OTgirl

Not just "technically" - New York and PA are not and never have been part of New England, so as a New Englander, I find it amusing that anyone would say Massachusetts, New York, and Pennsylvania are the three states which come to mind when they think of New England. New England is a specific geographic region made up of the six states of Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut, and Rhode Island. I understand the point about the Northeast, though. But I think if you included some of the actual New England states in your list, you'd get an even larger number of "elite" colleges and universities being in New England. Think Dartmouth, Bowdoin, Bates, Colby, Wesleyan, Connecticut College, Yale, Brown (just off the top of my head.) Most elite colleges and universities are need blind when it comes to admissions. Just to add - it is well-known that the highest concentration of elite colleges and universities are in the northeast. Generally speaking, the elite schools are also the oldest schools, so it makes sense that they would be in this geographic region. Awhile back US News even changed their rankings formula because the rankings were supposedly too East Coast-centric. I think this brought some schools to people's attention which they would not otherwise know much about (for instance, Rice, Pomona.) It didn't actually change the fact that the East Coast has the highest concentration of elite schools, though.

It definitely varies dramatically from school to school. This is called the "yield rate," and factors like cost, program prestige, number of similar programs affect it. It is interesting that you ask about this, because I am absolutely convinced that some applicants have never given this any thought. On another forum I frequent, posters are always writing as if the number of people in the class is the number of people accepted, when they are NOT the same thing. (For instance... a class may have X number of people, with Y number of people being in-state... if the in-state people makes up, say, 80% of the class, the poster will write that of accepted students, only 20% are out-of-state, so out-of-staters have almost no chance of acceptance.) Or, when someone asks how many people are accepted to programs in X subject (meaning, what percentage of applicants), posters will give the average class size (let's say 35 people) when that is NOT how many people are accepted (and meaningless, anyway, when we don't know how many people applied.) I'm speaking of masters programs, but the general principle is the same.

Probably not. I'm 35 and already have one masters and am interested in changing careers. I love to travel and just got back from Europe and wish I could just move there. I'm married so going to grad school there is not an option. If I won, we could just move to Europe, buy apartments in several cities, and not have to worry about jobs. Or maybe we'd both apply to programs abroad, just for personal enrichment and to meet people. But I would not be pursuing what I am pursuing right now.

I looked into it maybe two years ago. It's not exactly the same as HES - true. But many of the HES courses are taught by actual Harvard profs, and a lot of the students there (especially for grad school/med school prereqs and the ALM program) are graduates of top colleges and universities (surprisingly so, actually, and that leads to a pretty good experience.) And yes, there is a distance option (meaning online), although I never considered that (and I'm not sure if it's possible to do 100% distance.) Depending on what you're studying at HES, distance may not be possible at all - many science classes, for example, are on-campus only. And, while as far as I know there is no true "distance option" (again, meaning online) for Dartmouth MALS, it's not usually a full-time residency program, either. Lots of people do the program at a slow pace and do not live in or near Hanover. Reputation-wise, they seem about the same, despite HES being a separate school within Harvard. I think that fact rests on the fact that neither have very competitive admissions. (HES courses are completely open-enrollment, but to be admitted to a degree program, you must complete a prescribed group of 3 courses with a B or better, so you do have to prove yourself to some degree.) Petersons.com says MALS accepts 67% of applicants, which seems pretty high for a "Dartmouth" graduate program, although the MPH program accepts 83% of applicants! Crazy. I'm rethinking my view of someone I met recently who did the MPH program there. But MALS/ALM is basically the "back door" way into a lot of schools. They're usually money-making programs, although the better schools do have performance standards and will kick you out if you don't meet certain standards (in contrast to for-profit schools which just take your money no matter how ill-suited you are to the program.) EDIT: I was just looking at the MALS program, and it looks like the majority of the courses for any track are "MALS courses" which is different from "Dartmouth College" courses. You are required to take a certain number of electives and subject courses, but they may all be "MALS courses" if you so choose. MALS courses are developed just for the MALS program and I don't see any requirement to complete a certain number of Dartmouth College courses. I don't see any information about funding but it is interesting that some students do get funding. I suppose the topic they intend to study matters quite a bit for that. I had originally been looking at this program because I already have one masters degree and have been working as a professional and was interesting in moving to a dramatically different area of study (and wasn't sure how competitive I would be in traditional admissions.)

