Simone J Posted March 5, 2014 Share Posted March 5, 2014 Hi, guys! I am from China and I am gonna pursue my postgraduate study in Chemical Engineering. Although I got a high GPA during my undergraduate study, I haven't do much research work so I don't know if I am into research or which subarea of Chemical Engineering I am fascinated with. I suppose that's the reason why I mainly applied to master programs instead of PhD. I was admitted to Texas a&m and ETH Zurich for master study and Pen State for PhD study. I applied to Texas a&m because it is located near Houston, where there are lots of Chemical Engineering companies surrounded. I might got promising working opportunities after graduation but I am not sure if it is the case because I am a foreign student. The program coordinator also told me they seldom accepted foreign students to study the master program in Chemical Engineering so I found myself quite lucky. ETH Zurich is also one of my dream schools. But I heard that finding a job after master graduation is extremely hard for foreign students in Switzerland. Moreover, I don't know any German at all. However, I've lived in Europe for half a year and I really like European people and their cultures. I also think that European institutions have more international students than American universities. Recently I also got a PhD offer from Pen State University, which really surprised me.They offered me a stipend of $27,033 and full tuition remission. It is very attractive but I don't know if I am really interested in their research areas currently. I do not have financial problems to have a master study as a self-supported student. The main factors to be considered is the job opportunities after master graduation. And if I study at ETH Zurich, is it quite possible for me to be enrolled in a more highly-ranked university than Pen State? I would appreciate for your kind suggestions. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kleene Posted March 5, 2014 Share Posted March 5, 2014 I would drop the Texas idea, because it is MS and ETHZ is a lot better (world top 10 rather than top 100 in your field). Did you check out the courses ETHZ offers? Do they fit your interest and background? If you do well in ETHZ, you might end up at a 'higher-ranked' university than Penn State for PhD, but there is absolutely no guarantee. You have to go through this whole application process again and hope you get admitted somewhere 'higher' and then hope you will get similar funding. For a PhD fit is usually the most important criterion, definitely not ranking. You seem to doubt the fit of the PhD program and you are not happy with the rankings. By the way, European universities do not have more international students than American ones. In general it holds that the better the university, the more international students. Probably universities of similar quality have similar international populations. ETHZ is a world class university and indeed it has many international students (for master and PhD, that is). It sounds like a tough decision. Best of luck! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LanoTech Posted March 5, 2014 Share Posted March 5, 2014 (edited) I applied to Texas a&m because it is located near Houston, where there are lots of Chemical Engineering companies surrounded. I might got promising working opportunities after graduation but I am not sure if it is the case because I am a foreign student. The program coordinator also told me they seldom accepted foreign students to study the master program in Chemical Engineering so I found myself quite lucky. Go with Texas A&M - Americans want to recruit from American universities. A masters at ETHZ won't do you much good to the chemical engineering American companies who hire from A&M/Texas in general/America. If you want to make a name for yourself in industry in America, go with A&M. If we were discussing PhD; however, my suggestion may or may not differ. Don't take "rankings" too seriously anyway - there is an obvious impact on job opportunities/locations despite reputation. Edited March 5, 2014 by LanoTech Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MikeTC Posted March 5, 2014 Share Posted March 5, 2014 You have to keep in mind though that ETHZ is probably even Top5 in Chemistry. So you're very likely to get into a higher ranked PhD program, if you do well and are able to do some research there. I can't really comment about job chances in the US if you have a European diploma, but then again Top5 should mean something even in the US industry. Also keep in mind that there is a lot of chemical industry in western-central europe, where you will easily get a job with a ETHZ diploma. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Meirrin Posted March 5, 2014 Share Posted March 5, 2014 I think I agree with LanoTech. People who earn degrees in the US are going to want to hire other people who earned their degrees in the US, despite what the people claim about rankings. If you plan on going for a PhD, I think ETHZ's reputation would matter. I don't think ETHZ's reputation would be worth a damn to most American's who currently work with and want to work with American's in the future. And by "American", I am also including foreigners who received US degrees. I think you will find that you won't be discriminated against in the US as an engineer for being from another country, as long as you have an American degree. I think that if you don't want to be excluded from being in the US in the future, you should go with Texas. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Simone J Posted March 5, 2014 Author Share Posted March 5, 2014 I would drop the Texas idea, because it is MS and ETHZ is a lot better (world top 10 rather than top 100 in your field). Did you check out the courses ETHZ offers? Do they fit your interest and background? If you do well in ETHZ, you might end up at a 'higher-ranked' university than Penn State for PhD, but there is absolutely no guarantee. You have to go through this whole application process again and hope you get admitted somewhere 'higher' and then hope you will get similar funding. For a PhD fit is usually the most important criterion, definitely not ranking. You seem to doubt the fit of the PhD program and you are not happy with the rankings. By the way, European universities do not have more international students than American ones. In general it holds that the better the university, the more international students. Probably universities of similar quality have similar international populations. ETHZ is a world class university and indeed it has many international students (for master and PhD, that is). It sounds like a tough decision. Best of luck! Hi, Kleene, I have already checked the curriculum settings in ETHz and I really love it. At least