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Is it possible to quit from a non top 10 program and apply for a top 10 program?


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Posted

Does it sound dishonest or even immoral because the current program "wastes" funding on me and how does people from the program which I gonna apply to think about me?

Posted

Go to a program that you intend to graduate from.  It's very difficult to "transfer" PhD program unless there's a real academic reason for doing so- or you didn't get funding and need to apply to a PhD program with funding.

Posted

You can always take the master's and apply afresh. I knew someone who did this, but he had a really good reason to do so (as his supervisor left the university). 

Posted

Yes, I had a friend who did this.  He had entered a low-ranked PhD program, decided to leave with an MA, then re-applied to PhD programs.  He ended up at one of the most prestigious programs in the country.  

The professors at the low-ranked place supported the move.  There had been some faculty changes that meant the student wouldn't necessarily have a solid dissertation committee if he continued along at the low-ranked place.  Also, a sense of demoralization about the career prospects for PhD students from this program had started to set in, since hardly anyone ever got a tenure-track job.  So the profs were happy to write letters and help the student move.

  • 2 weeks later...
Posted

I did that. I was at a barely top 25 program, got my MA, reapplied, and then was accepted into a top 5 program. However, my decision was based on the fact that my research interests had changed so much that my previous program was not a viable option anymore. My advisors supported my decision and wrote me letters of recommendation. I was able to make the case that there was an obvious fit issue and that my project required me to go somewhere else. 

I know other people who have done the same thing. Their reasons, however, were very diverse: faculty member left, uncertainty of tenure for a potential advisor, feeling socially (and racially) alienated from their program/campus location, etc.

 

Posted

Does it sound dishonest or even immoral because the current program "wastes" funding on me and how does people from the program which I gonna apply to think about me?

Most Ph.D. students don't finish, so there is a lot of so-called "wasted" funding out there.

Posted

Most Ph.D. students don't finish, so there is a lot of so-called "wasted" funding out there.

Really? Most? What's the percentage? Just curious.

Posted

It would be interesting to see such numbers broken down by school ranking. Also, useful!

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