Hello everyone, after being rejected by Oxford and MIT, I was offered admission to the three schools listed in the title.
I am an international student (undergrad in International Relations) to pursue a Masters degree and my goal is to stay in the US and seek employment in data and tech oriented roles in economic/political consultancies or tech companies. I also have two years of FT work experience as an IT Analyst.
1. UChicago: Masters in Computational Social Science (MACSS)
+ Scholarship covering half of the tuition
+ Very comprehensive curriculum for students who have no previous exposure to computer science
+ 2 year program with an almost guaranteed summer internship
+ Good reputation
- Not sure about the industry placements, most alumni seem to be going for a PhD at top institutions
- Bad weather (?)
- Academically heavy courses and lots of reading & writing (not much of a problem)
2. Columbia: MA in Quantitative Methods in Social Sciences (QMSS)
+ Dream school / gut feel
+ Strongest reputation
+ Arguably the best location for recruitment
- Geared towards academics (maybe not as much as UChicago)
- Shortest program (9 months with 4 month extension option) and costs the same as UChicago with financial assistance
- Highest cost of living (although the others are also high)
3. University of Southern California: MS in Business Analytics (MSBA)
+ Most exciting curriculum that is designed for industry placements
+ Best weather
+ Impressive career support, high number of alumni placed at my target companies
- Worst reputation among the three (I don't know how employers would react)
- Costs slightly higher than the others
The first two options stand out in terms of general reputation but they seem to be more geared towards a PhD although they claim to be placing alumni in top private companies.
All three options are STEM designated so I will have the chance to look for a job for 3 months and work for 3 years following graduation.
Being able to find (at least an OK) job in the US is my top priority because I will finance part of my degree with loans. And it would be really difficult to pay for it earning the currency of my home country. I am not sure if the first two options will help me do that.
I was also offered admission to the MIA program at Columbia SIPA and they offer a double degree combined with the QMSS. However, the cost of SIPA is the highest and it does not a have STEM designation (unless combined with the QMSS) so I reckon my chances of working in the US after I complete the program would be slim.
To be honest I thought this part of admissions process would be more colorful but so far it has been even more stressful than applying and waiting for decisions.
I would appreciate any help, thank you very much!
