Which School: Nebraska or Minnesota

[mitchell35]

Hello Everyone, 

I have been been offered admission into two great (Family Science ) PhD programs that are fully funded. I was offered admission into the MA/PhD in Family Social Science at University Of Minnesota, stipend is $14,492 for 9 months, nominated for $25,000 fellowship. My issue is fit, meaning it isn't as strong as the fit I have with the POI at University of Nebraska-Lincoln. Nebraska is offering a $8,000 fellowship that is renewable for up to three years and a GA of $ 12,400 for 10 months. My research interests are mental health disparities. The POI at University of Nebraska-Lincoln is studying exactly that. However, the dept and school (College of Education and Human Development/Sciences) are ranked lower than Minnesota. With Minnesota, no one is studying mental health disparities. However, I could possibly collaborate with other departments doing research on health disparities and make greater networking connections, plus Minnesota is top 40 public school I believe, the program that admitted me is ranked 6th vs Nebraska at 37th. My plan is to work in industry not academia.

[rising_star]

Are those rankings for the school as a whole or your specific department? IMO, working with someone who does what you want to be doing is more important than going to a higher ranked program, though this will also depend somewhat on your career goals.

[mitchell35]

On 3/2/2017 at 11:34 PM, rising_star said:

Are those rankings for the school as a whole or your specific department? IMO, working with someone who does what you want to be doing is more important than going to a higher ranked program, though this will also depend somewhat on your career goals.

The rankings are for school and then program. Minnesota is ranked 26th public university, with the family science ranking 6th. Nebraska is ranked 51st as a public university, their family science program is ranked 37th. I want to work in industry, rather than academia. I am just wondering if name recognition would matter. I also received the $25,000 fellowship from Minnesota. Does going to the best program trump research fit (probably not).

[thelionking]

Is the POI at Nebraska well-known and well-respected in your field? Having good connections will be very important after you graduate. 

[mitchell35]

On 3/7/2017 at 7:46 PM, thelionking said:

Is the POI at Nebraska well-known and well-respected in your field? Having good connections will be very important after you graduate. 

No, Nebraska's POI is not well known I believe. This program at Nebraska is about three yrs old. The Minnesota program is well established and currently producing great research. The POI at Minnesota is publishing books, getting recognition for research initiatives on several levels.

[duran0]

Presumably you wouldn't have been admitted to both schools without demonstrating at least some level of fit. Is the fit so poor that you'd have to change your research interests entirely at Minnesota? If that's the case then Nebraska makes more sense. That said, I don't think it's necessary (or even desirable!) that what you study fits *exactly* with what your advisor's doing. If your advisor can provide, for example, expertise on mental health treatment (but perhaps not health disparities) then I think you'd be able to find the overlapping spheres to pursue a good working relationship. 

13 hours ago, mitchell35 said:

No, Nebraska's POI is not well known I believe. This program at Nebraska is about three yrs old. The Minnesota program is well established and currently producing great research. The POI at Minnesota is publishing books, getting recognition for research initiatives on several levels.

More so than ranking, I'd be wary of a new program with an unknown POI, especially if you have the chance to attend an established program with an well-regarded advisor. With this info in mind I'd personally go with Minnesota, unless you have a geographical limitation (e.g. you'd like to work in Nebraska after graduation) or the fit is absolutely not there (in which case I question why you applied in the first place). Research interests evolve in grad school, and it sounds like Minnesota offers the chance to explore adjacent subfields and interests. Also, I think the opportunities to network more broadly, participate in a variety of research initiatives, and live in a larger city are valuable, especially if you want to go into industry.

[mitchell35]

3 hours ago, duran0 said:

Presumably you wouldn't have been admitted to both schools without demonstrating at least some level of fit. Is the fit so poor that you'd have to change your research interests entirely at Minnesota? If that's the case then Nebraska makes more sense. That said, I don't think it's necessary (or even desirable!) that what you study fits *exactly* with what your advisor's doing. If your advisor can provide, for example, expertise on mental health treatment (but perhaps not health disparities) then I think you'd be able to find the overlapping spheres to pursue a good working relationship. 

More so than ranking, I'd be wary of a new program with an unknown POI, especially if you have the chance to attend an established program with an well-regarded advisor. With this info in mind I'd personally go with Minnesota, unless you have a geographical limitation (e.g. you'd like to work in Nebraska after graduation) or the fit is absolutely not there (in which case I question why you applied in the first place). Research interests evolve in grad school, and it sounds like Minnesota offers the chance to explore adjacent subfields and interests. Also, I think the opportunities to network more broadly, participate in a variety of research initiatives, and live in a larger city are valuable, especially if you want to go into industry.

Thank you @Duran0, you have provided great insight for some things I have been considering.