School or Subject? Help!

[Folly]

Hello everyone, I am an international student with a BA in English Literature in Asia. I have applied for MA/PhD in the UK and the US this year,

but my BA in an non-English speaking country doesn't help much. English lit is very competitive and I was rejected by all the universities

(about 10) I've applied for in the US. Fortunately (or not), I got an offer from the English department at UCL (University College London), but

I am still unsure if this is a good choice. My ultimate goal is to do a PhD in the US and if possible, with scholarship, but right now I only

have an offer from UCL. I have several questions:

1. If my ultimate goal is to do a Ph.D in the US, does a degree from UCL help?

2. I'm also thinking about applying for less competitive subjects in better universities, such as theology, but I am not sure it is worth it.

Some say that the general name/prestige of a university matters more than a good department in a less famous university,

but some say that the subject matters more than the prestige of a school. Here is a quote from my professor:

"if you plan on further study after the MA the school doesn't matter as much as the subject, in my opinion."

Here is "Good University Guide" from Guardian: Subject ranking matters more than where you study

http://www.timesonli...icle7137237.ece

I wonder how you think? Please help! I am the one who champions the subject over the school, but most people don't seem to agree with me and I started to doubt if I made a wrong decision...

Thanks a lot and any opinion will be appreciated!

Edited July 10, 2011 by Shibaboop

[stillthisappeal]

Congratulations on your acceptance. Was your offer from University College London an unfunded offer? Was it for a terminal MA or a PhD? Generally speaking, the standard advice for U.S. graduate students in the humanities is that you should only accept an offer with funding. I would be curious to learn more about how their system would work for an international student. You may also want to keep in mind that London is a very expensive city.

But as far as reputation is concerned, unless I've misread, the Guardian ranks University College as the best program in the UK (see http://www.guardian....y-guide-english). My impression is that the school's graduates would be held in high esteem by most U.S. PhD programs, although you should keep in mind that American admission committees do tend to distinguish between whether an applicant went through a funded or unfunded degree programs. That's not to say that an unfunded degree program is worthless, but it may carry a negative stigma at some schools.

Good luck.

Edited July 11, 2011 by stillthisappeal

[Folly]

Hi Stillthisappeal,

Thanks for your quick reply!

My degree is a taught, unfunded MA. Almost all the MA in the UK are unfunded, and, for international students like us, everyone pays for their MA degree as a stepping stone for applying a funded PhD. This is what I'm aiming to do - do distinguish myself at MA level and win a funded PhD, since it is so expensive and so long to finish a PhD in Humanities..... No one I know of wins an MA with funding. Most schools treat international students like cash cows. They charge us for times more than a native.

Your second paragraph points out an interesting question. I was actually planning to re-apply for a second MA in the US this year. My reasons are: 1) an MA in the UK lasts only a year, so there is a gap year between my UK MA and my US PhD; 2) I'm an international student, my BA isn't quite good enough (GPA 3.88, find, but I am in a non-English speaking country. I don't think my degree carries the same weight as a US BA degree does) Do you think this is a good idea? Does it carry a negative stigma?

Thanks again!

Congratulations on your acceptance. Was your offer from University College London an unfunded offer? Was it for a terminal MA or a PhD? Generally speaking, the standard advice for U.S. graduate students in the humanities is that you should only accept an offer with funding. I would be curious to learn more about how their system would work for an international student. You may also want to keep in mind that London is a very expensive city.

But as far as reputation is concerned, unless I've misread, the Guardian ranks University College as the best program in the UK (see http://www.guardian....y-guide-english). My impression is that the school's graduates would be held in high esteem by most U.S. PhD programs, although you should keep in mind that American admission committees do tend to distinguish between whether an applicant went through a funded or unfunded degree programs. That's not to say that an unfunded degree program is worthless, but it may carry a negative stigma at some schools.

Good luck.

Edited July 11, 2011 by Shibaboop

[stillthisappeal]

Based on what you've said so far, I think it might make sense to apply to MA programs in the U.S. this year. As a point of comparison, I know that the University of Chicago offers an unfunded Masters of Liberal Arts program that some candidates enroll in based upon the school's reputation at the undergraduate and doctoral level. Some students go on to competitive PhD programs. Others don't. But with tuition in the tens of thousands of dollars per year, that's an expensive risk to take. In my opinion, you are much better off in a funded MA/PhD program.

I think you will find that there are a number of MA programs that offer funding (and often look favorably upon international students). I would search previous threads on MA programs in this forum for a list of schools. A lot of the funded programs are at second-tier U.S. schools, but those schools can be a good stepping stone for an academic career. In addition, you might want to consider applying to programs in less ethnically diverse areas, such as the Midwest, on the assumption that your international candidacy would be more appealing there.