Kapakahi

Fellow UCD History admit here! Please DM me if you'd like my thoughts on choosing Davis over some of my other options. I'm looking at four schools at this point, but it's really down to Davis and another university. I can share some of my pros and cons, if you wish. The TL;DR is Davis has some very impressive Americanists. Placements may be better at other schools, but going to a "top tier" institution doesn't guarantee a thing in this market. Being the best job applicant you can, grabbing as many outside opportunities (Fullbright, conference papers, article publications), will make the biggest difference, in my opinion. The level you have to worry about institutional rigor is if you were looking at a program with relatively unknown professors in their fields. Davis is a powerhouse in US History, at least. A Davis professor has won the Bancroft Prize in three of the last five years, include 2018 and 2017. No other school anywhere can boast that!