Undergrad school same as graduate school

[rufzilla]

I was wondering if any of you feel there is a stigma about going to graduate school where you got your BA from. I'll be going for my MA at my undergraduate institution and, because I want to live and work in my home state, am thinking of also getting my PhD from there. Is this a bad thing? I've looked at my department's website and see only a couple (maybe 2-3) professors have gone straight through (BA to MA to PhD) at my institution. Does this negatively impact you when looking for jobs? Ideally I'll want to work at the school I'm at now anyway, but I've heard that sometimes a school won't want to hire someone that done all their schooling there in fear that the student/ prospective hire is too "indoctrinated" in their way of thinking or can't bring anything new to the table. Any one else heard of this? Any thoughts? Like I said, I want to do my whole career at my undergrad institution, but also have to seriously consider looking elsewhere (for my PhD) if staying might hurt my employment possibilities.

[cardnav]

I think it depends on the reputation of the school. People aren't going to judge you if your undergrad/grad institution is the well respected in the field.

[rising_star]

I think it depends on the school. BUT, I've always heard that it's a bad idea to get all your degrees at the same school plus doing so can make it even harder to get hired there in the future. Personally, I chose not to go to the 2 PhD programs at schools where I would like to work one day. Hopefully this will pay off in 5 years...

[Stories]

I think it depends on the school. BUT, I've always heard that it's a bad idea to get all your degrees at the same school plus doing so can make it even harder to get hired there in the future. Personally, I chose not to go to the 2 PhD programs at schools where I would like to work one day. Hopefully this will pay off in 5 years...

That's interesting. In Epidemiology (a field of Public Health), I've noticed that the faculty at Harvard, Yale, and Boston University are largely composed of many of their own graduates.

This might be the case because there are not a lot of schools of public health across the country (around 40), so you can't diversify THAT much.

And as a point: I got my BA and MPH from the same school (Boston U). I'm doing my PhD at another (Yale).

[Canofbeans]

Depending on your field of study, specifically for the humanities and social sciences; it's always a good idea to go elsewhere for your degrees because it broadens you're scope of knowledge, you're exposed to different methodologies and approaches that you may have never discovered at your own institution. It also helps in building networks at different institutions if you plan on continuing into academia. I have build a network at my undergrad institution where I've build good relationships with a lot of profs, I'm hoping to do that in graduate school in a different department -- it enlarges the resource network in your field.

[dherres]

If all of your degrees are from the same school, I think it's be absolutely imperative to go somewhere else for your post-doc, especially since you're interested in returning to that school as faculty. As people have mentioned, gaining exposure to a variety of methodologies and ideologies is highly valued as it augments your ability to "think outside the box" or whatever. Yes, a PhD is about specialization, but that doesn't mean at the cost of expanding your horizons and finding new ways of thinking.

[cogneuroforfun]

Look at it this way: you want to be taught as an undergrad by professors, taught as a graduate student by those same professors, and then respected as an equal colleague... by those same professors? As far as I can tell, that is where the majority of the stigma and distaste for staying in the same place too long comes from. Its bad enough if you are an undergraduate in a lab and then want to continue as a PhD student in the same or similar lab. How are the other graduate students, who knew you as an undergrad and were probably your most immediate supervisor, going to adjust to you being their intellectual equal all of a sudden? I think that is even more pronounced going from PhD student to faculty member; how will fellow professors react when you are someone they advised and taught is now suddenly their equal professionally? In fields where postdocs are common (or at least my field!), its not even kosher to do your postdoc where you get your first professor gig, for this very reason. And its not that anyone is condescending or haughty or anything, just that it is tough to look at someone who was your student one day and then your co-worker and equal the next and not treat them differently or have some holdover from when they were student.

[twocosmicfish]

First of all, this depends on what the schools are - the closer you get to the "top" the less of an issue it becomes. Few people will criticize you for staying at Harvard or MIT all the way through. For many people at these schools the cost of going somewhere else would be high: If you liked Harvard, Yale might not be a good match, and maybe the next good match is a top-20 school. Most would be happy with that, but few people like going "down" the rankings.

For all the rest of us, staying too long at one school limits your exposure to the field at large, and makes you look too much like a quirk of that school - i.e. you fit in there but nowhere else. You can get away with 2 degrees from the same school no problem, but 3 can be an issue.

