WashU or UT Southwestern?

[JOEEE]

I got PhD offer from both WUSTL DBBS and UT southwestern BME, which one should I choose? Can anyone give some suggestions? 

[IamPokemon]

Well, which track at WashU did you get accepted in? Biomedical engineering is more engineering focused. The DBBS program at WashU is more Biology focused, which is why WashU's Biomedical Engineering program is not included in the DBBS Umbrella. So, I suppose the question is, do you see yourself spending the next 6 years doing engineering research or biology research? Other factors to think about:

Stipend at UT Southwestern: $35,000. (This is 62% above the average living wage in Dallas.)
Stipend at WashU: $34,500. (This is 67% above the average living wage in St. Louis)

So, the Stipends at both Universities are competitive. 

The Crime rate in St. Louis is considerably higher compared to Dallas. Though, I'm told that WashU is located in a relatively safe area. 

The Climate in Dallas will be a lot warmer (and Dryer). St. Louis can be hot in the Summer, but has been known (this year) to suffer though heavy snow storms in the Winter. 

[With regards to rankings, they say you should not weigh these heavily because the system is flawed and does not represent actual educational value. but if we are going to consider these, I like the research rankings provided by QS because they take research output, reputation, and usefulness (citations) into account. Also, the undergraduate rankings provided by US News is a lagging indicator as to the teaching quality at the graduate level].

Teaching (US NEWS 2022 Undergraduate GLOBAL ranking): 

• WashU ranks 27th out of 500 (top 6%) in the world for biomedical Science.
  • WashU ranks 31st out of 2005 (top 2%) in the world overall
• UT Southwestern ranks 40th out of 500 (Top 8%) in the world for Biomedical Science.
  • UT Southwestern ranks 124 out of 2005 (Top 7%) in the world overall.

Research (QS 2021 World Rankings): 

•   WashU ranks 45th out of 620 (top 8%) in the world for biological sciences
  • WashU Ranks 107th out of 1299 (Top 9%) in the world overall 
• UT Southwestern ranks 63rd out of 620 (Top 11%) for Biological Sciences
  • UNRANKED Overall globally

The above data seems to indicate that in general, WashU has a slightly better reputation than UT Southwestern, though both are really good.  

Also, to your question, I'd ask you to search inward. Having interviewed with both programs, what does your gut say? 

As an aside, I will be visiting WashU in less than a couple weeks. I am in a similar boat as you. I have to choose between WashU DBBS (Cancer Bio) and UW-Madison (MDTP and IPiB). I've visited UW-Madison twice for the two PHD programs I was offered admission to. Though I was amazed at the technology that the IPiB program employs, I've decided I liked the MDTP program a tad better as their research fits my interests more. So now, I have to decide which program I like better between MDTP and WashU. Right now, as far as the programs are concerned, they are both on equal footing.

I've considered the same things as listed above. WashU has a generally better overall reputation than UW-Madison, though both are really good. And while St. Louis has a more significant crime rate than Madison, the stipend that is offered by UW-Madison is only 35% above the average living wage in Madison, while, as stated above, the stipend offered by WashU is 67% above the living wage in St. Louis. The upcoming trip to the WashU campus will be the deciding factor for me. 

 

[JOEEE]

3 hours ago, IamPokemon said:

Well, which track at WashU did you get accepted in? Biomedical engineering is more engineering focused. The DBBS program at WashU is more Biology focused, which is why WashU's Biomedical Engineering program is not included in the DBBS Umbrella. So, I suppose the question is, do you see yourself spending the next 6 years doing engineering research or biology research? Other factors to think about:

Stipend at UT Southwestern: $35,000. (This is 62% above the average living wage in Dallas.)
Stipend at WashU: $34,500. (This is 67% above the average living wage in St. Louis)

So, the Stipends at both Universities are competitive. 

The Crime rate in St. Louis is considerably higher compared to Dallas. Though, I'm told that WashU is located in a relatively safe area. 

The Climate in Dallas will be a lot warmer (and Dryer). St. Louis can be hot in the Summer, but has been known (this year) to suffer though heavy snow storms in the Winter. 

