Rutgers vs. Miami

[sassywalrus]

Hi Everyone!

I'm deciding where to apply (either Fall 2013 or 2014) and I have found programs that line up with my professional goals at both Rutgers and University of Miami.

I haven't found many reviews or anything about both Schools of Education so I was wondering of anyone on here goes/went here, or knows someone who does/did. The websites don't give much information in terms of class size or student profile. Really any information would be helpful: professors, general attitude of students, financial aid, etc.

If it helps I'm looking at Educational Statistics, Measurement & Evaluation at Rutgers and Research, Measurement & Evaluation at Miami.

Thanks!

[CQE]

I'm a subscriber to US World News, so here's a little info for you:

Rutgers:

1. #49 overall education graduate school ranking
   
2. 14.6k in-state vs. 23.7k out-of-state tuition
   
3. 76%/24% Female to Male
   
4. 2.7:1 - Student-faculty ratio
   
5. 443 full-time vs. 599 part-time
   
6. 48 full-time vs. 52 part-time faculty members
   
7. Only 1% of students are specializing in "Educational evaluation, research, and statistics"
   
8. 6.3% of full-time tenured or tenure-track faculty received awards or were editors of educational journals during 2009 and 2011
   
9. $8.5 mil in research expenditures
   
10. 29.2% of full-time tenured or tenure-track faculty engaged in externally funded research
    

Miami:

1. #53 overall education graduate school ranking
   
2. $1600 per credit, full-time or part-time
   
3. 67%/33% Female to Male
   
4. 3.1:1 - Student-faculty ratio
   
5. 208 full-time vs. 69 part-time
   
6. 32 full-time vs. 25 part-time faculty members
   
7. Only 4% of students are specializing in "Educational evaluation, research, and statistics"
   
8. 9.4% of full-time tenured or tenure-track faculty received awards or were editors of educational journals during 2009 and 2011
   
9. $7.2 mil in research expenditures
   
10. 48.5% of full-time tenured or tenure-track faculty engaged in externally funded research
    

Edited August 10, 2012 by BlazerFalcon

[sassywalrus]

Thanks so much! They seem pretty even, give or take a few factors. I don't know if the 1%/4% implies no one applies for these programs and I'll have a better shot at getting in

That Rutgers in-state tuition is mighty appealing.

[CQE]

Thanks so much! They seem pretty even, give or take a few factors. I don't know if the 1%/4% implies no one applies for these programs and I'll have a better shot at getting in

That Rutgers in-state tuition is mighty appealing.

LOL

To be honest, I'm not sure what I was implying either. You can look at it in multiple ways, IMO, so I really wasn't trying to say one thing or another.

If you're looking to do research, though, Miami looks to have a slight edge.

Edited August 10, 2012 by BlazerFalcon

[sassywalrus]

In my mind I like the Miami program better, despite the fact that I'm partial to cold weather.

I worked out the percentages (quickly, and rounded, so forgive any errors) and it seems like they are dead even. #7 works out to 10-11 students and #8 works out to 3 faculty for both.

I went to an ACC school for undergrad and loved it, maybe I subconciously think it will be similar and that's why I'm partial to Miami. Plus I feel like I might do better at a smaller school, despite the program size being the same.

[CQE]

I'm from Alabama, but I hate hot weather.

So, I, too, am partial to the cold.

FWIW, I'm looking at UF, Boston College, my current school, and UPenn for my Master's. My current school is "meh", so I'm not too interested in staying here. I was one of those kids that was competitive at top schools coming out of high school, but opted for the in-state school due to $$$.

Point is, I still have a nagging itch to go to a top grad school to somewhat appease my competitive nature. UF isn't necessarily a "top" school, but I have other reasons for seriously considering it.

[sassywalrus]

Those are all great schools, I love UPenn. Rutgers is my state school but I opted to go out of state for undergrad and owe a small fortune in student loans.

Where I went to undergrad is always a common topic in job interviews ("oh what a beautiful campus!!", "isn't your mascot a turtle?", etc.) and I feel like going to Rutgers employers will just be like "oh another Rutgers person *yawn*". Haha. I know employers have brought me in just because of my interesting resume, and I feel like Miami will continue the trend.

Plus I already work in Institutional Research at a college and a lot of the reports and stuff I see are based out of the Florida/Miami area.

But Rutgers would be soooo inexpensive.

[CQE]

Those are all great schools, I love UPenn. Rutgers is my state school but I opted to go out of state for undergrad and owe a small fortune in student loans.

Where I went to undergrad is always a common topic in job interviews ("oh what a beautiful campus!!", "isn't your mascot a turtle?", etc.) and I feel like going to Rutgers employers will just be like "oh another Rutgers person *yawn*". Haha. I know employers have brought me in just because of my interesting resume, and I feel like Miami will continue the trend.

