Where do you want to move?

[Hopephily]

I know geography is a small consideration (if any) in program choice.  So out of the schools that you applied to, where would you want to move if location was your main consideration and why? 

[MattDest]

I think if I end up being lucky enough to have choices between programs, location will play a not insignificant role in my final decision. If you are going to be there for the next 5-7 years, it's important that you like living there. 

 

Arizona is probably my top location choice, because I grew up there and most of my family and friends live there. Aside from that, UC San Diego (weather=perfect and it's a fun city) and Wisconsin (Madison is one of the coolest towns I've been to) are probably at the top of the list. How about you?

Edited January 8, 2014 by MattDest

[wandajune]

Location was actually a pretty big consideration for me while narrowing down my list of programs, so nearly all the programs I've applied to are in places I would love to live. Mostly programs located near cool cities or with great weather. (My interests are fairly broad, and I had to narrow it down somehow!) I have a significant other moving with me, so I'll definitely be taking his preference into heavy consideration if I get the luxury of choosing between programs. That said, I applied to several schools in California and Arizona, and I'd be happy to move there for the weather (especially lately). Also applied to a couple schools in Chicago, which is where my family lives, so I'd be pretty happy with that as well.

Edited January 8, 2014 by wandajune

[bar_scene_gambler]

In a perfect world, where location was my only consideration, I'd probably choose UT Austin. Austin is a great city. Either that or Chicago. My last choice would definitely be Penn State. I can't stand State College, mostly because there's not much to do there, but if theirs is the only program that accepts me, I'll gladly go. 

Edited January 8, 2014 by bar_scene_gambler

[Cottagecheeseman]

I'm hoping for USC, california would be great. Otherwise I really don't have a preference, it's really the programs + funding I will consider. Not that it really matters, I don't expect I will have many choices lol.

[shelbyelisha]

I live in Western MA currently, so getting into Albany or UMass would be less of a life disturbance.  However, packing up and moving across the country to Washington would be extremely exciting! I also absolutely love Montreal so that would be a lot of fun, though I imagine moving to a new country would present its challenges.

[complexbongo]

Location was actually a pretty big consideration for me while narrowing down my list of programs, so nearly all the programs I've applied to are in places I would love to live. Mostly programs located near cool cities or with great weather. (My interests are fairly broad, and I had to narrow it down somehow!) I have a significant other moving with me, so I'll definitely be taking his preference into heavy consideration if I get the luxury of choosing between programs. That said, I applied to several schools in California and Arizona, and I'd be happy to move there for the weather (especially lately). Also applied to a couple schools in Chicago, which is where my family lives, so I'd be pretty happy with that as well.

I don't know why this isn't the case for most people. Location was huge for me. I want to enjoy where I am for the next 4-6 years of my life.

 

That being said, I'd love to move to sunny San Diego after withstanding this "Polar Vortex" in the northeast! Warm weather, coastal areas, and big cities are big draws for me. 

[wandajune]

I don't know why this isn't the case for most people. Location was huge for me. I want to enjoy where I am for the next 4-6 years of my life.

 

This, exactly. I can understand not considering location too heavily for those who have a narrow AOI, but for those of us whose interests can be served by many programs, I think geography should be high on the list of considerations. In fact, my advisers explicitly suggested considering location when I asked for advice on choosing programs.

[Philhopeful]

Location is huge for me. I'd be willing to cope with pretty much anything, but if given the choice I'd love California or Austin. I'd like New York too, but I imagine finding a place to live would be kind of a nightmare

[SelfHatingPhilosopher]

Location means nothing for me, though I wish it could mean everything. If it did, I suppose I'd like to go to New York City. Or if we really mean that location means everything... shit, I'd go to graduate school in Singapore or something.

 

But as far as NYC is concerned, it just has such a great intellectual history and the east coast ethos sort of appeals to me.

[Hopephily]

It's cool to see that, for some of you, location can play a significant factor.  I agree that ideally, it would be an important consideration; as some of you have rightly cited, we will be spending a large portion of our lives where we end up (fingers crossed of course).  As for me, I think USC would be great because I grew up in L.A. for part of my childhood and I like it there (or at least in some of the neighboring areas).  I also hear that Rhode Island is quite beautiful and so Brown would be high on my list if location were a significant factor.  Of course, it's also a great program for plenty of other reasons and so I don't mean to make it sound as if I think otherwise.  

[Hopephily]

MattDest,

 

Did you grow up in Tucson?  

[MattDest]

MattDest,

 

Did you grow up in Tucson?  

 

No, I grew up near Phoenix. I've been to Tucson a ton though (many of my friends went to U of A for undergrad, and one is in grad school there currently). If you're wondering what Tucson is like, outside of the immediate area of U of A it's not terribly exciting. The immediate area is nice though, and there is a lot to do. But, the desert is amazing and there are a lot neat hiking trails not too far away. 

[Table]

I'm trying not to think too much about location before hearing from programs. I almost didn't apply to NYU because living in NYC really doesn't appeal to me... but in the end I did, so we will see! 

