Princeton v. Berkeley: Any thoughts?

[joshuac220]

I've narrowed down my choice for a PhD in Comparative Literature to Princeton v. UC Berkeley for next Fall and cannot make up my mind about it, so I thought I might solicit the help of kind internet strangers.

 

The funding is in Princeton's favor; the location in Berkeley's. The academic experience seems to be incredible at either school, and while I would love to try someplace new I am an east coaster at heart and it would be more than fine to stick around. I simply cannot choose, and I am not indecisive normally. Any advice? Anyone with the same choices? I'll take whatever I can get. 

 

 

[pretensions]

Oh wow, congratulations! That's very impressive.

 

I'm an undergrad studying Comparative Lit, but I'm switching to another field after graduation, so I don't have much to offer besides the little that I've looked into or heard from professors. That being said, here's what I've heard:

 

One of my Comp. Lit professors got his PhD at Harvard, but he told me he was very close to changing his mind and choosing Berkeley instead when he went there for a campus visit. According to him, the location and whole atmosphere of the university and town is terrific, so I would probably agree with you that Berkeley > Princeton for location.

 

However, since both of your choices are great (and if there aren't any other factors that might favor one over the other), I think it would come down to funding. How much more will Princeton give you compared to Berkeley? If the difference is negligible, then I wouldn't worry too much, but if Princeton is offering significantly more, then I would definitely choose that.

 

Either way, though, I don't think you can go wrong with such top-tier programs. Once again, congrats!

Edited April 7, 2015 by pretensions