UC Irvine or University of Oregon for comp lit?

[Philosobroad]

How do you choose between schools when you're a good fit at both but in different ways, one is a smidgen more name-brand-y, the other seems a smidgen more collegial, one has a lot of top-notch university resources for professionalization, the other where the department itself seems to have more focus on professionalization, one that has well-known recommenders while the other has (apparently) more involved mentors, one that has no core courses because you're free to build your degree, while the other has core courses that help you better get a handle on disciplinary conventions, one that's located in boring city that's close to a bunch of cool cities and the other which is located in a small college town?

Helppppppp

[Zauber]

Lol I love the way you've phrased your problem. I think it comes down to what you really feel is best for you in terms of career/research goals. Sorry I can't help much!

[Philosobroad]

i REALLY LIKE them both and will definitely be missing out on something no matter what I choose why is this so hard

[Zauber]

14 minutes ago, Philosobroad said:

i REALLY LIKE them both and will definitely be missing out on something no matter what I choose why is this so hard

I'd say pause for a second and look at the program structure. See what you need in terms of development. If you need to strengthen your foundations, then write that down. If you need space to play around with ideas, then write that down. Look at the faculty and see who can help you best. Don't look at a department as a whole, sometimes looking at its constituent elements helps a lot more. Look at the workload in both places and find out if you can speak to current students so that you get some insider perspective on the department. I'd say go with the one that benefits you holistically and where you feel that you will shine. That's my 2 cents

Edited April 2, 2017 by Zauber

[Philosobroad]

4 minutes ago, Zauber said:

That's my 2 cents

thanks everything is helpful right now lolol

which having said that, I'd love to hear from anyone at either place re. just how happy they are there because I think at this point the pros and cons cancel each other out

[Zauber]

Just email the program and ask if you can speak to a current grad student. They should be ok with it