Mechanical Engineering Ph.D. - NCState or UoDelaware

[Donald Draper]

Hello guys,

I applied to some universities for Mechanical Engineering Ph.D. program, and I have received a few admits. Out of those, NCSU and UDelaware are my top priorities and I am finding it difficult to choose between the two. I have been in contact with my potential advisers in NCSU and UD, and both of them have offered me a funded position in their respective labs. On one hand, NCSU's engineering program is ranked higher (#24) than that of UD's (#46) and I have a couple of acquaintances at NCSU who have all said that the university is great. On the other hand, the research interest compatibility with my potential lab in UD is higher as their current and future research plans align almost perfectly with that of mine; their PI's research impact is also higher. Having said that, the lab that I am interested to join in NCSU are doing similar (and very interesting) work but a subset of what I want to do. I know that for a Ph.D. a lab and the professor matter the most, but I just cannot get myself to reject a big engineering school like NCSU. Any thoughts on this will be really helpful.

Thanks in advance.

Best,

Don

[Shehab]

Congratulations on being admitted!

 

On 4/10/2020 at 5:54 PM, Donald Draper said:

I know that for a Ph.D. a lab and the professor matter the most

I totally agree. You will spend 5 years working in a lab with that professor. So, you have to pick the professor and the lab not the university. Pick the the research group you are more passionate to work with. Even if you will reject the best program in the world. 

If you are interested in both or if your interest in both is nearly equal, you can decide based on other factors, like the program ranking, the city you would like to live in, etc.

Wish you all the best.

Shehab