I could think more deeply during my master study to find my true passion if I choose ETHz. The only thing holding me back is that it is too difficult (or I would use the word "impossible") to find a job after getting a master degree in Switzerland, especially I don't know German at all. As you have said, I am not sure a PhD in Pen State will fit me perfectly. PhD candidates at Pen State will choose their professors to work with in the 2nd semester indeed, but I am not sure that I will be lucky enough to find the exact research I am interested in. And devoting myself to a subfield I don't love for 5+ years would totally be a disaster!! Thanks for your reply Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Simone J Posted March 5, 2014 Author Share Posted March 5, 2014 Go with Texas A&M - Americans want to recruit from American universities. A masters at ETHZ won't do you much good to the chemical engineering American companies who hire from A&M/Texas in general/America. If you want to make a name for yourself in industry in America, go with A&M. If we were discussing PhD; however, my suggestion may or may not differ. Don't take "rankings" too seriously anyway - there is an obvious impact on job opportunities/locations despite reputation. Thanks! I also think that Texas a&m has the most promising job opportunities among the institutions I have chosen. Texas is definitely the best place for chemical engineering students. I know no school will guarantee a job for their graduates. But since there were few international students enrolled into that program before, I don't know how much the chance I will get a job as an international student. I haven't expected to work in America if I choose to study in ETH though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Simone J Posted March 5, 2014 Author Share Posted March 5, 2014 You have to keep in mind though that ETHZ is probably even Top5 in Chemistry. So you're very likely to get into a higher ranked PhD program, if you do well and are able to do some research there. I can't really comment about job chances in the US if you have a European diploma, but then again Top5 should mean something even in the US industry. Also keep in mind that there is a lot of chemical industry in western-central europe, where you will easily get a job with a ETHZ diploma. If I could work in Europe after master graduation, I would go directly to ETHz. I really love the atmosphere and the pace of living in European countries. Do you think I will get a job in western-central Europe if I don't know any German at all? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Simone J Posted March 5, 2014 Author Share Posted March 5, 2014 I think I agree with LanoTech. People who earn degrees in the US are going to want to hire other people who earned their degrees in the US, despite what the people claim about rankings. If you plan on going for a PhD, I think ETHZ's reputation would matter. I don't think ETHZ's reputation would be worth a damn to most American's who currently work with and want to work with American's in the future. And by "American", I am also including foreigners who received US degrees. I think you will find that you won't be discriminated against in the US as an engineer for being from another country, as long as you have an American degree. I think that if you don't want to be excluded from being in the US in the future, you should go with Texas. Thanks! I couldn't deny that America is much more inclusive than Switzerland. I suppose that's the reason why the majority of Chinese oversea graduates choose America as their first priority. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kleene Posted March 5, 2014 Share Posted March 5, 2014 Personally, I am set on getting the best education, which is why I applied to one school in the US, the UK and Switzerland. I have no intention of working in the US. I wouldn't mind either, but it is definitely not what I am aiming for. It sounds like you are in a similar place? With regards to working in Switzerland: I am not sure about how hard it is to get a job, but I do know that if you are not studying and are not employed you have no legal reason to stay in the country. This means that the pressure of finding a job after graduation would be pretty tough. I am not sure about chemical engineering, but in my field (CS) there are some awesome international cooperations based in Zurich. On top of that, Europe is larger than Switzerland. There is also the UK, although I am not sure how easy it is to find work and get a visa over there. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kleene Posted March 5, 2014 Share Posted March 5, 2014 By the way, I totally get that American universities are not keen on European universities. It is not all that different the other way around. In Europe we recognize the top 5 (or even some more, if you are lucky) American universities. The rest is just a 'random American university I never heard about'. I would expect American academics to recognize the best European universities (Cambridge, Oxford, ETHZ, ...) similarly. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MikeTC Posted March 5, 2014 Share Posted March 5, 2014 If I could work in Europe after master graduation, I would go directly to ETHz. I really love the atmosphere and the pace of living in European countries. Do you think I will get a job in western-central Europe if I don't know any German at all? Well it's like Kleene said. Europe is more than just Switzerland. I know for a fact that many big companies in the DACH (Germany-Austria-Switzerland) area use english as their main means of communication and think very highly of ETH alumni. I honestly think you wouldn't have any problems finding a job in your field in the area. That being said I would still encourage you to learn german if you decide to take the offer up. Not so much for your future career, but i heard it can be a pain in the ass to interact with authorities in english. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kostermeier Posted March 12, 2014 Share Posted March 12, 2014 Go with Texas A&M - Americans want to recruit from American universities. A masters at ETHZ won't do you much good to the chemical engineering American companies who hire from A&M/Texas in general/America. If you want to make a name for yourself in industry in America, go with A&M. If we were discussing PhD; however, my suggestion may or may not differ. Don't take "rankings" too seriously anyway - there is an obvious impact on job opportunities/locations despite reputation. I concur! Also, as someone who did her undergrad there, it is a great university....wonderful faculty, friendly students, and very cheap to live! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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