Chchadder Posted March 14, 2008 Posted March 14, 2008 I've been accepted into Columbia's (Teachers College) Social-Organizational Psychology masters program as a consolation prize for not getting into their PhD program. Not bad as far as second place goes, it is an ivy after all. I have also been accepted into the PhD program within the public university system that I attend now, albeit at a different college. The CUNY degree through The Graduate Center is a very respected PhD, but an Ivy masters is...see above. I am still waiting on several out of state programs (wait-listed at UNC Charlotte and others) as well, but I think that I am staying in NYC. So I am weighing my options right now and thought I'd throw it out there for suggestions. All of my professors and cohorts of course scream to take the PhD, but people outside of academia and in the business world say to do the Columbia masters. I'm coming out more in debt either way as the masters will cost about 60k minus a few fellowships here and there, and the stipend for the PhD anywhere is around or less than 20k per year. That doesn't go far in NYC. There are definitely more grant and fellowship opportunities for the doctorate than the masters, and I do ultimately see myself back in academia teaching but not for a while. It kind of sounds like I've already made my decision, huh? Feedback and opinion would be greatly appreciated.
rising_star Posted March 14, 2008 Posted March 14, 2008 If you ultimately want a PhD, why not enter the PhD program now? What career are you going to have? Will it pay you enough that you can pay off the $60K+ in debt you'll accumulate while at Teacher's College?
StarvingStudentYeah Posted March 16, 2008 Posted March 16, 2008 I have an aunt who is a research scientist (Developmental Psych) who works for Teachers College and I can tell you that in her opinion people should avoid unfunded education at that school unless you are rich and can pay the tuition outright and without thinking it is expensive. The general reality that everyone is starting to understand is that the Ivy reputation is tarnished compared to where it once was. This is not to speak badly of those institutions, but rather to say simply that their rep does not shine as bright as it once did. Yes, those outside of academia and with little connection to academics will still be a bit starry-eyed when hearing of an Ivy education. However, how likely is it that a person with an advanced degree would be interviewing with someone without a similar educational experience? In other words, it's not very likely that the person you're eventually interviewing with would be ignorant to this new reality. For me personally, I'm doing a MA first because I choose to. I'm not in a hurry to get through school, and will find a way to be funded my 2nd MA year regardless and in my field there's a good chance I can do my PhD in a years less time if I start with a MA, so I'm only adding one year in the aggregate. All the advice I have received has been to take the program that fits YOU rather than the one with this or that reputation. Good luck!
Yem2808 Posted March 17, 2008 Posted March 17, 2008 as someone who once considered teachers college to be my dream school, i will tell you to avoid the MA program there at all costs. there are too many students and too little money, not to mention that there isnt much you can do with a terminal masters in psych -- except go on to a phd. if you have an offer for a phd program, i would take it. cuny may not have the prestige of columbia, but .. you'd be surprised at the things i heard about TC (from academics) while i was out visiting and interviewing at other programs. i would run, not walk, as far away from TC as possible and enjoy cuny.
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