USC or Pitt?

[Xniso4ka]

Hey everyone!

 

With the deadline approaching, I am desperately trying to make my mind between doing my PhD at USC or Pitt. Could anyone give any recommendations???

 

In terms of tracks, I guess it would be IR at USC and Comparative at Pitt. My actual research interest is quite interdisciplinary, so I could technically go both ways. I am mostly interested in the questions of political psychology, cultural diplomacy, soft power, and public opinion.

 

Anyone familiar with these two programs? I heard that USC is on the rise, but it's unclear how quickly it will be rising. As for Pitt, it seems a bit method-driven, no?

 

I would appreciate any information!

 

Thanks!

[irfannooruddin]

With all due respect to the collective wisdom represented on these boards, to crowdsource this decision strikes me as crazy. You should be talking to your advisors, and to key faculty at the two excellent programs to which you've been admitted. Then follow recent placements at each and see which place does better placing graduates doing the kind of work you wish to do at the kinds of places you wish to work.

 

Congrats on your admission and best of luck.

[Xniso4ka]

Oh, I am of course talking to them and I already checked out the placement record. The thing is that it's just sometimes hard to evaluate the reputation of the department and it's potential rather than previous achievements. Also, it's quite hard to tell if the difference in rating will actually matter much ( 40 vs 54)...

 

And, overall, some advice would never hurt! =)

[bees]

I'd pick USC as a school on the way up.