Plus I already work in Institutional Research at a college and a lot of the reports and stuff I see are based out of the Florida/Miami area.

But Rutgers would be soooo inexpensive.

Ah, so you're a Terp!

Well, I go to UAB - hence the "Blazer" in my username.

But yeah, I get what you mean. If I ended up going to UPenn and coming back to Alabama, which I plan to eventually do regardless, then I think that'd bode well for my future down here.

Not to say that a UPenn degree doesn't go a long way wherever you wind up, but I'd imagine it'd go even further down here in Alabama where there's not a lot of alternatives to state schools.

Most people are SEC grads (excluding Vandy) or a graduate of some small unknown.

As far as getting into UPenn goes, I'm hoping that being from Alabama will help me out from a diversity standpoint. *crosses fingers*

Edited August 10, 2012 by BlazerFalcon

[sassywalrus]

Yup!

Well good luck to you and thanks for the info!! Now if only any of the 20 people in these programs would weigh in on their experience anywhere on the internet...

[CQE]

Yup!

Well good luck to you and thanks for the info!! Now if only any of the 20 people in these programs would weigh in on their experience anywhere on the internet...

LMAO

Just send an email to the coordinator/director of the program you're interested in. Perhaps ask in the email if a current or former student of the program could contact you via email to answer questions?

[sassywalrus]

I already did that. They both were really nice and said "I look forward to receiving your application and having you join us in the fall!" So who knows if it really is that easy to get into these programs due to little interest from applicants.

I'll try to pester some students in the fall to see what their GPAs, GRE scores, etc were.

[patientpatient]

Hi, guys. I completed my undergrad at Miami just over a year ago and will be attending Penn in the Fall (for Ed Policy -- plan to take ~half of my classes in Qualitative Research Methods/Stats). I can hopefully provide some insight into the UM vibe and Penn GSE admissions (just not necessarily about the respective programs you are interested in).

First, I love, love Miami and UM. I chose it (finances and distance from home being major considerations) over Columbia, though I did still accrue slightly higher than average debt to attend (I feel you, Sassy Walrus). If you want that ACC, big game, school-spirit-drenched campus, Miami has it. Additionally, the academic programs are increasingly well-respected, the School of Ed included. I don't know too much about the RME program, other than that I was also super-interested. I chose not to apply after all, because I wanted more Ed Policy context, and I was accepted to Penn before the UM deadline (via rolling admissions) with a merit-scholarship. All this said, I would only consider UM if I were you if I had a vigilant plan to pay down that debt when you are done. I spent this past year living at home with my parents and putting 75 percent of my earnings toward my loans (still have a ways to go... only worked two part-time jobs totaling less than a full-time). I plan to live similarly for about two years after grad school. I am sure you've made similar considerations. So if the Miami program has more than just a slight edge over Rutgers, I would strongly consider it with some sacrifices, but if that edge is only slight, I wouldn't.

As for Penn GSE admissions, I think the biggest part of the application is probably commitment to education through work/volunteer experiences and as conveyed by your essay. I was a substitute teacher and tutor throughout much of college and worked at a school for this past year. As far as numbers, I had only a 3.2 GPA (after a failed attempt as a pre-dental bio major) from UM but relatively high GREs: 167 Verbal (710 on old GRE) and 158 Quant (740 on old scale). Oh, yeah, and a dreadful 4 for Writing. I got the $10k merit scholarship -- I believe there is also a $5k and $13,500 package. I am Cuban (though my Spanish is just average), so maybe that helped, too?

Edited August 14, 2012 by patientpatient

[CQE]

Thanks for the insight, patient.

I just took the GRE on Monday and scored a disappointing 154 V and 154 QR. I mean, my score is OK, but I was hoping for more along the lines of 160/160. Fortunately, I know I did very well on the AWA, so I'm expecting around a 5-5.5 on it based off of essays I've read in the past.

I have a 3.93 overall GPA (4.0 major) and decent experience. I've tutored/mentored student-athletes at my school, been a self-employed ACT tutor, and tutored rising high school juniors this summer for their upcoming year of AP English. This fall, I plan on volunteering to help low-income parents on how to rear their child(ren) from an educational standpoint and helping a low-income/urban high school with their football program.

I'm a business major that realized teaching was what I wanted to do relatively late into my college career, so my experience/resume is probably not as extensive or impressive from an educational standpoint relative to students who always knew they wanted to teach.

Hopefully my "OK" experience, "OK" GRE score, and solid GPA prove to be enough to get into UPenn.

If I get in, I'm going to pull a Mia Hamm in my front yard.

...no, really.

I am.

