Why is your top choice your top choice?

[sarab]

I'm curious to find out how people choose their top choice and what their priorities are. Please share! You don't have to say the name of the university, just share why.

 

I'll start:

My top choice is my top choice because it has professors doing research that could really support my proposed project. One of the professors does research in my region of interest in one of my topics of interest, and that's really rare! I also like the location a lot and the fact that every student gets 5-year funding. 

[bmarcus]

My top choice really has everything rolled into one: 

 

1) Professors directly matching my area of interest. 

2) Potential to finish in as early as 3 years.

3) Close to family. 

4) Respected international reputation.

5) The communication from them has been very cordial.

Edited February 3, 2014 by bmarcus

[gingin6789]

My top choice is my top choice because:

 

1. one or more faculty members have research interests that match mine perfectly

2. it is a great program overall that gained my thesis advisor's immediate approval when I asked for advice

3. location is close to home

4. great opportunities for funding

5. I'll have free lodging with my boyfriend's parents if I attend (they live 20 minutes from campus and offered to let me live with them if I go there)

6. beautiful campus where I instantly felt at home 

[NOWAYNOHOW]

On top of being a prestigious school that offers students full funding:

 

1) It is the only school where there is faculty working on my exact area of interest (geographic location + topic)

2) I wouldn't have to move right now (decent commute) yet it's closer to my family, which is huge as my parents get older.

3) The department has been and continues to exhibit significant growth in my specialty.

[elanorci]

1. It's close to where I'm living now, so I'm already familiar with the area and know that I love it! 

2. It's close to where my boyfriend and many of my friends will be next year

3. It has a huge number of potential faculty that match my interests

4. It has two years of rotation/coursework, which is more than usual for these types of programs - which I like a lot! 

5. It has a very good reputation. 

 

This is a great thread - it's really interesting to see what people prioritize. Thanks  

[PsycD]

1. It's the best fit for my research interests and background.

 

2. I'll get to leave the U.S. and live in a cool city for the next ? years.

 

3. I'll finally get to speak the 2nd language my mother forced me to learn as a kid (she'll be so proud).

 

4. The degree would be outside of my original field, but would give me far more options after graduation.

 

5. My POI there is extremely nice and engaging.

 

6. The school is awesome and has a great reputation.

 

7. I am desperate to leave where I am and will take whatever I can get at this point.

[beyondaboundary]

1. Fit

2. Fit

3. Fit

4. The interdisciplinary nature of the program

5. The support for professional development

6. I've been made to feel welcome since my very first interaction with the Department

7. Reputation

8. Location

9. Financial support and external funding opportunities

[tingdeh]

1. A scholar whose work I have admired for a long time has expressed interest in taking me under her wing.

2. The location is absolutely supreme for my topic of choice--it's near where the people I study live!

3. The non-Canadian weather.

4. *The non-Canadian weather.*

[ntrobaugh]

Good question - I've been asked this a lot in real life because people were surprised at what my top choice was. 

 

1.) There are a couple of professors who I want to work with, and I have heard good things about them from faculty in my MA program.

2.) It is close to home - that is a priority for me right now with an ill mother. 

3.) It is quietly ranked - not one of those programs that you hear about all the time, but it is respectable. 

4.) At least two students in recent years from my MA program have been accepted there, had very good careers there, and landed tenure-track jobs right after graduating (which I found impressive in this job market), so I know that I have a chance when applying with my Master's degree. 

 

I only applied to one school this time around - not because I'm arrogant and think I'm a sure bet; far from it. But if I don't get in, or if I decide to wait another year, I'll apply to more schools next round. However, I think that my top choice is the best choice for me.  

Edited February 3, 2014 by ntrobaugh

[Crucial BBQ]

My top choice was my top choice because:

 

(not in any particular order)

1.  Location.  

2.  Guaranteed paid tuition for five years.

3.  Guaranteed stipend of close to $40K for five years.

4.  Offered graduate housing.

5.  Offered full University perks minus the ability to play Division sports.  

6.  Location of the lab (off campus).

7.  It was/is a joint program between the lab and school.  

 

Perhaps a few others.  I ended up not applying.  

[skylarking]

1. POI does research on my exact area of interest in the discipline, and they have a fantastic professor in another department who specializes in my area (really rather rare in the U.S.)

2. It's home for me. I grew up about an hour and a half away from there, then went to high school there. I adore the city like no other in the world. 

3. Prestigious school

4. Closer to family, and in a location they'd actually want to come visit. Also still have a couple really good friends in the area.

5. Easy access back and forth to my area of interest

6. Did I mention it's home? I just wanna go home

[gingin6789]

This thread makes me feel so much better about prioritizing location and proximity to home/ family/ community. Of course, fit and funding are important, but I would love to not uproot my life again (after having done so for both my BA in Montreal and my MA in Washington DC). Would be so great. 

Not many folks understand why this is so important to me, either!  People have literally said to me "You shouldn't let that hold you back from achieving your dream," to which I say "But ... but I've applied to places nearby that I want to attend, so nothing is holding me back ... "  Of course there's a dream school in Massachusetts that I'd wanna attend (the thought alone makes me swoon), but I seriously doubt I'd make it there anyway, and I wouldn't like being so far away from here!

Edited February 4, 2014 by gingin6789

[microarray]

My top choice was my top choice because:

 

(not in any particular order)

1.  Location.  

2.  Guaranteed paid tuition for five years.

3.  Guaranteed stipend of close to $40K for five years.

4.  Offered graduate housing.

5.  Offered full University perks minus the ability to play Division sports.  

6.  Location of the lab (off campus).

7.  It was/is a joint program between the lab and school.  

 

Perhaps a few others.  I ended up not applying.  

 

Holy crap that's a huge stipend and lots of other benefits! Hope you get in!