I would not personally worry about the undergrad-grad or student-professor transitions - most schools have these happen regularly, and people get over it. Most will not care that you had previously been in a subservient role, and the few who do can be avoided.

[flit]

I've been told several times that it is better to go to at least two different universities over the course of your academics.

I'm doing my MA and Phd at the same school, then hopefully returning to my undergrad uni to teach.

[aginath]

I've known a number of faculty at Texas A&M who have all three degrees from A&M. However, the youngest of them received her PhD more than 15 years ago, and the practice is essentially frowned upon. There is administrative pressure to hire from outside the Aggie Family, though exceptions are often made if your undergraduate is from A&M and graduate study is elsewhere. I think the philosophical change and emphasis on diversity picked up steam while I was in grad school. I was often reminded that I needed to broaden my experience should I wish to continue my studies. While I have no plans to return to A&M, I have done just that. Both my B.S and M.S. are from A&M, but my PhD will be from UGA.

[SVV]

I did my BA and MA at the same school, and applied (and was accepted) for a PhD there as well. I ended up going elsewhere for the PhD, but I wrestled with this issue quite a bit.

From my discussions with faculty, if it's a top school or has a very reputable program, it really doesn't matter. This is particularly true if it's a large school with lots of faculty - you can work with very different people than you did during your BA if it's a large school. Overall they told me not to let that issue make the decision for me. It doesn't look bad on your CV or anything. (For context - I'm in History. This probably all differs in other disciplines.)

[Stories]

I did my BA and MA at the same school, and applied (and was accepted) for a PhD there as well. I ended up going elsewhere for the PhD, but I wrestled with this issue quite a bit.

From my discussions with faculty, if it's a top school or has a very reputable program, it really doesn't matter. This is particularly true if it's a large school with lots of faculty - you can work with very different people than you did during your BA if it's a large school. Overall they told me not to let that issue make the decision for me. It doesn't look bad on your CV or anything. (For context - I'm in History. This probably all differs in other disciplines.)

I'm nearly in the same situation as you. I did my BA and MPH at the same school (Boston University), but I will do my PhD at Yale this coming fall.

In a field like Epidemiology, where there is no undergraduate study program, it isn't necessarily a bad thing that you do your undergrad and master's at the same institution (all Schools of Public Health are graduate schools--some offer courses for undergrads, though).

[stilesg57]

I don't know how much it matters or not, especially if you have an undergrad and masters from the same institution and then get accepted to their PhD program. One friend of mine doing her PhD at Berkeley said that admissions and some profs really valued "institutional diversity," but that's the only thing I've heard on the matter outside this thread. Based on the other replies, it looks like it isn't that big of a deal.

[fluttering]

Its bad enough if you are an undergraduate in a lab and then want to continue as a PhD student in the same or similar lab. How are the other graduate students, who knew you as an undergrad and were probably your most immediate supervisor, going to adjust to you being their intellectual equal all of a sudden?

This is a good point (although it varies depending on the student - there are some stellar undergrads who are welcomed to the ranks of grad students with open arms). But even weirder, for my friends who did undergrad & grad at the same place, is that you may end up teaching people who were your classmates a year or two ago. This creates some awkward moments...

The main reason against it, as others have pointed out, is that you don't get enough diversity of experience, thought, etc. You only know one way of doing things, which applies both in terms of your research and your teaching.

[newage2012]

I don't know how much it matters or not, especially if you have an undergrad and masters from the same institution and then get accepted to their PhD program. One friend of mine doing her PhD at Berkeley said that admissions and some profs really valued "institutional diversity," but that's the only thing I've heard on the matter outside this thread. Based on the other replies, it looks like it isn't that big of a deal.

Usually in most cases, it is easier to get in to a PhD program if you have a bachelor's from the same place, because the professors already know who you are.

In my case, the program I applied requires a 3.5 undergrad GPA, V+Q:1200/A:5 on the GRE, and 3 letters of recommendation. When I applied I got admission response in a week, and I met NONE of the requirements.

This might be because I am working for the university already (as a part-time sysadmin, not in the same department), and finishing up a M.S. in EE. But either way the response was quick.