Edited August 16, 2012 by BlazerFalcon

[sassywalrus]

Blazer - HAHA at that Mia Hamm comment

Patient - Thanks so much for your input, someone else who understands insane amounts of undergrad debt! I was thinking about this finance-wise and I don't know if I should wait to apply for fall 2014 (seems so far away!). I work nearly full time and live at home so by then I will have significantly paid down my outstanding student debt and have a ton of work/conference experience, so maybe that will equal scholarship money?

I just don't know!

[jortin10]

I too am a UM alumni and is considering of going back to get a second master's in RMA (only if I get this job I applied to). The director is great. He is on sabitical for the year. If you want the doctoral degree, consider applying for the McKnight Doctoral Fellowships www.fefonline.org. If I don't get into 1 of my 3 dream schools, I'll settle for UM and use this scholarship. If you have any further qustions, you can message me. I am a native and is living in Miami.

[patientpatient]

You're welcome, guys.

sassywalrus -- Sounds like a plan. I didn't pay down nearly what I wanted to pre-grad school, so I'll have to buckle down extra hard for those 1-3 years afterward. I wasn't making enough money doing what I was doing anyway, so I felt compelled to jump the gun and start my Master's. Work experience will for sure improve your chances of admission and of aid, so good thinking on that.

Also, you said that you see a lot of research coming out of the "Florida/Miami" area. Higher Ed stuff?

BlazerFalcon -- I think you are an almost sure thing at Penn. If you want a little aid from them, though, maybe try retaking that GRE? You're a little above the average Quant GRE score and a little below the average Verbal. Your GPA is INCREDIBLE (I am very jealous). There will be some students coming from more competitive schools, so their GPAs could stand to be a little lower, but I'm sure few people applying have above a 3.75 or so. And Alabama is a good school still. As for work and extracurriclars, they seem to be in line with what Penn would expect: they show your commitment.

jortin10 -- cool to hear. If I decide to pursue a PhD after my Master's, UM will definitely be on my list. What other schools are you looking at?

[]_[]

[CQE]

You're welcome, guys.

BlazerFalcon -- I think you are an almost sure thing at Penn. If you want a little aid from them, though, maybe try retaking that GRE? You're a little above the average Quant GRE score and a little below the average Verbal. Your GPA is INCREDIBLE (I am very jealous). There will be some students coming from more competitive schools, so their GPAs could stand to be a little lower, but I'm sure few people applying have above a 3.75 or so. And Alabama is a good school still. As for work and extracurriclars, they seem to be in line with what Penn would expect: they show your commitment.

[]_[]

Thanks for the kind words, pp. It's encouraging to hear that coming from one who's been accepted (and is attending) UPenn.

I'm going to contact the UPenn lady again in regards to my GRE score after my AWA scores appear next Monday. I'll ask if I should re-take for both admissions and aid purposes.

I'll probably retake it regardless, though. Dammit!

If I do about 50 GRE vocab. words a week until winter break, I'll have done about 1,000 words. Once winter break starts, I can amp up the amount of words I do per day/week so that I can do another 1-2,000 before retaking it at the end of break, which is sometime in early January.

My reading comprehension is not a problem, so I should be able to break 160 if I can do better on the vocabularly questions. I'll be content with my QR score if it remains at 154 or slightly increases since it's already above average.

Now that I know how to prepare for it, however, I should be able to get into the upper 150s at the least.

BTW, do you happen to know what's the minimum/threshold GRE score for aid purposes?

Thanks!

Edited August 21, 2012 by BlazerFalcon

[edgirl]

I don't think the GSE at Penn has a minimum score for aid purposes, because all of the decisions about admissions and scholarships are made by department. I believe they just want to see statements of purpose that really clearly articulate why you're applying for their program, how you see yourself as a good fit, and what you'll bring to GSE.

Of course, you can also try contacting profs in the department early so that they recognize your name when your app comes up for review. If you do this, though, you should have a more substantive question than "Will I get a scholarship?" Try contacting folks whose research interests line up with yours, etc.

I have one master's from Penn GSE and am getting a second this coming year, if that helps make my thoughts more convincing!

[CQE]

Just figured I'd give an update...

....I got into Penn today! I was told via email today after submitting my application on Halloween night at around midnight.

The email also stated that I received a scholarship of $13,500, which, according to the email, is the highest scholarship an applicant can receive for my program. I don't say that to brag in the slightest; I'm more so interested in if that's just a statement to flatter the applicant and that, in reality, many applicants receive this award amount?

The email also stated that my SoP was strongly in line with my values, goals, and experiences, so it looks like what edgirl was saying was of utmost importance in terms of my acceptance and scholarship award.

Thanks for your thoughts, guys.

[CQE]

BTW, I read the email from the Honors building at my university, so I've yet to pull that Mia Hamm I mentioned a few months ago.

However, I will be pulling it as soon as I get home tonight!