Advice on two programs

[Baleg]

Hello, I’m new on this forum and posted this on the decisions forum and didn’t get comments so I wanted to also ask here. I am sorry about the redundancy 
 

Hi everyone, I finish my undergraduate degree this may. I wanted some feedback because I am debating which program to commit to as the April 14 deadline is coming closer. I was accepted to the comparative literature phd program at the cuny graduate center with full funding. I have also been accepted to teachers college Columbia for an EdD in curriculum and instruction with no funding except 20k the first year.

I am worried about the financial burden of the edd, but I am reading that the degree from tc seems to hold prestige when looking at jobs versus the rank of the program at GC. I am also stressed about the job security with a comp lit phd. I just needed an outsider viewpoint on the decision as I am wracking my brain and the deadline is coming closer

Would there be more payoff in the future to get my EdD from teachers college? Due to the Columbia prestige vs a degree from cuny gc’s comp lit program?should I just wait and reapply in the fall? I was interested in both the education and lit programs and applied to both degrees

Any advice and comments are helpful, thank you so much

[PsyDuck90]

CUNY Grad Center is also very well respected, and the PhD tends to be more prestigious than an EdD. Also, a program that pays you is pretty much always a big win. 

[The Penguin and Podiatrist]

^ I agree with what PsyDuck90 said and want to emphasize their point about how big funding is. I have always been told that you should never go in to debt for graduate school unless you are doing a professional degree that will lead to a very specific job like medical school or law school. And I have always been told that doctorate programs, specifically, (PhDs, EdDs, etc..) should always fund you.  

Not only does full funding mean you won't have to go into debt, but it also means that the school respects you as a scholar enough to pay you. 

 

[Baleg]

Thank you for the insight and helpful feedback, I am just anxious because I see everywhere the emphasis on pedigree and top programs: NYU, Columbia, Yale, etc. Now I’m wondering if I should decline the offer and reapply in the next cycle to top programs 

[PsyDuck90]

These standings are mostly for undergrad programs. While they also tend to have reputable grad programs, the pedigree isn’t necessarily the same. 

[Baleg]

9 hours ago, PsyDuck90 said:

These standings are mostly for undergrad programs. While they also tend to have reputable grad programs, the pedigree isn’t necessarily the same. 

Do you mind elaborating how it is not the same? I’m mostly worried about job prospects which is already unstable, and then wondering about the rank of Graduate Center. Would it be better to be from the top programs in comparison to how the Graduate Center is ranked? I’m thinking if I should reapply in the next cycle because of this and just worried about the reputation of the program in comparison to an Ivy like Columbia 

[PsyDuck90]

10 hours ago, Baleg said:

Do you mind elaborating how it is not the same? I’m mostly worried about job prospects which is already unstable, and then wondering about the rank of Graduate Center. Would it be better to be from the top programs in comparison to how the Graduate Center is ranked? I’m thinking if I should reapply in the next cycle because of this and just worried about the reputation of the program in comparison to an Ivy like Columbia 

Unless you found rankings specific to that graduate field of study, all of those rankings like US World News and such are for the undergraduate programs. For PhDs, the biggest factor is honestly how well respected you’re research mentor is. And CUNY Grad has some big names. PhD programs have too much variability given that prestige is more tied to who are the biggest names in the field at that time. Who you studied with is more important than where. Also faculty at CUNY Grad Center tend to get a lot of major grants from big agencies like NSF and such, which add to the prestige.  

[Baleg]

5 hours ago, PsyDuck90 said:

Unless you found rankings specific to that graduate field of study, all of those rankings like US World News and such are for the undergraduate programs. For PhDs, the biggest factor is honestly how well respected you’re research mentor is. And CUNY Grad has some big names. PhD programs have too much variability given that prestige is more tied to who are the biggest names in the field at that time. Who you studied with is more important than where. Also faculty at CUNY Grad Center tend to get a lot of major grants from big agencies like NSF and such, which add to the prestige.  

That makes more sense, thank you so much for explaining. When I was trying to find the ranking of the comp lit program, I didn’t see it as a top program that was mentioned on any of the lists. I know the English program is highly sought after, but I was unable to find how the comp lit program was ranked. I guess that’s where my concerns and worries came from. 

[PsyDuck90]

1 hour ago, Baleg said:

That makes more sense, thank you so much for explaining. When I was trying to find the ranking of the comp lit program, I didn’t see it as a top program that was mentioned on any of the lists. I know the English program is highly sought after, but I was unable to find how the comp lit program was ranked. I guess that’s where my concerns and worries came from. 

Rankings are really a hit or miss for grad programs. I would do a Google Scholar search for your advisors publications and look at how many times they’ve been cited to get a sense of how prominent they are in the field. That’s going to be your best metric.