Cambridge or LSE/Sciences Po (Fulbright)?

[10Daphne]

Any advice you can give would be much appreciated! I have a very tough choice ahead of me.

-Cambridge MPhil in International Relations and Politics.

-Fulbright for Sciences Po Paris, with LSE the following year (dual degree).

-Others: Oxford MPhil in International Relations and Politics, LSE MSc in IPE on its own (1 year), PSIA International Public Management on its own (Fulbright first year, second year much less expensive than if I did the LSE dual degree but less impressive/wouldn't open doors in London), UCL Masters in International Public Policy, SAIS Bologna/DC (offered no money), SIPA MIA (offered no money)

[10Daphne]

Some background: I am an American, recently graduated from an Ivy League school with two years of job experience (1 in London, which I fell in love with). I want to go back to live and work in London, but without a lot of direction about what I want to do (considering consulting/intl development/intl business). As I studied international relations as an undergrad, I was hoping to go back to the UK for a degree and use that as a platform for finding a job in London and figuring out what I want to do. I'm not interested in academia, nor did I want to go for an MBA or a degree in finance. I've gotten into some great schools, but need to decide what would be best from a funding point of view and also what would open the most doors for me!

-Cambridge MPhil in International Relations and Politics- no money (as of yet), about 36,000 GBP including housing. Only one year, which is a draw as less expensive than 2 year. And I've fallen in love with Cambridge and think it would be great from a student life perspective. However, it is quite expensive and not as practical of a degree.

-Fulbright for Sciences Po Paris, with LSE the following year (dual degree). This is really exciting! I've gotten into the dual degree- Sciences Po PSIA Master in International Public Management and LSE MSc in International Political Economy. And Paris would be amazing. However, I would have to pay for the year at LSE when the Fulbright ends- ~20,000 GBP not including housing.

-Oxford MPhil in International Relations- more prestigious than Cambridge's program (is this considered true?) but more expensive for 2 years and includes a year of required courses like research methodology which wouldn't be as useful for my career goals.

-Others: LSE MSc in IPE on its own (1 year), PSIA International Public Management on its own (Fulbright first year, second year much less expensive than if I did the LSE dual degree but less impressive/wouldn't open doors in London), UCL Masters in International Public Policy, SAIS Bologna/DC (offered no money), SIPA MIA (offered no money)

[Flou]

Wow! Congrats

Oxbridge is a big brand in the USA, however a dual degree at Science Po AND LSE funded by Fulbright...I would go with that. The name "Fulbright" alone will already boost your resume like crazy. It is a very powerful network (and they give you money, too!). I experienced it first hand when I was in the US (top 10 School) (A friend of mine was in the programme). Combined with a dual degree from two of the most prestigious universities in the world in the field of IR/Politics. Sounds like a good deal to me. And it even comes with the option to live in Paris and London :).

But that is just my opinion. Hope I could help you at least a little bit

[happygomucky]

So I'm assuming you want to work in the UK afterwards? In the UK masters are viewed differently to the US and I think that few employers will be that bothered about course content, especially if you're not that sure about what areas you want to go into. Oxbridge and LSE would carry equal weight, unless you want to go into international development where LSE prob has the advantage. For consulting/business etc I reckon an 'elite' university background will do - London employers will know the best unis across Europe. The big employers will approach top universities equally. 

So bearing that in mind you might want to prioritise quality of life and debt burden in your decision making. If I was in your position I would go for Cambridge or LSE IPE (1 yr) I went to Cambridge for undergrad and absolutely loved it! It's a beautiful city, excellent quality of life and absolutely brilliant for students. I don't think their politics/IR set up is as prestigious as Oxford, my impression (and I did politics for my last year in Cambridge several yrs ago) is that it's not as well funded or as established and that they're continually redesigning their undergrad politics offering which I don't consider to be that great a sign. That might not be such a concern for you, given that you don't have that clear a career goal in mind, and Oxford does look a bit too academic for your interests. 

On Sciences Po/LSE - it sounds REALLY cool, but...do you speak French? Having lived overseas a lot in my life not having the language will impinge on your quality of life, especially in France. You should also look at some of the feedback on Sciences Po on this site - it is not too positive. Finally don't underestimate doing a yr in London without financial support - the cost of living will be very high - London rent for an academic year will cost A LOT. There are quite a lot of downsides to that option but it's hard to sniff at something that sounds very cool on paper! 

Finally Fulbright is obvs a huge deal in the states but it may not be as recognised in London as you think. Speaking from experience here as I was waitlisted - people in the UK don't instinctively know it...and I do generally have to explain what it is about...

Just my two cents as you americans say 

[10Daphne]

Thank you both @Flou and @happygomucky! To answer a few more questions, I do speak intermediate French and would have to take some classes over the summer to brush up, but I'm not so worried about that as I am fluent in other Romance languages and can pick it up pretty quickly. Coming away with high quality French skills is a draw of Sciences Po, but I have read all the negative reviews...

Another thing to consider about the costs of the second year at LSE is that the first year at Sciences Po would give me some time to look for more funding, and I believe there is a scholarship for Sciences Po students about to go on to the second year at LSE. An internship between the two years could also help me with securing a job post-grad. I'm also worried about the cost of living in London for a year without a job, since I lived there two years ago and it was very expensive, but my boyfriend does live there so that could make rent a bit easier.

