Pomegranateseed15

I'm weighing between two offers that I have. From my previous posts, I've been trying to decide between Religious Studies and Anthropology. One of my offers is from a prestigious university in a high cost of living city in the US. The stipend is $32,000+ and has guaranteed summer funding. The program is in Religious Studies, and I come from an Anthropology background. The RS program at this school is amazing, and there's multiple faculty there that I really want to work with, and faculty at other schools in this particular city that I could work with as well. The second offer is from a lower tier, smaller university that is still reputable. It's in another relatively high cost of living city in the US, but slightly lower cost than the one above. The stipend is $24,000 maximum with no guaranteed summer funding. It's an Anthropology PhD in a program that is a great fit for me as well. Not so much for faculty specifically (who are all great) but because of the department's focuses and interests as a whole. It's also been said to me, even from the faculty at the RS program, that an Anthropology degree would definitely be more flexible on the job market (of course the job market is tight for ALL degrees). Both programs have amazing resources and both seem like great fits for me. The only things that give me pause are stipend and the type of degree I'd leave with.

Is it common to contact professors you've been in communication with to let them know that you're accepting their school's offer? Is it usually just a brief FYI type email or longer/introductory? I've already visited campus and spoken to my potential supervisors/advisors. How does this sound? Dear Professor L, I hope all is well. I'm writing to let you know I've accepted School's offer for the PhD program. I am grateful for this opportunity and I look forward to working with you and the rest of the faculty in X Subfield! Best regards, Pomegranateseed15 Anything I should add?

Thank you! I visited the RS school because it's close by. I don't think I'll have the chance to visit the Anthro school but I've been in contact with grad students there. It is a really difficult choice that I'm struggling with.

This is my first post here and I'm looking for advice on the outlook of the field I guess. My undergrad background is in Anthropology, but my research is in anthropology of religion and can easily fit into a religious studies department. Right now I am in a dilemma weighing what path to take. I was offered admission to a Religious Studies program in the U.S. at a top university, and I was also offered admission to a small university's Anthropology PhD program. It's not very highly ranked at all, but the department is a pretty good fit...but so is the Religious Studies department. I have visits coming up to both these schools and right now I think the deciding factor is the future job market. Religion vs. Anthropology. I've heard mixed things from various people in both fields, but there is some bias I think. Anthropologists tell me that anthropology is more versatile, while people in RS tell me that it's more marketable. I'm also trying to weigh if prestige matters on the job market as well. Would it look better to go to Excellent University for RS or Fairly Good University for Anthropology? The smaller university is in no way a bad one, and I am excited about the prospect of going to both. These are of course things I will be discussing with my past mentors and grad students at both places, but could I enlist kind internet strangers for any new perspectives? I also posted this on Academia stack exchange.