castille89

I'm a current student at FES and your assessment is spot on about it being a great place to freewheel. Many people actually end up changing their study focus halfway through due to the flexibility of the program. The MEM curriculum has been recently reworked by the administration in response to feedback from employers and alumni, but it's still fairly flexible. I would also add that despite it being a professional school, the quality of courses can be lacking at FES. While there are definitely some gems, it's very clear that professors prioritize research, and there are currently no incentives to enhance the quality of classroom instruction. Also, courses sometimes do not go into enough depth - while I appreciate the accessibility of courses to folks with unrelated backgrounds like me, there should be more opportunities for intermediate and advanced level coursework for those looking for depth of knowledge in a certain area (this is probably what independent studies are for). You are also right that generally, the student body is slightly older than Duke's. I'd say if you are looking for a very strong foundation of technical skills, Duke is probably the best choice because it seems built into the curriculum. You can get that at Yale, but it would require careful effort and planning on your part. FES also has particular strengths and weaknesses concentration-wise. There are research centers and dedicated summer funding awards to support certain areas of focus. In my opinion, it's a great place to study topics such as corporate social responsibility, land conservation in the Intermountain West, tropical forestry, forest management, science communication, and international climate policy. However, if you are interested in water, energy, urban planning, environmental justice, marine policy, or food systems, I would strongly advise getting in touch with a current or former student in your chosen field to learn about their experience to help with your decisionmaking. A note of caution about doing the research-focused Masters at Yale: peers have mentioned that they receive little oversight and guidance from their advisors, who are more invested in their PhD students - so be fully prepared to manage yourself.