[microarray]

In no particular order:

 

1. Research is incredibly interesting + great fit

2. Very interdisciplinary department

3. Guaranteed funding for 5 years (tuition fee waiver, stipend, and health care, etc)

4. Access to very expensive equipment on campus!

5. The particular labs I'm interested in are small and just starting out. I like this because they will give lots of attention and guidance; and will have more of a drive to get more funding and put out papers.

6. Location

7. Very well known school/department

 

This school has been all I've thought about for the past year or so since I started my search for potential PI's. sooo *fingers crossed**

[nadimishka]

Well!

 

1. The professor who started the program not only completely revolutionized the field, but the lecture I attended in high school that he gave is the whole reason I ended up in my field.

2. It's in my hometown, where my Dad lives and where my brother is in undergrad, and with two kids it would mean I was just switching my support network around, as I have my mom and grandmother here.

3. The resources they have are PHENOMENAL. Absolutely perfect for what I want to do.

4. The faculty that I've met (I've done a field course and an internship there) are super invested in your success.

5. Most/all PhD's are fully funded, and the first year funding is practically free money, as they don't require any work so you can focus on the program.

[unbrokenthread]

1. POI is actively publishing and nowhere near retirement--I'm reassured by and enthusiastic about the idea that this professor has momentum in a field that I'm really, really interested in.

2. Funding situation is good.

3. It's really, really far from home.

4. It's a really good school.

5. Cost of living is reasonable, esp. in comparison to where I live now.

6. The lab's research fits really well with my postdoctoral plans.

 

Basically everything is kosher except for the location, but it's something I can put up with if everything else falls into place.

[LexHex]

It's the only school that offers the program I'm applying to. Also, it's in Atlanta.

[Sarah Bee]

In order of priority

1.  Fully funded
2.  Excellent faculty
3. The courses being offered are not available in my country
4. Exactly complements my desired career path 
5. Mobility programme (3 semesters in 3 different European countries)

Edited February 6, 2014 by Sarah Bee

[HockeyNerd]

1. Interest in research and lab funding

2. POI

3. Cost

4. Location

5. Quality of on campus coffee ( kidding... Sort of)

[elisewin]

Not sure of the order:

 

1. Getting into such a program would make me feel that the efforts of the last decade have been worth it.

2. Fully funded with summer grants included.

3. When I met the advisor for a pre-application interview because he just happened to be participating in a conference in London, the whole conversation convinced me of what a perfect match it is because of the research interests and the description of the department.

4. The program is amazing: it has TWO specialists in my field of interest.

5. I think getting into this grad school would be the only way of getting my mother to attend my graduation, for the first time in my life (and she has never taken a plane).

[MastersHoping]

My top choice is my top choice because its only one year (masters programs are expensive!)

flexible (no required courses, just 8 total in my field of study)

allows me to study two languages at the same time

no thesis requirement

the downside is that (I'm doing regional studies) they don't have a huge selection in the region I primarily want to study, so I have to do two regions. but that's okay since they are very closely linked! 

[sqxz]

1. There are multiple PIs doing exactly what I want to do in graduate school.
2. The courses in the curriculum all sound extremely interesting.
3. I was extremely impressed by the faculty, current students, and other applicants when I was interviewed. I have visited a total of five institutions so far, and my top choice is one of two places where I felt this way.
4. The location is ideal, for many reasons. (Though, it is also quite expensive.)
5. I really hit it off with a potential thesis advisor when I interviewed.
6. My top choice is pretty prestigious.
7. My top choice is very different from my undergraduate institution. I love my undergraduate institution, but I think it would be a nice change of pace to try someplace new.

[MadtownJacket]

1.  Location, location, location.  I have lots of relatives in the area, and I figured going to graduate school in the area would make it easier for me to get a job post-graduation nearby.

2.  Been my favorite school since I was 5 years old all thanks to Michael Jordan's college basketball career.

3.  Climate.  I live in Wisconsin right now, 'nuff said.

4.  One of the top 3 schools for the overall field, also top 3 for my major.

Edited March 2, 2014 by MadtownJacket

[themmases]

I did some research on programs where a lot of their grad students seem to have funding (all I could find was a little old and hard to confirm, but it was better than nothing and the list I came up with sounded right). I ended up with a list of 5 public schools, one private school, and an Ivy that I cut down more as I applied. I ended up applying to 3 public schools, 1 Ivy, and I have one more public school with a late deadline that I'll apply to if I don't get my top choice.

 

In no particular order:

• No leaving the Midwest unless it was for money or an awesome name, preferably both.
• Money! My spreadsheet ranked these programs by cost.
• Strong quantitative coursework, and no social/behavioral/communication terms in the degree or program name. I'm a lady with a history degree who works in a children's hospital and wants to do research in poverty and health literacy, so I feel vulnerable to being stereotyped enough as it is. Also I still might work after an MS rather than go on to PhD, and I'd rather job hunt with an Epi MS.
• CEPH accredited, application through SOPHAS. All of my references were professional ones from PIs at my hospital with clinical responsibilities, and I really wanted to make this as easy as possible for them.
• An urban program is better for my research.
• Giant data centers are a plus.

[roguesenna]

1. great student - professor ratio (sounds like something for undergrads, but there are only 3-4 students per year so I will be able to have a close relationship with any professor in the department)

2. world-renowned well-recognized ivy-league school 

3. above-average program

4. inter-disciplinary program that will allow me to teach in multiple subject areas post-graduation 

5. fully-funded

6. great higher-ed job placement

7. less than five subway stops away from my current apartment

8. historical school

9. tons of well-connected alumni

10. Did I mention I would get to put that world-renowned ivy-league name on my resume?

11. it's in NYC, where better to go to learn about theatre?

 

now if I can get in...