Musicianmommy Posted April 13, 2015 Posted April 13, 2015 Hi all, I would really appreciate some insight as I am stuck. I applied to some PhD programs (Economics) this season. 1) I was accepted early on by University of New Hampshire with a 100% tuition remission plus 8000 in part-time TA for the 10-month MA in Economics. UNH is offering towards a PhD offer on completing the MA but, of course, there is no guarantee. 2) I received an offer from Claremont Graduate University but the funding is very low so forget that. 3) I was wait listed for Tulane University and just received the news that I am offered a full tuition remission but, sadly, no stipend funding is left. I am an International student, have a young family and would love to continue with academia. Any advice would be much appreciated!
zj868 Posted April 13, 2015 Posted April 13, 2015 Hey Musicianmommy, It sounds like your decision comes down to the financial aspect more than school rankings or fit. If this is the case then the better financial offer is the way to go, especially with a family. While UNH doesn't guarantee acceptance to the PhD program afterwards, you will still have a MA under your belt which may help when applying for PhD and you lose no money in the process so it seems like a win-win. If on the other hand, you're really passionate about Tulane, you can seek another source of funding to cover the expenses that a stipend would have. I would go with option #1 but I am by no means an expert on these matters. I hope my opinion did help some though!
MathCat Posted April 13, 2015 Posted April 13, 2015 Do you have the ability to support your family without a stipend? Even the $8000 UNH is offering is not enough for that.
Musicianmommy Posted April 13, 2015 Author Posted April 13, 2015 Hey Musicianmommy, It sounds like your decision comes down to the financial aspect more than school rankings or fit. If this is the case then the better financial offer is the way to go, especially with a family. While UNH doesn't guarantee acceptance to the PhD program afterwards, you will still have a MA under your belt which may help when applying for PhD and you lose no money in the process so it seems like a win-win. If on the other hand, you're really passionate about Tulane, you can seek another source of funding to cover the expenses that a stipend would have. I would go with option #1 but I am by no means an expert on these matters. I hope my opinion did help some though! Thanks for your input! Yes, it does look like UNH is the best possibility of getting a head start in a career. Tulane would have been nice but I just don't know of any way I can get funding at this late date as an International applicant. I will talk to the department but the first year at Tulane is a very heavy workload (with the qualifiers) so any employment, other that TA or RA on campus would be hard to juggle for me. Thanks again.
Musicianmommy Posted April 13, 2015 Author Posted April 13, 2015 (edited) Do you have the ability to support your family without a stipend? Even the $8000 UNH is offering is not enough for that. Yes, MathCat. I have some savings. At least for the first year I hope the stipend will cover my rent or most of it Everything else I will handle for just the first year. Then, well, we'll see. Tulane only accepts PhD students once every two years since Katrina so even if I had tried to fund my first year there would be no hope of a stipend next year, either. So it looks like UNH. Edited April 13, 2015 by Musicianmommy
zj868 Posted April 13, 2015 Posted April 13, 2015 Thanks for your input! Yes, it does look like UNH is the best possibility of getting a head start in a career. Tulane would have been nice but I just don't know of any way I can get funding at this late date as an International applicant. I will talk to the department but the first year at Tulane is a very heavy workload (with the qualifiers) so any employment, other that TA or RA on campus would be hard to juggle for me. Thanks again. Find out more from Tulane about any employment opportunities. That said, working while managing a heavy workload and a family might not be worth the stress associated but you'll ultimately be the judge of that. Glad I could help! Good luck!
Musicianmommy Posted April 13, 2015 Author Posted April 13, 2015 Find out more from Tulane about any employment opportunities. That said, working while managing a heavy workload and a family might not be worth the stress associated but you'll ultimately be the judge of that. Glad I could help! Good luck! Yes, I agree. However, I will ask anyway just to get the input needed to soothe my soul Thanks, again!
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now