[bar_scene_gambler]

It's cool to see that, for some of you, location can play a significant factor.  I agree that ideally, it would be an important consideration; as some of you have rightly cited, we will be spending a large portion of our lives where we end up (fingers crossed of course).  As for me, I think USC would be great because I grew up in L.A. for part of my childhood and I like it there (or at least in some of the neighboring areas).  I also hear that Rhode Island is quite beautiful and so Brown would be high on my list if location were a significant factor.  Of course, it's also a great program for plenty of other reasons and so I don't mean to make it sound as if I think otherwise.  

I don't know if you've ever been there, but Ann Arbor is a pretty cool place. There's lots of great food and U Mich's campus is pretty nice. I visited their department, and the place seems pretty great. If it had been less analytic, I would have applied.

[TakeruK]

In my first grad program (terminal MSc, which is the pre-req for all PhD programs in Canada), I didn't think location would be that important. In the end, it wasn't really a big deal since we were only there for 2 years, but at the end of the 2 years, we were more than ready to get out of that town! I can't imagine being in a crappy location for more than 2 years! So, when I applied to PhD programs, we put location on the same importance as academics. I only applied to schools where we both agreed that location and academics were a good fit. 

 

I am not saying that if you don't care about location, you must be some horrible person or anything like that! I just want to point out the fact that I noticed many grad students (including myself) having the stoic mindset that we should care about academics first, and not worry about personal things like location. However, I think personal preferences is a perfectly valid motivation for career decisions, and we should not be ashamed of doing so (or saying so!). If you want to be more practical about it, you might make an argument that being happy means you do better work, but I think personal preferences are still valid even if you don't make that assumption.

 

Finally, I realise I am in the philosophy forum so this last part might be field-specific, but in the admissions interviews I had, when they asked "why did you apply here?", I always included personal reasons (like "We wanted to see what it was like living in California" or "It is close to Canada and home" etc.). The schools seem to appreciate my honesty and the profs I talked to said that they also think grad students should choose schools based on what will make them happy.

Edited January 8, 2014 by TakeruK

[objectivityofcontradiction]

Cities because I don't fancy driving. And don't own a car. 

Edited January 8, 2014 by objectivityofcontradiction

[Hopephily]

No, I grew up near Phoenix. I've been to Tucson a ton though (many of my friends went to U of A for undergrad, and one is in grad school there currently). If you're wondering what Tucson is like, outside of the immediate area of U of A it's not terribly exciting. The immediate area is nice though, and there is a lot to do. But, the desert is amazing and there are a lot neat hiking trails not too far away. 

 

Yeah that's what I often hear about Tucson. Have you seen the weather in parts of AZ right now?  high 60's-mid 70's -- killer. 

[Hopephily]

I don't know if you've ever been there, but Ann Arbor is a pretty cool place. There's lots of great food and U Mich's campus is pretty nice. I visited their department, and the place seems pretty great. If it had been less analytic, I would have applied

 

I didn't know this about Ann Arbor (or much of anything).  Thanks for the info. 

[Hopephily]

In my first grad program (terminal MSc, which is the pre-req for all PhD programs in Canada), I didn't think location would be that important. In the end, it wasn't really a big deal since we were only there for 2 years, but at the end of the 2 years, we were more than ready to get out of that town! I can't imagine being in a crappy location for more than 2 years! So, when I applied to PhD programs, we put location on the same importance as academics. I only applied to schools where we both agreed that location and academics were a good fit. 

 

I am not saying that if you don't care about location, you must be some horrible person or anything like that! I just want to point out the fact that I noticed many grad students (including myself) having the stoic mindset that we should care about academics first, and not worry about personal things like location. However, I think personal preferences is a perfectly valid motivation for career decisions, and we should not be ashamed of doing so (or saying so!). If you want to be more practical about it, you might make an argument that being happy means you do better work, but I think personal preferences are still valid even if you don't make that assumption.

 

Finally, I realise I am in the philosophy forum so this last part might be field-specific, but in the admissions interviews I had, when they asked "why did you apply here?", I always included personal reasons (like "We wanted to see what it was like living in California" or "It is close to Canada and home" etc.). The schools seem to appreciate my honesty and the profs I talked to said that they also think grad students should choose schools based on what will make them happy.

 

 

I think it makes a lot of sense to care about location and so if it works out that you get accepted into a number of programs that you can choose between, then that's great.  

[Hopephily]

I'm trying not to think too much about location before hearing from programs. I almost didn't apply to NYU because living in NYC really doesn't appeal to me... but in the end I did, so we will see! 

 

I almost didn't apply to NYU because it felt like playing the lottery.  But then again, I don't know that I will not get in.  

[dfindley]

I applied to nyu. their site discussed the importance of the writing sample with more emphasis than usual -- even implying that a masters was only important if it enhanced your writing sample.

so I sent my book and my latest edition of my natural philosophy (though that has a lot of work ahead of it still)

I suspect that my 3.4gpa, average gre, and single letter of recommendation will be overlooked for the merit of my system. we'll see :OP

what did your apps look like?

[dfindley]

and especially your writing samples? (topics at least?)

[Hopephily]

Well mine was more conventional than yours.  It consisted of an SOP, 3 letters of rec and a sample (but certainly no book). 

[Hopephily]

and especially your writing samples? (topics at least?)

 

I'm too shy to disclose specifics like that.