Choosing a program for Masters' in Biostat

[hausinthehouse]

So I've gotten my full slate of decisions back and was admitted into Michigan, UNC, Minnesota, and UCLA - I'm curious if anyone who's gone through the process has any insight as to how I ought to make a decision!

 

I'm waiting for a decision on a teaching assistantship from Michigan, which is kind of the hinge for that program; I probably can't justify $120k in debt ($80k+ in tuition is far and away the highest for two years at any of the four,) but were I to receive funding I would definitely choose that option over the others (barring UNC coming out of nowhere with a funding offer.) UNC and UMN are roughly comparable for me financially, as the tuition differential is roughly offset by the difference in cost of living. I know UNC is the highest-ranked out of the four, but I have a significantly greater level of initial comfort with the faculty at UMN due to participating in the SIBS there this past summer (and I know there'll be some people from my program there as well.) Debt is definitely a factor for me, as I know I'd prefer to work in government/academia than pharma, but that's certainly not hard and fast (CROs also seemed interesting in my SIBS program, for instance.) I would out-and-out eliminate UCLA due to the relatively high cost, but Los Angeles is the only area of the four I could see myself settling down in long-term following a program (although I certainly wouldn't rule out any of the other three for a PhD or a couple years in early-career after graduation.) I have no real outstanding attachment to any of the areas, although I have family in the Research Triangle and a lot of good friends in LA (as well as it being the best city for my primary hobby.) I am interested in the possibility of a PhD long-term, and my PhD prospects pretty much entirely depend on my MS performance/program - I was a philosophy major in undergrad and I only fulfilled the basic standard math pre-reqs for these programs.

Currently, I'm thinking about completion rates, competitiveness of transitioning to the PhD track from an internal MS, average debt load carried upon graduation, percentage of matriculants completing the program, research opportunities, employment opportunities available while enrolled, ease of establishing residency, and second-year funding for MS students. I think I have a good sense of the placement record of these programs, so I'm not going to worry about that.
 

So, for an individual looking to keep the PhD route open due to preliminary interest but without a well-defined research direction, what are the sorts of questions I ought to be asking of departments? Is there a clear cut choice among these four that I'm missing? 

Edited February 12, 2015 by hausinthehouse