What exactly are your goals? What do you think a PhD in Business will bring you? I don't mean to sound rude, but you don't seem to have much focus, and that might reflect more poorly than your low GPAs. A PhD in Business is very different from an EdD in Leadership, or a PhD in Education (and why would you think you'd be qualified for the latter?) What has your work experience been like? A desirable candidate doesn't apply because he/she "needs to be a doctor in something."

I looked into this program (and currently live in NH.) It doesn't have a BAD reputation... a fair number of people from good undergrad colleges undertake this program. But, it is not on par with a traditional program. One issue is that it is essentially open-enrollment. Yes, you do have to apply, but the application process is not competitive. There is also no funding for it and it is expensive. There's also less of a sense of comraderie/community to the program - a significant number of people are undertaking it part-time... especially teachers who work on the degree during summers. And it's more student-driven than a traditional program. I thought pretty seriously about it because I liked the fact that I could design my own program, I can't currently move, and Dartmouth is a better school than UNH, but in the end decided that if I wanted to go that route, I would do the program at the Harvard Extension School. Harvard is significantly less expensive. I used to work there and have taken a bunch of prereqs through HES, and I find that the teaching is high-quality in most classes. (I already have one masters from a top Canadian university, and an undergraduate degree from a top liberal arts college in the US, so I think I have a good basis for evaluation.) What are your goals? The people I know who did the Dartmouth MALS program were those who wanted academic masters degrees to enhance their existing careers... private school teachers and others in higher education who wanted a "subject" masters, often in addition to their professional masters degrees. I wouldn't shell out the Dartmouth tuition thinking it would get me a job out of thin air, unless I had money to burn. If I wanted to beef up my chances for a PhD program later on, I'd probably do the Harvard program.

I got my degree at a prestigious school, and I think the school named helped the career prospects of those who entered the program without any work experience. However, I entered the program with significant experience at Ivy league university library systems. I truly think it was my earlier work experience which allowed me to have no trouble finding jobs after graduation. And, if this is not the end all and be all of your career, I wouldn't waste money on a more expensive program if there is a decent program (particularly a bricks and mortar one) in your area. Regarding those librarians with online degrees... keep in mind that many people complete their degree programs as they continue to work, and stay at the same institution after graduation. Having worked in numerous libraries I do have to say - as unpopular as this will be - those with online degrees tend to have a harder time finding NEW jobs, especially if they don't have work experience in the field. That said, of course some do find jobs. But at a time when many new grads, even with experience, and from "good" schools are having a hard time finding jobs, the online degree grads (especially with little experience) will on average have the hardest time finding jobs. Along the lines of what littlewing said, though - you'll have your degree forever. I like the fact that I have a "name" graduate university to add to my "name" undergraduate college. In many librarian positions, especially in academia, your degrees will be listed in the course catalogue and on the library website. And, right now I am actually switching careers and applying for a second masters degree. I like the fact that I can submit a graduate transcript from a top university... I feel like in many cases the MLIS/MLS doesn't get much respect and so it helps that my grades are being assessed in the context of a known rigorous research university.

Yes, you'll do just fine. I'm American but got my MLIS at McGill. No prospective employer batted an eyelash at my degree being Canadian, and I actually think there are a number of positive aspects to having a Canadian degree. First, more "top" universities in Canada have MLS/MLIS programs than is the case in the US. (McGill is currently the top-ranked Canadian university has been for 7 years in a row, and of course UBC and Toronto are excellent schools.) Second, the programs tend to be considerably less expensive than US programs, even taking into consideration the higher international student tuition. (Although admittedly when I got my degree in 2005-2007, the exchange rate was better, but this is still generally true.) Third, many Canadian programs are longer than US programs - mine was a full two years, or 16 courses, versus the typical 12 course US program. I think I got a better education overall than many students in US programs. Finally, you'll get an interesting experience. McGill is in Montreal, so I got more of a "foreign" experience than would be the case in English-speaking Canadian cities, but I think Americans will be surprised at how different from the US even English Canada is. Despite having visited numerous times, until I moved to Canada, I thought it was pretty much exactly the same as the US... this is not the case.