I think my biggest issue right now is that I really fell in love with Cambridge and would have such a hard time turning it down and might regret missing out on that experience for the rest of my life. It's just hard to figure out if the Fulbright/PSIA/LSE scenario is worth so much more to override my own personal feelings about quality of life. It looks like it might be....

[Flou]

1 hour ago, 10Daphne said:

(...) It's just hard to figure out if the Fulbright/PSIA/LSE scenario is worth so much more to override my own personal feelings about quality of life. It looks like it might be....

1. No, it is not!

2. You are not deciding between studying at a good university or becoming a diving instructor in the caribbean instead. You are choosing between LSE/PSIA and Cambridge. What is there to lose?  Cambridge is unarguably one of the best universities in the world!

[10Daphne]

UPDATE: The Fulbright gives 16200 Euros and does not cover tuition. So I'd still be paying tuition at Sciences Po... This may change things. 

[monocle]

It sounds like youre in love with Cambridge, so more power to you if you go...

However, might I suggest that you defer for a year, maybe try to move to the UK and find gainful work there? It doesnt seem like a good idea to go to grad school right now if you dont have a clear idea of what you want to do. Especially in a one-year program in IR.

Ive done hiring in Intl Development/human rights (albeit im based in Asia) and have come across many who hold UK masters including LSE and Oxford (no Cambridge unfortunately). And they were looking for unpaid internships/low paying entry level jobs still.. I guess it could be the norm, but I still find it a little bizarre

anyways, without a good idea of funding and what kind of job you want after, it doesnt sound like a sound investment.. Yet

If you dont want to defer, one thing you could do instead is quit your job now, find a summer internship in a field of interest, or cultivate your passion for something and improve your chances of getting that job afterwards (rather than an unpaid internship/entry level job)

[10Daphne]

36 minutes ago, monocle said:

It sounds like youre in love with Cambridge, so more power to you if you go...

However, might I suggest that you defer for a year, maybe try to move to the UK and find gainful work there? It doesnt seem like a good idea to go to grad school right now if you dont have a clear idea of what you want to do. Especially in a one-year program in IR.

Ive done hiring in Intl Development/human rights (albeit im based in Asia) and have come across many who hold UK masters including LSE and Oxford (no Cambridge unfortunately). And they were looking for unpaid internships/low paying entry level jobs still.. I guess it could be the norm, but I still find it a little bizarre

anyways, without a good idea of funding and what kind of job you want after, it doesnt sound like a sound investment.. Yet

If you dont want to defer, one thing you could do instead is quit your job now, find a summer internship in a field of interest, or cultivate your passion for something and improve your chances of getting that job afterwards (rather than an unpaid internship/entry level job)

That's really interesting, @monocle! Just curious- if a grad from either of my options applied for an Intl Dev job of yours that wasn't entry level, would you have a preference in hiring? Cambridge vs LSE/Sciences Po?

[monocle]

10 hours ago, 10Daphne said:

That's really interesting, @monocle! Just curious- if a grad from either of my options applied for an Intl Dev job of yours that wasn't entry level, would you have a preference in hiring? Cambridge vs LSE/Sciences Po?

Nope, no preference--though again I'm in Asia. Haha, once you're working it really doesn't matter where you finished, but whether you impress me. I think reputation maybe matters more for large private sector firms, (and maybe PhD programs? because you'd presumably be working with the best researchers in that field? Idk).

I wouldn't make my decision based solely on reputation, but based on wherever is going to help me advance my career/life goals the best. Those two factors may be correlated.. regardless, i would try to find more direction before spending however much money during grad school

[bsack]

i've been admitted to the same departments as you at oxbridge (mphil international relations at cambridge and mphil comparative government at oxford), and i did part of my undergrad at the LSE. initially, i would have recommended that you follow the money and go with the dual degree+fulbright. fulbright looks pretty sexy on a CV and free money is usually a good thing. however, you point out in a later comment that your fulbright doesnt cover your full tuition costs. also, you stated that the 20k tag at lse doesnt include accommodation, which will cost you a pretty penny (or i guess a pretty pence in this case) in london, especially if you want to stay in relatively close proximity with the university and not stay in a student dorm. if you're gonna end up paying wherever you go, you might as well pick based on your convictions. you should know that regardless of what you pick, you're gonna be getting an elite IR education. lse, oxford, cambridge, and science po are ranked 9th, 14th, 18th, and 21st respectively by FP, so you would be good to go at any of these schools. if you're concerned about experience, you have some diverse options in front of you. at oxbridge, you'd get a really unique university experience with all their crazy traditions, "ancient" atmosphere, etc etc. plus, i think you'd get a real sense of community. at lse, you won't get that same sense of community, as students tend to be a bit more aloof/do their own thing, and they dont have a lot of school spirit. however, lse comes with tremendous perks. you're smack dab in the middle of basically the capital of planet earth (after new york city), and there's always fun stuff to do in london. also, i dont know how old you are, but from my experience the postgrads and undergrads tend to mix pretty well socially. you won't be a social pariah as a grad student as you might be at other grad schools. can't speak too much for sciences po, but i hope that helped with some of the academic, experiential, and financial aspects of your decision. if you decide on an oxbridge school, we might meet in the fall! best of luck with making your call

Edited March 31, 2016 by bsack