Is a well renown school worth the extra money?

[legroschat]

Hello,
I am new here, and am really struggling with an issue I would like some unbiased, external input on.
I've been accepted to the UofT MLIS program, and the University of Manitoba archival studies program. The UofT program is upwards of 25k a year, after all has been said and done...tuition and books paid for, living expenses, etc. The UofM is infinitely more affordable, in addition to the fact that Winnipeg is a more affordable city than Toronto. However, of course, the UofT is a much, much better school. I'll be able to scrounge together the money for my first year at the UofT, but after that it will be financial aid. Do you think the name recognition of the UofT is worth 25k in student debt? I'm wanting to work internationally after my program, as well, so I would like to go to a school employers  will recognize. However, the UofM offers a work placement as part of their program, so I know that experience would also be worthwhile.

Thoughts? I would appreciate anyone's two cents. Thanks in advance.

[Logorrhea224]

You might consider not so much name recognition as whether the program itself will actually better prepare you for your field... do you think that U of T truly has a better program and is best suited for your interested, or are you going on the school's overall reputation? It seems like as long as University of Manitoba has opportunities and courses you think will prepare you for what you want to do, it would be just as good to go there (I'm assuming it has equal accreditation and such). For my part, I desperately wanted to like CUNY Queens, as it's a dramatically cheaper, in-state option for me. However, my experience with them through their website and the application process pretty much convinced me I wouldn't get the preparation I needed for a LIS career. I don't know if this helped at all, but from everything I've heard, it's generally better to go on the program's individual strengths rather than the more-expensive, big name option.

[RelaxButterfly]

I'm not sure if you're interested in library science at all, but if you are, it might be helpful to know that UofT is accredited with the American Library Association while the University of Manitoba's program isn't, which could affect your job opportunities in the US. I'm not sure how much this will matter for archival studies specifically, but I wanted to pass along the information. 

[apost]

You might consider not so much name recognition as whether the program itself will actually better prepare you for your field... do you think that U of T truly has a better program and is best suited for your interested, or are you going on the school's overall reputation? It seems like as long as University of Manitoba has opportunities and courses you think will prepare you for what you want to do, it would be just as good to go there (I'm assuming it has equal accreditation and such). For my part, I desperately wanted to like CUNY Queens, as it's a dramatically cheaper, in-state option for me. However, my experience with them through their website and the application process pretty much convinced me I wouldn't get the preparation I needed for a LIS career. I don't know if this helped at all, but from everything I've heard, it's generally better to go on the program's individual strengths rather than the more-expensive, big name option.

what school did you end up going to?

[bzrunner2009]

Honestly, I think it is more about how the school will prepare you more than the name of the program. Your experience is going to speak more than what school you attended. I have talked with people who attended the best ranked MLIS program for youth services and they learned the same exact thing as I did. I also talked with someone who attended the school that I turned down, and I actually thought her class selections were better than mine. I guess it is all perspective.

 

However, RelaxBunny has a good point. If you are even thinking about working in the US the ALA-accredited program is huge. Many employers require that the school be accredited. 

[apost]

Honestly, I think it is more about how the school will prepare you more than the name of the program. Your experience is going to speak more than what school you attended. I have talked with people who attended the best ranked MLIS program for youth services and they learned the same exact thing as I did. I also talked with someone who attended the school that I turned down, and I actually thought her class selections were better than mine. I guess it is all perspective.

 

However, RelaxBunny has a good point. If you are even thinking about working in the US the ALA-accredited program is huge. Many employers require that the school be accredited. 

All the schools I am looking into are ALA-accredited (CUNY, Pratt, St. John's).  I want to attend CUNY-Queens college because it is so much cheaper and I already have serious student loans from my previous graduate program.  I have compared the course selections at each school and CUNY actually has pretty good courses and many quite similar to Pratt and St. John's.  However, the other two schools have some specialty classes in the concentration I'm interested in.  I'm not sure if spending three times as much on the program is worth it though.  Has anyone compared these programs?  What do you think?  As an aside, have those of you who have completed or know people who have completed an MLS/MLIS program have any insight on the job market?  I really hope it is not extremely difficult to land a job.