Importance of networking/location while in Grad School?

[hobokennojokin]

Hey all,

So I recently got accepted into Loyola University Chicago's Ph.D Sociology program. While it isn't among my top choices (I've been waitlisted at a couple other schools), I'm beginning to think it might be the only school I get into this application season.

That being said, Loyola has been growing on me as it does strongly parallel by research interests. On another note, I began thinking about the benefits of being square in the middle of Chicago (Water Tower Campus on Michigan Ave) and the strong networking possibilities such a location might hold.

What would you say are the benefits to attending school with a location that has great potential for social networking? Is this indeed a good benefit of attending a school such as LUC or would you say that I am merely rationalizing at this point? And as a final question, what would you say are the dangers of going to a school that was undoubtedly your "safe", a school you may not have been as excited to attend as some of your top choices?

Greatly Appreciated,

SK

[whit]

I think if you are considering working in Chicago, you will benefit from your location since networking is the best way to look for future employment. Your program will instantly be recognized and will certainly eliminate the need to relocate. As long as the program has a decent ranking and the fit is good, which is what it sounds like, it's certainly worth placing near, if not at the top of your list.

As for myself, I have no desire to leave New York, therefore my applications this season have been within close proximity to the city. Not all programs are highly ranked, all have good fit. The connections that I have made in my past programs, both masters and bachelors, have been invaluable to my career thus far. I can only imagine the same for the doctorate. Often it's who you know....

 

[Gunner24]

Like you, I heavily weighed location in my choice for this fall- I'll be going to school in a bustling city as well. I like the idea of spending time networking while in school and reducing the chances of having to relocate when finished. And, as whit mentioned, your program will be more recognizable if you stay local. If you went to a "top-tier" school in a small town that might be great, but you would be much more likely to have to uproot and leave town to find work after you finish.

[Nurse Wretched]

Realistically, academia is a small world. I found that out when I walked into my interview and my interviewer was good friends with the chair of my masters committee, 2500 miles away.

I know I'm not staying in Small College Town. But I'm fine with that, because your advisor has friends. Your committee has friends. People move around in academia, they go to conferences, and often only a superficial connection is enough for people to move some amazingly large mountains for you.

Many universities are reluctant to hire their grads as faculty. Also, I had lived my entire life in Large West Coast City. It was so helpful personally and professionally to leave my comfort zone and force myself to realize, yet again, that there is more than one way to do everything.