[With regards to rankings, they say you should not weigh these heavily because the system is flawed and does not represent actual educational value. but if we are going to consider these, I like the research rankings provided by QS because they take research output, reputation, and usefulness (citations) into account. Also, the undergraduate rankings provided by US News is a lagging indicator as to the teaching quality at the graduate level].

Teaching (US NEWS 2022 Undergraduate GLOBAL ranking): 

• WashU ranks 27th out of 500 (top 6%) in the world for biomedical Science.
  • WashU ranks 31st out of 2005 (top 2%) in the world overall
• UT Southwestern ranks 40th out of 500 (Top 8%) in the world for Biomedical Science.
  • UT Southwestern ranks 124 out of 2005 (Top 7%) in the world overall.

Research (QS 2021 World Rankings): 

•   WashU ranks 45th out of 620 (top 8%) in the world for biological sciences
  • Wash U Ranks 107th out of 1299 (Top 9%) in the world overall 
• UT Southwestern ranks 63rd out of 620 (Top 11%) for Biological Sciences
  • UNRANKED Overall globally

The above data seems to indicate that in general, WashU has a slightly better reputation than UT Southwestern, though both are really good.  

Also, to your question, I'd ask you to search inward. Having interviewed with both programs, what does your gut say? 

As an aside, I will be visiting WashU in less than a couple weeks. I am in a similar boat as you. I have to choose between WashU DBBS (Cancer Bio) and UW-Madison (MDTP and IPiB). I've visited UW-Madison twice for the two PHD programs I was offered admission to. Though I was amazed at the technology that the IPiB program employs, I've decided I liked the MDTP program a tad better as their research fits my interests more. So now, I have to decide which program I like better between MDTP and Wash U. Right now, as far as the programs are concerned, they are both on equal footing.

I've considered the same things as listed above. WashU has a generally better overall reputation than UW-Madison, though both are really good. And while St. Louis has a more significant crime rate than Madison, the stipend that is offered by UW-Madison is only 35% above the average living wage in Madison, while, as stated above, the stipend offered by WashU is 67% above the living wage in St. Louis. The upcoming trip to the Wash U campus will be the deciding factor for me. 

 

Thanks for giving suggestions, and they are so helpful!

I was accepted at the BIDS (Biomedical Informatics and Data Science) track, a new program. I found researches from both the programs interest me through interviews. The primary thing I'm worried about WashU is the livability of st Louis (e.g., safety and weather). 

I am an international applicant, so I will not attend the campus trip. For international students, there will be a virtual "re-visit" weekend on April 7-8. I hope I can make my decision after that meeting.

[Regimentations]

1 hour ago, JOEEE said:

I was accepted at the BIDS (Biomedical Informatics and Data Science) track, a new program. I found researches from both the programs interest me through interviews. The primary thing I'm worried about WashU is the livability of st Louis (e.g., safety and weather). 

I am an international applicant, so I will not attend the campus trip. For international students, there will be a virtual "re-visit" weekend on April 7-8. I hope I can make my decision after that meeting.

First off, congratulations on getting accepted into two great schools!

For what it is worth, WashU isn't technically located in St. Louis. It's technically located in Clayton (a really safe suburb). When people generally talk about the dangers of St. Louis, they generally are referring to East St. Louis which is located in Illinois which is nowhere near where WashU is. The other reason that the crime rate seems higher is because the city of St. Louis is a different county than St. Louis county. The smaller size makes crimes appear higher because it doesn't have the cushion of lower-populated areas that bigger cities have. (Crimes are always more concentrated in relatively small sections of a metro area. There are definitely areas that you'd want to avoid in any city but there's also no reason why you'd be in any of those areas as there would be much more convenient areas to live in as a graduate student. Some people even commute from certain parts of the county via the metrotrain because WashU provides students with an unlimited metro pass).

I think it's also important to consider the weather. St. Louis will experience all 4 seasons including times which might be very hot or cold. Dallas will tend to be hot during most of the year and will not likely experience cold temperatures as often. How do you feel about the heat? How do you feel about the cold? As a precaution, I'd also reach out to current graduate students from both programs and ask them about their living experiences off-campus have been. Did they find it hard to find housing? How much has housing gone up in recent years? (There are some cities which have faced significant rent increases; you'll want to be prepared)

I'd also look at the history of temperatures in both places.

Edited March 16, 2022 by Regimentations