I've been accepted into PhD programs in materials science & engineering at both of these schools, both with similar funding ($5000+/yr at Vandy). UTDs funding is a research assistantship with a professor who just recently got his PhD; I would be his second grad student ever--is it a mistake/too risky to start grad school with that kind of setup? I'm interested in his research but not 100% sure if it's to the level of committing with him as an advisor. I've attended the open houses at both schools and there are several research groups at Vanderbilt I'm very interested in as well which I've been in contact with. Vanderbilt also seems to be much more prestigious in general, but is that actually the case when it comes to a field like MSE? Is that even something to consider when it comes to this decision?
