Russian Studies/ History: Will a Russian masters program be an asset when applying to American PhD programs?

[frogtheman]

Hello all,

I recently applied to and was accepted into the Global and Regional History masters program at Higher School of Economics in St. Petersburg, Russia. For those of you who don't know, HSE is widely regarded as one of the best social science/ humanities universities in Russia. While history is my primary area of focus, I ultimately plan on pursuing an academic career in Slavic Studies. Will a history program at a Russian university, particularly HSE, be recognized by American PhD programs as a good program? In other words, will this by an asset, or a waste of time and a trivial point on my CV?

My thinking is as follows. The pros: I will have direct access to archives that will make my MA thesis stand out from other applicants, I will be able to gain a high level of Russian competency, and I will be able to develop working relationships with leading Russian historians. The cons: Russian bureaucracy, including academic, is notoriously spotty, and I risk committing two years of my life to a program that holds no weight in American academia.

Please let me know if you need any more information, I look forward to hearing from you.