We are at that awful point in the Ph.D. applicant recruiting season, where applicants have received offers (or not) and have to decide where to spend the next four to eight years of their lives.
I've spent a fair amount of time the past three months talking to applicants and carefully thinking about whether to admit them to the Temple MIS Ph.D. program.
Some applicants have asked for advice about where to attend?
My response?
Go to a place where you can be happy and realize your goals.
Their response?
What should I look for?
So here are five things for applicants to think about.
First, have they offered you a stipend? No strings attached? With the offer of admission?
If the school does not fund your studies, don't go. If the offer has strings tied to grants or early decisions, don't go.
If a school really wants you, they will make a strong offer & let you decide.
Second, do they have more than one possible advisor? If there is only one, don't go.
Faculty move. They often can't or won't take their students with them. Make sure you have a Plan B advisor.
Plus, you never know if the Plan A advisor is a jerk. Make sure you have options.
Third, do you like the school's location?
Absent concerns about access to groceries (more complicated than you might think) or healthcare or industry, don't let location dissuade you from attending a top-flight Ph.D. program.
Most students learn to love a place - so don't sweat it if it is not perfect.
Fourth, do you like the people?
You will be tied to the faculty and students for the rest of your career. Make sure that your personality fits the place and the culture.
If you don't, you will be unhappy for a long time.
Fifth, where do students find jobs?
Ask for the names of the last ten graduates and look up where they work now.
If students are not placed at the kind of school you want to work at or are not earning tenure, don't go.
More than overall university ranking, you can tell the strength of a program by Ph.D. placements and their career progression.
Feeling valued, liking who you are around, and knowing you can find a job, will make you a lot happier in your Ph.D. program.
Good luck as you make your decisions! And good luck on your journey to earning your cap and gown!
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