Is switching grad schools after obtaining a masters looked down upon?

[amRadio]

Hi, I am a first year aerospace engineering grad student at UMD (University of Maryland), and as of now, I am only on track to get a Masters. I recently applied for a couple of fellowships, but am currently unfunded. I mentioned to my advisor that I was considering doing a PhD, and now he seems to assume that I am set on staying on for a PhD at UMD. He gave me a research project on the PhD timescale, and he's also mentioned the qualifying exams to me.

If I do decide to get a PhD, is it generally looked down upon to try to switch schools without a good reason? I would most likely want to apply to MIT and Princeton. At the end of this semester I expect to have a 3.7 GPA, and my GRE scores are (revised test, I took it recently): Quantitative: 168, Verbal: 165, Analytical: 5.5 (all three are 96th percentile). Now I assume Princeton and MIT are both difficult to get in to, does anyone know how competitive it is for aerospace grad students who already have a Masters?

My reasons for considering a switch would be:

- Living in a more interesting location (College Park kinda sucks. Also I went to undergrad in Massachusetts so I have friends up there. I also grew up in Maryland and I find Maryland to be a bit boring. I would love to live in Boston, however.)

- Going to a more prestigious school (UMD's aerospace is ranked high, but MIT is #1)

- I'd be interested in a different research project (my project is interesting, but I don't think the end concept is all too viable. Seems a bit far-fetched)

My reasons against transferring would be:

- If I start another research project, it could add a year or so overall to the time I spend in school

- My advisor might get pissed (though he himself is an MIT grad)

- MIT might be much more difficult than UMD (but I don't know)

- There's nothing really wrong with staying at UMD (besides my boredom for the state of Maryland)

[Nerd_For_Life]

I'm not in the same program as you (I'll be starting my MA in anthro this Sept) but in my program and most others in Canada it is definitely encourage to change schools between qualifications, to the point where if you want to aim for receiving a Vanier Scholarship (worth $50,000 for each year of your phd) you HAVE to be going to a different school than the one you just finished at and if you're not you need to have a damn good reason why. Again, I have no idea if that is the same across the board and I know a lot of people who stay at one school for both their MA and PhD and a lot of PhD programs are combined MA/PhD programs. I think benefits of going to a different school are: potential for more/different opportunities, more networking, demonstrating that you can succeed in different environments, showing diversity on your application, etc. For my PhD I plan to apply to the school that I'm going to for my MA, but also apply to several other schools, that way I can see what my options are when the time comes and what feels like the best fit.

[amRadio]

Thank you for the input. My program isn't technically a combined MS/PhD but it seems most students make the transition from being a masters student to a doctoral student pretty seamlessly.

Does anyone have any experience with this in engineering or the physical sciences?

[CarlieE]

One of my current professors mentioned that switiching programs or taking the Masters (not finishing the PhD) can be detrimental sometimes, especially if one goes ahead and gets into another program and finishes and begins to look for a tenure-track job. Your future employers - if they are universities - may question what happened there and why.

Also, pissing your advisor off might not help with letters of recommendation from him/her when it does come time to job hunt.

[ghanada]

wait it sounds like you are are in the MS program and NOT the PhD program? There is a big difference in entering an MS program, graduating and then entering a PhD program vs entering a PhD program, dropping out early and getting an MS, and then re-applying for other PHD programs. If it is the former case, you have nothing to worry about. It is absolutely acceptable to finish an "intended" Masters, graduate, and then choose to go somewhere else for a PhD. If it is the latter case, then what @anthroDork said is valid. It would not be adviseable to enter a PhD program, quit with just a Masters, and then go into another PhD program.

[ktel]

I am also coming from Canada where the MSc and PhD are usually pretty separate, and its a lot more common to switch in between. Although doing my Master's now, I can see how it would be WAY more helpful to stay in the same program for both degrees.

Besides, I doubt your school is going to hate you for going to MIT...

Edited March 30, 2012 by ktel

[amRadio]

Thank you everyone for your advice. Ghanada, you are correct, I am only in the MS program, not the PhD program, so I suppose it should be acceptable that I apply to other institutions while I finish my intended Masters. Though I guess I would also need to take the qualifying exam here at UMD in case I do not get accepted anywhere else I apply. I think I am going to try to meet with an aero professor at MIT over the summer to discuss my options, and also to get a better sense of my chances of acceptance.

The two things that worry me the most about switching schools are:

- Disappointing/pissing off my advisor

- Adding a year or so to my overall time spent in school (since I would likely be switching research projects)

[cyberwulf]

Your advisor may be behaving this way because he is desperately hoping that you'll stick around to do a PhD, not because he assumes that's your plan. It's a common "trick" of departments (particularly those that don't get the most talented PhD students) to identify talented Masters students and then strongly encourage them to continue on in the PhD program at the same school. They often do this because they are worried that if you apply elsewhere, you're likely to get in and be enticed to leave for a more prestigious institution.

Edited April 2, 2012 by cyberwulf

[generalstrike1]

I have a related question to the OP. I applied to the MA program of a department, but was admitted to the MA-PhD track, with 6 years of funding if I stay for the PhD and 2 years if I only do the MA. I've made it pretty clear to the Chair of the department that I may or may not leave with the MA depending on a variety of factors in my personal life. Would it be viewed negatively to leave with the MA, even though I applied specifically to the MA program?

[Spore]

I don't think your concern about adding a year to your graduate studies should matter. An extra (paid) year of study is a blink of the eye in your life. I know because I started a graduate program in one school for one year and then transferred to a different program.

As for your advisor being annoyed, it may or may not happen. I do not think it should influence your decision to apply. This is your academic future you are setting up. Still, his LOR will carry the most weight in your applications to PhD programs.

Also, no matter how well qualified you are, there is no guarentee you will be accepted to MIT etc.

I recommend having an open and honest conversation with your mentor.

[amRadio]

This has been great. Thank you everyone so much for your advice.