Quit Masters on the way to PhD?

[JD - (0)]

So, as most of you may know by now, sometimes, you accept a school because of financial reasons, or other reasons that may make you forgo of your top/first choice school event though they accept you. If you accept to attend a Masters, in route to PhD, which means that you are not a PhD student yet, since you have to reapply for the PhD program. So, does that mean you can quit that master's and attend another school (your primary choice) to which you were already accepted?

[Sigaba]

IMO, you should not leave your master's program to start the doctoral program before earning your master's. Doing so leaves you vulnerable to the charge that you're a climber who cares more about your own career than anything else. Keep in mind that by admitting you, your current department may have told someone else who really wanted to be there "no."

 

(And the halls and courtyards of the Ivory Tower are often smaller than one realizes. Unless you're completely changing fields, professors at your current school may well run into professors of your first choice and do what professors do: compare notes.)

[NoSleepTilBreuckelen]

I'm confused about your situation. Are you planning to finish a Masters at School A and then go to School B for your PhD? Or are you planning on leaving part-way through the Masters at School A? Or are you planning on not starting at School A at all after you accepted their offer?

 

If you're in a Masters at School A and you would have to reapply to continue in the PhD program there, that's a terminal masters degree and it would be fine (and expected) that you would apply to other schools for your PhD after finishing your Masters.

 

From your signature it looks like you haven't started at the program yet. If that's the case, it's a bit different. If you start, you should go into it with the intention of completing the Masters program, but it sounds like you might be thinking of not starting. I have some thoughts on these situations, but I'll save you my rambling until I know what's relevant. Let us know a little more about your situation and we'll be able to give better advice!

[juilletmercredi]

Yes, I'm confused about what you are asking, too.

 

If you are accepted to get a master's en route to a PhD - i.e., an MA/PhD program in which you earn a non-terminal MA along the way, and funding - then you are a PhD student.  If you want to quit after your first year to attend another school and you haven't even started yet, then I think you should completely rethink going at all.

 

If you have to reapply for the PhD, then you haven't been accepted to attend an MA program "en route to a PhD."  You're just accepted to an MA program, and you personally have the intention to go to a PhD.  In that case, you'd be expected to apply to other places besides your home department, and there'd be no hard feelings if you finish the MA there and move onto somewhere else.  However, I do agree with Sigaba that you should make plans to finish the MA at your home department before leaving.  Not only can it look bad if you ditch after one year, but you can also learn valuable stuff in the MA program.  (The caveat, of course, is if you are unfunded in the MA program but get into a funded PhD program after your first year.  If you can save a year's worth of student debt, I would totally do that.)