Washington St. Univ. vs. SUNY Albany

[pookie]

PhD program in Education (literacy and language) in WSU and SUNY Albany, without funding.

(I haven't got an official admission letter from WSU. No info about funding. If offered, I would definitely go to WSU)

Which one would you go, Washington St. Univ. or SUNY Albany?

Or if you know anything about the program, please share with me!

SUNY Albany

+Higher graduate school ranking on US News.

+The faculty are much more well-known in the field, compared with WSU. (And maybe more opportunities?)

- The living expense is higher.

WSU

+ The living expense is lower. WSU provides affordable school housing.

+ Small town living. I've been to Michigan St. Univ, and like it there. Guess Pullman is very much like East Lansing.

+ Better reviews on student review.

-The faculty seems to be much younger, and not as well-known as those in Albany. (I'm not judging the faculty from their age. No offense)

[Sequent]

Something else to consider: NYS isn't doing that great financially and I think the SUNY schools had some budget cuts recently. Albany might be alright, or your your department might be well-insulated, but it's something to investigate. Even though you don't need to worry about losing funding at SUNY, a general lack of money on campus could affect the quality of life there. I dunno, maybe WSU's in similar problems or maybe SUNY has recovered, but I'd be sure to look into it.

[pookie]

Thanks for reminding me.

But would the cut affect the quality of education as well? I did ask SUNY Albany for funding after I received the admission, and was told that they were facing the cut (that's honest). I don't know if the budget cut would also affect th funding opportunities in the future.

As for WSU, they don't mention anything about funding, but I received a letter saying that I need to take a web based training to be eligible for an assistantship. Is taking the course a guarantee?

It is such a difficult decision!

Something else to consider: NYS isn't doing that great financially and I think the SUNY schools had some budget cuts recently. Albany might be alright, or your your department might be well-insulated, but it's something to investigate. Even though you don't need to worry about losing funding at SUNY, a general lack of money on campus could affect the quality of life there. I dunno, maybe WSU's in similar problems or maybe SUNY has recovered, but I'd be sure to look into it.

[pookie]

Any more thoughts anyone? I'm desperate for any advice!

[Henry Hudson]

If I were you, first of all, I'd get on WSU for clarification on funding. Don't guess, find out for sure.

Without funding, what do you do? still go? work? loans? apply for grants/fellowships on your own?

If you plan on any outside employment while you're there, Albany will have better options. Small college towns off out on their own generally have a surplus of well-educated people competing for the same small job pool. Despite Albany's woe$, there are still plenty of school districts (for example) (urban, suburban and even rural close by) to substitute in - and get useful experience in your field. Moreover, plenty of them are within public transit (if that' an issue).

Various parts of the Albany metro area have fairly active arts/culture scenes. I'm honestly not sure what the live music scene is like these days. Food-wise, there is a great deal of ethnic variety, in restaurants and even small groceries.

I can't compare to Pullman because I don't really know that area. But at a glance, it doesn't look like a lot out there (in terms of human-based infrastructure).

[pookie]

Actually, I have asked both schools for the funding. What I got from SUNY Albany was that they are facing the budget cuts, and that was it! One of the faculty in WSU told me that she'll put me on the list so that I would be able to know the staff positions.

Seems that the faculty in WSU are more helpful.

@Henry

I am not allowed to work outside of the school because I'm an international student.