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[wdc36]

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[zephyr]

washu is an excellent place to go. outstanding phd program. and most importantly, fully-funded. i'd say this is a no-brainer.

[LaraAnn85]

I agree, I don't know what the question is! WashU is a notoriously good school with a great reputation, not an ivy but still damn good. I wouldn't even think twice about this situation, why pay $50k at Columbia for just a master's when you can get a PhD at WashU for free?!?!

[Quarex]

Yeah, come on, now. This is just easy. If Washington University were not a good (and seemingly getting better) program, you might have a more difficult decision on your hands. Plus, there are no guarantees of better placement after your M.A. at Columbia, anyway.

Now, I have to pick between a fully-funded master's program at a state school and an unfunded Ph.D at a more prominent state school. THAT is a choice! Ha.

[LaraAnn85]

Now, I have to pick between a fully-funded master's program at a state school and an unfunded Ph.D at a more prominent state school. THAT is a choice! Ha.

Oh no! That is a tough call. Does the master's have the possibility of continuing on for a PhD at the same school? Which advisor do you like better? And how much more prominent is the unfunded PhD school? What a pickle

[Quarex]

Oh no! That is a tough call. Does the master's have the possibility of continuing on for a PhD at the same school? Which advisor do you like better? And how much more prominent is the unfunded PhD school? What a pickle

Hey, thanks for noticing my plight in the new "D" thread!

No, the master's is a terminal degree. If it were not, I would just go and assume everything would work out fine. My Ph.D. offer is from a pretty low-ranked school, so the ignomy of the un-funded offer really got me thinking about how much nicer the funded master's program sounded. It would even give me the chance to re-do my GRE (my scores are about to expire! Woo!).

The M.A. school is actually higher ranked in general than the Ph.D. school, too, making the decision potentially easier, yet that does nothing to assuage my worries about the uncertainty of facing the application process again ... if I did not get any offers that time, I would sure feel stupid. There is one decently-ranked school that told me I may well still be admitted, which would make this whole question moot. Though they sure are taking their sweet time on the final decision.

[livmoredyles]

Now, I have to pick between a fully-funded master's program at a state school and an unfunded Ph.D at a more prominent state school. THAT is a choice! Ha.

I think your choice is pretty easy too...the MA program. Getting into an unfunded PhD is pretty much a rejection, but if it's possible that your future career will be lucrative enough to pay off the debt then I guess that's fine. BUT the MA will make you a more competitive applicant and will lead to a fully funded PhD program. Also you'll likely be able to transfer some of your MA classes to reduce your course load for the PhD.

Also you'll have letters of rec. from professors that are more well known and well connected in your field. That will help you out tremendously come PhD application time. During the summer in between the 1st and second year you can study again for the GRE, blow it away and be an extremely competitive applicant and not in the poor house due to a non-funded PhD program.

Seems like a no brainer to me.

[LaraAnn85]

Hey, thanks for noticing my plight in the new "D" thread!

No, the master's is a terminal degree. If it were not, I would just go and assume everything would work out fine. My Ph.D. offer is from a pretty low-ranked school, so the ignomy of the un-funded offer really got me thinking about how much nicer the funded master's program sounded. It would even give me the chance to re-do my GRE (my scores are about to expire! Woo!).

The M.A. school is actually higher ranked in general than the Ph.D. school, too, making the decision potentially easier, yet that does nothing to assuage my worries about the uncertainty of facing the application process again ... if I did not get any offers that time, I would sure feel stupid. There is one decently-ranked school that told me I may well still be admitted, which would make this whole question moot. Though they sure are taking their sweet time on the final decision.

Hmmm. Ok another question- can the master's be done in one year or two? If it's one year, then definitely do the MA, it won't be an incredible amount of money and you can probably get into a good PhD program after that. Of course it is a gamble that you might not get in next round, but just make sure you apply to a lot of places and you should be ok if you got in this time. I guess if there is such a big discrepancy between the schools going for the MA might be better, as long as you can afford it!

[Quarex]

I think your choice is pretty easy too...the MA program. Getting into an unfunded PhD is pretty much a rejection, but if it's possible that your future career will be lucrative enough to pay off the debt then I guess that's fine. BUT the MA will make you a more competitive applicant and will lead to a fully funded PhD program. Also you'll likely be able to transfer some of your MA classes to reduce your course load for the PhD.

Also you'll have letters of rec. from professors that are more well known and well connected in your field. That will help you out tremendously come PhD application time. During the summer in between the 1st and second year you can study again for the GRE, blow it away and be an extremely competitive applicant and not in the poor house due to a non-funded PhD program.

Seems like a no brainer to me.

Well, when you two put it like that ...

The unfunded Ph.D. thing had certainly weighed heavily on my mind. I do keep hearing that if you are not funded, then you are not really wanted. A couple of schools have so few funded spots that they might not necessarily work that way, but they are already off the list for other reasons.

