Stanford MS EE (external funding) vs. Michigan/UIUC/??? funded PhD

[YokedBrah]

Hey everyone, I finally decided to make an account here with my grad school decision date coming fast. I'm hoping to get some advice specific to me after reading through many of the other threads.

 

Here are my Electrical Engineering grad school options:

 

A) Stanford MS EE -- unfunded, but I am a finalist for the DoD SMART scholarship program which I would consider taking to go here if I decide it's worth it. However, the "cash cow" reputation of Stanford's MS programs worries me.

 

B ) U-Michigan PhD -- fellowship, guaranteed funding for five years. I am interested in the research of the professor who contacted me

 

C) UIUC MS -- Funding offered through a combination of TA and RA. I like the professor who contacted me a lot, but I am less interested in his research than in the research at Michigan

 

D) Ohio State PhD -- fellowship offered, very interested in one of the professor's research activities and have been in contact with him. However, the fact that this school does not rank in the top 10, let alone top 20 EE schools is concerning to me.

 

E) I have still not heard from Carnegie Mellon, so this is most likely a long shot. However, if I do get accepted with some sort of funding I would strongly consider going here. Is there any chance of still getting accepted to their PhD program?

 

At first, I thought Stanford was the clear best choice -- I thought that it would be worth it to go there if I can have my MS funded through the SMART scholarship program. However, is it actually worth it? The forums would have me believe that since Stanford's MS is a "cash cow" that perhaps, say, Michigan's PhD program might even be considered more prestigious?

 

Taking the SMART scholarship (if I win it) and going to Stanford also has additional strings attached, such as required summer internships at DoD labs and DoD employment for 2 years (most likely) after I graduate.

 

Can anyone give me some advice?

Edited April 8, 2013 by YokedBrah

[EngiNerd-12]

Yokedbrah,

 

Is a PhD your ultimate goal? If it is, is it something you want to pursue right away (now or after obtaining a MS)?

 

If you answer YES to those questions, then I would recommend going with a funded PhD program rather than a MS program. The U. Michigan funded PhD program is attractive, especially given that you are very interested in their research. Stanford is indeed highly ranked, but so is U. Michigan. With that said, I would think that a funded PhD at U. Michigan is a wonderful offer that I wouldn't turn down for a MS offer at Stanford.

 

Don't go to UIUC if you are not interested in their research.

[tarrman]

Stanford shouldn't even be on that list because they aren't worth it. Don't let the rankings sway you otherwise. Yes they are a great school for academic placement and industry, but what they offer you can get from those other schools AND get paid to do it. Please don't feed the cow!

 

Just pick the school with the best research fit; you can't go wrong using that kind of metric.

[YokedBrah]

Thanks for the responses. 

 

Yokedbrah,

 

Is a PhD your ultimate goal? If it is, is it something you want to pursue right away (now or after obtaining a MS)?

 

If you answer YES to those questions, then I would recommend going with a funded PhD program rather than a MS program. The U. Michigan funded PhD program is attractive, especially given that you are very interested in their research. Stanford is indeed highly ranked, but so is U. Michigan. With that said, I would think that a funded PhD at U. Michigan is a wonderful offer that I wouldn't turn down for a MS offer at Stanford.

 

Don't go to UIUC if you are not interested in their research.

 

A PhD is my ultimate goal. However, my long term goal is to obtain a hopefully lucrative industry job in an R&D department. If going to Stanford would present me with significantly better opportunities with networking, etc. then I would be willing to get an M.S. now and wait on the PhD perhaps. But if you think I could still have an almost or equal chance at my long term goal after earning a PhD at Michigan, then I would probably go to Michigan.

 

It's not that I'm not interested in any of UIUC's research -- just the research of the professor who contacted me.

 

Again, I appreciate the advice.

 

 

Stanford shouldn't even be on that list because they aren't worth it. Don't let the rankings sway you otherwise. Yes they are a great school for academic placement and industry, but what they offer you can get from those other schools AND get paid to do it. Please don't feed the cow!

 

Just pick the school with the best research fit; you can't go wrong using that kind of metric.

 

The fact that Stanford is good for academic placement and industry is what was swaying me towards going there -- doing well in industry is a long-term goal of mine -- but I didn't know if a Stanford MS would help me with industry placement if the MS doesn't mean much.

 

Thanks for the advice

[tarrman]

Stanford is one of the best, if not the best for both. If you had a Ph.D. offer, I'd recommend taking it.

But those other schools are also very good in industry placement. You will have a job upon graduation. Also if you're looking to do R&D, you're gonna need a Ph.D. You'll need to reapply if you go to Stanford.

What are your research interests, if I may ask?

[EngiNerd-12]

Stanford is one of the best, if not the best for both. If you had a Ph.D. offer, I'd recommend taking it.

But those other schools are also very good in industry placement. You will have a job upon graduation. Also if you're looking to do R&D, you're gonna need a Ph.D. You'll need to reapply if you go to Stanford.

What are your research interests, if I may ask?

 

I agree with tarrman. I also received the MS in EE offer from Stanford, but since PhD is my ultimate goal, I declined it. A funded PhD offer always beats an unfunded MS offer (unless you do not plan on pursuing a PhD, which is not your case, since you plan on going into R&D and a PhD is often required and certainly comes in handy).

[YokedBrah]

Stanford is one of the best, if not the best for both. If you had a Ph.D. offer, I'd recommend taking it.

But those other schools are also very good in industry placement. You will have a job upon graduation. Also if you're looking to do R&D, you're gonna need a Ph.D. You'll need to reapply if you go to Stanford.

What are your research interests, if I may ask?

 

I wish I had the PhD offer 

 

I'm going to graduate school for control theory. I think it's interesting and I want to do mathematically intensive research. Right now I think robotics and/or aerospace applications sound the coolest. 

 

 

I agree with tarrman. I also received the MS in EE offer from Stanford, but since PhD is my ultimate goal, I declined it. A funded PhD offer always beats an unfunded MS offer (unless you do not plan on pursuing a PhD, which is not your case, since you plan on going into R&D and a PhD is often required and certainly comes in handy).

 

Fair enough. Stanford's "name brand" appeal was the main attraction for me

[tarrman]

Take Michigan's offer. Have you looked through their professor list? They're definitely one of the more mathematically intensive graduate programs in ECE. Just briefly looking through their faculty list, I'm seeing Dr. Lafortune, Dr, Meerkov, and Dr. Freudenberg all working in mathematically intensive controls research.

 

I was looking at UMich for machine learning/theoretical signal processing, and I was very impressed with the number of faculty whose research was on the more theoretical side.

 

Also keep in mind that it's less practical to do theory for a Masters. I think Stanford's MS is non-thesis, which means you wouldn't even get to do research. I also think you're letting the prestige surrounding the Stanford name cloud your judgment on the other schools. While UMich and UIUC aren't really considered prestigious schools (mainly due to the fact that they're big state schools), the ECE departments carry a ton of prestige. I know a few people who have been accepted to Stanford and/or MIT but were rejected at UMich.