Captain Cabinets

I'm off to Oxford in the fall! 

I'm off to Oxford in the fall! 

I'm off to Oxford in the fall! 

I'm off to Oxford in the fall! 

I'm off to Oxford in the fall! 

I'm off to Oxford in the fall! 

I'm off to Oxford in the fall! 

I'm off to Oxford in the fall! 

I'm off to Oxford in the fall! 

I'm off to Oxford in the fall! 

I got my official funding offer from Oxford today (covering tuition, college fees and maintenance for three years), and I can't freaking believe it!!!  My head hasn't quite taken it in yet... While I've been wanting to go to Oxford since like forever, and while I think I'd work well with my supervisor there, I'm also completely terrified now. I'd have to finish in three years, and I'm a bit younger than most of my cohort, so a little insecure about my 'academic maturity' (if that's a thing), and my readiness for the dissertation. On the other hand, UChicago gives substantially more money than Oxford (despite the Oxford-scholarship being a full one), it's a fantastic program, and it would grant me more time to develop and grow up. At the same time I feel like I'd be selling out my dream just for lack of guts if I went there... Ugh, shouldn't be moping about what I realise is really an incredibly blessed and very lucky position to be in (but existential crises have never been my friends)! 

I got my official funding offer from Oxford today (covering tuition, college fees and maintenance for three years), and I can't freaking believe it!!!  My head hasn't quite taken it in yet... While I've been wanting to go to Oxford since like forever, and while I think I'd work well with my supervisor there, I'm also completely terrified now. I'd have to finish in three years, and I'm a bit younger than most of my cohort, so a little insecure about my 'academic maturity' (if that's a thing), and my readiness for the dissertation. On the other hand, UChicago gives substantially more money than Oxford (despite the Oxford-scholarship being a full one), it's a fantastic program, and it would grant me more time to develop and grow up. At the same time I feel like I'd be selling out my dream just for lack of guts if I went there... Ugh, shouldn't be moping about what I realise is really an incredibly blessed and very lucky position to be in (but existential crises have never been my friends)! 

I got my official funding offer from Oxford today (covering tuition, college fees and maintenance for three years), and I can't freaking believe it!!!  My head hasn't quite taken it in yet... While I've been wanting to go to Oxford since like forever, and while I think I'd work well with my supervisor there, I'm also completely terrified now. I'd have to finish in three years, and I'm a bit younger than most of my cohort, so a little insecure about my 'academic maturity' (if that's a thing), and my readiness for the dissertation. On the other hand, UChicago gives substantially more money than Oxford (despite the Oxford-scholarship being a full one), it's a fantastic program, and it would grant me more time to develop and grow up. At the same time I feel like I'd be selling out my dream just for lack of guts if I went there... Ugh, shouldn't be moping about what I realise is really an incredibly blessed and very lucky position to be in (but existential crises have never been my friends)! 

You do sometimes hear that the US PhDs are more rigorous, as they give you a very nasty MA component with languages and comprehensive exams before the dissertation, all while you hold down a job as a TA.  At Oxbridge, you start on the dissertation right away and aren't required to do all the other stuff.  You do need a separate master's degree first, but those aren't always run as pre-PhD bootcamps.  
For me, the brevity is an advantage since I'm a few decades older than most applicants.  There's no point in my finishing when I'm 60 while trying to get over the Stockholm Syndrome after years of under-minimum-wage slavery.   One observation I read a while ago-- maybe on this board-- is that in the UK, your supervisor more or less works for you, when he/she gets around to it.  In the US your supervisor is effectively your employer.  Very different situation.
I don't know that I'd be doing this at all, actually, if I hadn't stumbled upon a part-time master's at Cambridge a few years ago.  That led to a problem I thought I should work on a bit more, a set of marks that the Brits take seriously, and a good relationship with my supervisor.  [He's at Oxford, which is part of a much longer story, and that's where my first acceptance has come from.]  All very helpful in the UK system, even if selling that package to a US admissions committee that wants its graduates to become young academics would probably be hard.  
One thing to consider, apart from the specific skills you will or won't pick up, and your ability to sell them: what is the culture of the place you're joining?  I don't have a lot of comparisons to make, but Oxbridge seems to encourage a certain way of getting to know people that isn't necessarily typical of the US.  Whether that's going to be good for you, or relevant, or even true in your case with your particular choices is another question.
Congrats on the funding/college place, BTW.  I am still waiting to hear about my college, and I wasn't told about being considered for any of the flashy scholarships.  Let's hope I at least get placed somewhere I like.

As a current Oxford DPhil, I would caution against the flippancy of the above advice.  Both U of Chicago and Oxford will indeed open tonnes of opportunities for you as a scholar, but these opportunities will likely be very different.  Would you prefer an academic career in the US?  Choose U of Chicago.  Do you plan on staying in Britain?  Oxford.  
'Following your dream' is probably not the most sensible thing to do here, as you are choosing between two very different programmes.  Would you benefit from course breadth and structure, or are you comfortable in your knowledge and eager to begin your dissertation?  I would recommend looking very closely at what types of academic experiences these programmes offer, as, at the end of the day, that is what matters.  
Final thought: choosing U of Chicago is absolutely not demonstrating a 'lack of guts'!  One of the MSt students here is heading to U of Chicago next year for her PhD--her supervisor recommended this move because it is 'better than Harvard'.  All in all, you've got great options   Feel free to PM me if you have any questions

I got my official funding offer from Oxford today (covering tuition, college fees and maintenance for three years), and I can't freaking believe it!!!  My head hasn't quite taken it in yet... While I've been wanting to go to Oxford since like forever, and while I think I'd work well with my supervisor there, I'm also completely terrified now. I'd have to finish in three years, and I'm a bit younger than most of my cohort, so a little insecure about my 'academic maturity' (if that's a thing), and my readiness for the dissertation. On the other hand, UChicago gives substantially more money than Oxford (despite the Oxford-scholarship being a full one), it's a fantastic program, and it would grant me more time to develop and grow up. At the same time I feel like I'd be selling out my dream just for lack of guts if I went there... Ugh, shouldn't be moping about what I realise is really an incredibly blessed and very lucky position to be in (but existential crises have never been my friends)! 

First off, Congratulations!
Secondly, look around at Chicago for a bit then go for your dream if your dream doesn't change with what you learn. Rest comfortably in knowing that no matter what you choose, you'll end up in a program that will open tons of opportunities for you as a scholar. 

A Thatcher Scholarship at Somerville (I think it's quite new?)  

Hmmm, that's an interesting perspective, as I find that outside HYP, Stanford and maybe MIT, Oxbridge has the next biggest "wow" factor among people and academics. Also, I'm an American too but I got accepted for an MPhil.

Holy shit, I just got into Oxford!  Rejections from both Columbia and NYU, so yay this! Going to be biting my fingernails until I hear about funding (nominated by the English department for scholarship funding, but I'll have to wait for the Humanities division to make their final calls).

Got into Old Dominion's PhD in English today. I have a family and 3 young kids and a full time instructor position where I live, so I was thrilled to get into this program because of their distance option. 

Ahhh, congratulations! That's incredible!

That's amazing! Congrats! 

Congratulations!

May the funding be enough for you to not only afford to live there, but to be able to purchase a top hat, monocle, and ornate pipe!

Holy shit, I just got into Oxford!  Rejections from both Columbia and NYU, so yay this! Going to be biting my fingernails until I hear about funding (nominated by the English department for scholarship funding, but I'll have to wait for the Humanities division to make their final calls).