perhaps in the non-STEM based programs this is prevelant, but I am pretty confident about my choice.

I haven't made a final decision, but I am pretty sure where I am going. The weird thing is, my dream program of several years has slowly not become my dream program these past several months. I got accepted there, and I was thrilled. However, the more I was doing research on my top two (I was lucky to be accepted to both), I realized my second choice was a much better fit for me in pretty much every way. I am trying to get over the fact that my dream school is not actually the best school for me. Has anyone ever dealt with this? I am both happy and sad about it.

I also got those emails, and they both gave me a heart attack. Not cool NYU. I looked through last year's thread and apparently they will send decisions on the 16th up until midnight

I'm reassured to know Im not the only one still waiting...at least we'll all know in 48 hours!

You know, I had the exact same conversation with a couple friends of mine. Here's what happened.

Friend: So how long should I wait before accepting an offer?
Welfareballer: A day.
Friend: So tomorrow.
Welfareballer: No, tomorrow, then a day.
Friend: So 2 days.
Welfareballer: Yeah, I guess you could call it that.
Other surly friend: 2 days is like industry standard.
Welfareballer: You know, I used to wait two days before accepting anyone's offer, but now it's like everybody in town waits 2 days. So I think waiting 3 days is kinda money.
Other surly friend: 2 days is enough to show you're not anxious.
Welfareballer: Yeah, 2's enough to show you're not anxious, but I think waiting 3 days is kinda mooooonnnnnneeeeeeeyyyyy.
Friend: What if I wait 6 weeks? I'll say "Oh hey, I was going through my wallet, and I found this acceptance letter. Who's this from again?"
Other token black friend: (Laughs) Ask them if you guys did research together.
Friend: Yeah, I'll ask, "Did we do research together?" Would that be the money, welfareballer?
Welfareballer: You know, joke all you want; but if you accept too soon, you'll scare off a prestigious school who's down to work together.

Well, the thing is, they didn't make an offer. The professor said that she had accepted his application, but the application still has to go through the DGS. I don't know what US schools are like, but Canadian schools generally make it very clear on their websites that although students may be contacted by the department/professor they are applying to, it is not a formal offer and it's not binding. The only offer that is official is the one from the DGS. I'm not saying this doesn't suck, but it's not the school's fault. The professor probably should have looked more closely at the requirements, etc before notifying anyone.

You should most definitely visit. You won't know what it's really like at either school until you do, and both schools really want to meet you to get to know you. You should visit school A even if you're not considering going there so as to not burn any bridges and to build connections (you'll probably be seeing them again in the future for whatever reason, maybe for a job). Anyways, don't be stressed about this. This is good news and a good problem to have. Just go to the visits and be yourself. You've already been accepted, so there's no use stressing about the visits. And I hear most first year grad students get imposter syndrome (I'm sure I will feel it, too).

Thanks for the thoughtful responses, guys. I was on a similar wavelength -- since the rankings really are more of a range, then +- 5 probably isn't as much of a gain/loss as having or not having that Ivy status. And yes, that connection building could be huge...

werd, Re: Berkeley vs. Harvard, just remember that research interests can change/develop over time, so the initial question of "is this a perfect fit" might not be as relevant as "is this a good enough fit that I'll be happy". Not much to add on top of what ghanada already said. It comes down to how much the difference there is between the Harvard fit compared to the Berkely fit. But man, you've got some good options!

@werd814: what departments are you applying to? If it is engineering than Berkeley usually does carry a lot more weight than Harvard. But if it is more in general sciences, Harvard is pretty damn good. Plus, as you said, you can never go wrong with having the Harvard name. Haha and actually looking at your list of apps, ANY of those names will be extremely solid. I know you don't think UW carries as much weight as the ivys, BUT I am from the west coast and UW is extremely well regarded. I too am living in new england now so I can see why you don't see UW as alluring, but believe me, people from the west coast respect UW as much as just about any of the other programs you have listed. In fact, on the west coast, more random people would be able to tell you that UW is Seattle than they would be able to tell you what city Yale, Columbia, or Hopkins are located in. Sounds crazy, but I guarantee you this is true.

If I were in your situation, I would probably choose Harvard if Berkeley offers no funding or at least so little that you would need to take loans. Also, how bad is the Harvard PI fit? Because if Berkeley's fit is like a 10 and Harvard was a 8 or 9, than Harvard probably still wins out. Now, if Berkeley were a 10 and Harvard is a 6, than you probably have some just cause picking Berkeley (even without funding).

I keep forgetting that people only want to hear what they want to hear, on this forum.

When my husband (then my fiance) and I were applying to programs together (his for PhD, mine for MA), he knew before I did, and had to accept very early because of his fellowship. I called the department and asked for an early review, and they accepted me immediately. I think his acceptance actually helped me out a lot.

I've never heard of schools discouraging unmarried/civil union...ized partners before, and everyone I've spoken to who had a situation similar to mine had positive results, so I'd guess it's the opposite. I wouldn't give them too much information, though--just have your partner contact their departments and say that the two of you are trying to make decisions together but have your deadlines to contend with as a result.

Hi werd,

I didn't apply to any of the UCs for that very reason, even though they are doing great research. I had contacted recent grads at Berkeley--although the funding is guaranteed only for one year at a time, you will most likely be able to find funding for the rest of your years--you'll just have to work to find it every year. I also talked to another recent grad, and the reputation of your adviser is key to placing you in a good position after you are done with the program. He told me that, as a student member of a faculty search committee, he learned that the grades in your courses do not count. What counts is your adviser, conference presentations, publications, and ability to speak cogently about your research. So, hard to say what to do, but personally I would choose Berkeley over Harvard if the PI is more prominent in the field.

Let's all go to Berkeley!!!

Can I complain about programs that have you do half through SOPHAS and half by another system? One application, two sets of everything! Drat and phooey.

Just for some diversity, I'll throw in here that none of my recommenders asked for or looked at other parts of my application. If he was your thesis advisor, even 18 months ago, he probably doesn't need them to write you a strong or personal recommendation.

I'm applying to Environmental Health (Public Health) grad programs, and this is what it's come down to:

a ) Yale is offering me a full tuition plus small stipend scholarship for an MPH. It's a great learning environment and I like the program, but

b ) Harvard has offered me admission to their SM program with literally no funding (well a $3,500 work study). Harvard is my dream program (I look at the required course list and at every new course I think "yes!," my career heroes would be my advisors there, Boston is a bit nicer than New Haven, and I could take courses at MIT). My only qualm is the $120,000 of debt I would incur.

Thoughts? I know I can't go wrong either way, but it's hard to turn down my dream school.

Thanks!

I'm applying to Environmental Health (Public Health) grad programs, and this is what it's come down to:

a ) Yale is offering me a full tuition plus small stipend scholarship for an MPH. It's a great learning environment and I like the program, but

b ) Harvard has offered me admission to their SM program with literally no funding (well a $3,500 work study). Harvard is my dream program (I look at the required course list and at every new course I think "yes!," my career heroes would be my advisors there, Boston is a bit nicer than New Haven, and I could take courses at MIT). My only qualm is the $120,000 of debt I would incur.

Thoughts? I know I can't go wrong either way, but it's hard to turn down my dream school.

Thanks!