Having letters of recommendation from the actual field is likely going to help, too, huh. My criminal justice professors wrote me glowing letters, but there is only so much that a letter from someone not even in your field can likely do. My plan is indeed also to annihilate the GRE. Now that my scores are about to expire, and my admissions are 99% in, I must admit my great shame--I did not study the first time. I thought it was like the ACT, and your most current score was the one they kept. Yes, you can tell how ready I was for graduate school five years ago.

Hmmm. Ok another question- can the master's be done in one year or two? If it's one year, then definitely do the MA, it won't be an incredible amount of money and you can probably get into a good PhD program after that. Of course it is a gamble that you might not get in next round, but just make sure you apply to a lot of places and you should be ok if you got in this time. I guess if there is such a big discrepancy between the schools going for the MA might be better, as long as you can afford it!

It can definitely be done in one year, though I am not sure whether the summer will be necessary. Not a huge deal either way. That is one of the reasons it looks awfully tempting, knowing that another 9 months of academic preparation might lead to something amazing, and at the worst should surely lead to something at least substantially better. After all, if my GPA/GRE combo goes from ~3.3/~1300 to something like /~3.9/~1500, I am pretty sure it will help override any curiosity as to why I have two master's degrees.

My plan is to apply to perhaps not as many schools as I did this time (...27...), but to have a less "overkill" and more "targeted" approach. I imagine my new department will have a much better idea as to what schools might want to work with my research ideas than my last one did.

Thanks for your advice. Too bad it is not likely that you need any help figuring things out on your own! These forums are totally slowing down now that people have accepted admission and fled to party 24/7 until the Fall semester starts, apparently.

[rising_star]

It can definitely be done in one year, though I am not sure whether the summer will be necessary. Not a huge deal either way. That is one of the reasons it looks awfully tempting, knowing that another 9 months of academic preparation might lead to something amazing, and at the worst should surely lead to something at least substantially better. After all, if my GPA/GRE combo goes from ~3.3/~1300 to something like /~3.9/~1500, I am pretty sure it will help override any curiosity as to why I have two master's degrees.

My plan is to apply to perhaps not as many schools as I did this time (...27...), but to have a less "overkill" and more "targeted" approach. I imagine my new department will have a much better idea as to what schools might want to work with my research ideas than my last one did.

Thanks for your advice. Too bad it is not likely that you need any help figuring things out on your own! These forums are totally slowing down now that people have accepted admission and fled to party 24/7 until the Fall semester starts, apparently.

Did you really do 27 applications? Maybe the sheer number had an effect on their quality, which did you harm when it came to admissions. Definitely be more targeted. Good luck!

[polisciphd]

And how much money did 27 applications cost? I only did 7 and it was close to $800 (including gre costs).

[alanapsci]

Sorry for the personal thread... Quarex, I PM'ed you rather than discuss what I had to say on the board!

[Quarex]

27 applications may have been part of the reason I had no money left by the start of this year. I had to have my parents help pay for the last, oh, $1,500 or so. How much was it total? I do not want to think about it.

And while I realize it sounds ridiculous, I had absolutely no basis on which to assume I would be accepted anywhere, coming out of a different field and knowing no-one to even help me find the right kind of people (I know plenty NOW, of course, as much as that helps). I looked at over 1,000 schools globally, narrowed it down to about 75, consulted with my girlfriend as to places that might make sense for us, and ended up "only" pulling the trigger on a little over 25 of them! I thought it was a remarkable exercise in restraint, myself.

You might think I skimped on any given application with this process, but I literally did just about nothing else with my free time between August and December other than apply to schools. A job would have taken up too much of my time.

[LaraAnn85]

You might think I skimped on any given application with this process, but I literally did just about nothing else with my free time between August and December other than apply to schools. A job would have taken up too much of my time.

I applied to 11 while taking 20 units of classes and working in a lab. I honest don't know how I did it. But hey if I could juggle all that and pull off a 3.9, I can do grad school right? 8) (just kidding I know grad school is going to be way harder)

[rising_star]

And while I realize it sounds ridiculous, I had absolutely no basis on which to assume I would be accepted anywhere, coming out of a different field and knowing no-one to even help me find the right kind of people (I know plenty NOW, of course, as much as that helps). I looked at over 1,000 schools globally, narrowed it down to about 75, consulted with my girlfriend as to places that might make sense for us, and ended up "only" pulling the trigger on a little over 25 of them! I thought it was a remarkable exercise in restraint, myself.

We took vastly different approaches. I had a similar thing when I applied out of undergrad of applying to a new field with no one to give me advice. I ended up only applying to six schools, and getting into four of those somehow. I was completely burnt out from that! I can't imagine doing applications nonstop from August to december! I assume you're going to do the state school MA? If so, good luck with future applications!