Quas Posted April 9, 2005 Share Posted April 9, 2005 Hi everyone, I regret not to have found this site earlier! It's great! Well, let's go to my dilemma. The thing is that I've been admitted into the PhD (economics) programs at UBC and Penn State, both with full funding. My interest are mainly micro (more precisely Econ of Info, Game Theory) and now I have to decide whether I take the UBC's or the Penn State's offer. Both programs are well ranked and have good faculty...UBC is located in Vancouver, city I guess is bigger than State College. Besides, I am neither American nor Canadian so I will have to get Student Visa. On top of that, I am married (well about to...) so I will have to take my (future) wife with me... Based on the info above, what do you guys recommend me to do? Should I go to Penn State or to UBC? Why do you support one or the other? Thanks a lot... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
floplo Posted April 9, 2005 Share Posted April 9, 2005 well, ask your (future) wife where she wants to live.. congratulations for your marriage and you better make her happy, it also has the side effect that it helps you with dealing better with academic stress.. Check the details of US and Canadian visa regulations (I doubt your wife could work in the US, don't know about Canada) and what support the university gives to married couples (health care, housing, etc...) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
reactor Posted April 9, 2005 Share Posted April 9, 2005 I would choose UBC solely based on rankings. UBC is probably No1 in Canada and among the top worldwide. Vancouver is also a nice city to live in. :) CONGRATULATIONS ON YOUR ADMITS! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Quas Posted April 9, 2005 Author Share Posted April 9, 2005 Thanks a lot for your replies...well regarding visa regulations, flopo is right in what regards work for my wife...she is not allowed to work or to study in USA...in Canada the picture is different as she is allowed indeed, though finding a real job is a different tale. Now about rankings, gstergia is right depending on the ranking you look at...in some UBC is above Penn State...in others is the opposite case...in any case, you know you have to take rankings carefully. Based on placement, Penn State overcomes UBC in the last years...they have placed a guy in MIT, other in Chicago and another one in Cornell, though they are not a very representative sample...and regarding supervisors both schools have strong and very attractive prof with whom you could work...so, thinking of the future, i.e., what to do with your PhD degree once you gained, which one you think is better? at first glance, Penn State might look like having a slight advantage...or not? What do you think about it? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheBrothersKaramazov Posted April 9, 2005 Share Posted April 9, 2005 Hey Quas, Where are you coming from? Depending on you and your wife's background, one city may be more easier to adjust to than the other. Vancouver has a very large asian community, so in case you are, this is a great place to be! But whatever your background, it's a very friendly warm city. Also, if you go to Canada, the health care coverage is BETTER! And free! (there may be a transition period before you qualify though). UBC actually has housing on campus for families and couples. You may want to take a look at that. Nothing makes up for having a great thesis and job market paper at the end of your PhD. The hiring market can see right through a harvard grad student with a lousy thesis. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
reactor Posted April 9, 2005 Share Posted April 9, 2005 Is PennState good at EconInfo and/or GameTheory ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Quas Posted April 9, 2005 Author Share Posted April 9, 2005 Hi TheBrothersKaramazov, I hear about the asin acomunity while I was in Montreal...I am chilean and so is my wife. What you say about the thesis and job market paper is true, although you can't deny sometimes brand name counts a lot. Actually, it is not the brand name, it is the contact network you can generate when you are in a reputed university. I know U British Columbia is a very well known all around the world...it may e even better known than Penn State. In what regards the city, I admit it becomes important if you are about to spend 5 years of your life in there...Canada is a great country but my percpetion might be biased given my stay in Montreal for a year and a half....anyway, it seems that UBC has some points that makes it better than Penn State... Now, asnwering to gstergia, Penn State ahs based its reputation in microeconomic theory, although they produced more applied theorist. In EcoInfo they have a couple of guys (same thing with Game Theory), but it seems they based their strength in other subfields. For instance, they have lot of guys doing micro as their second fiels...in UBC they have 4 or 5 guys just in EcoInfo and Game theory (also with applications) but they are just beginning to produce...in case you wanna take a look, here are the websites: UBC: http://www.econ.ubc.ca/fields.htm PennState: http://econ.la.psu.edu/Research/faculty_interests.htm BTW, I already said yest to Penn State (UBC took more time in telling me about the financial package!) so I got the I-20. It is written in there that you can reject the offer without any problem before april 15th, even if you already said yes (actually I sent the 'terms of offer' signed to Penn State...that's why I got the I-20)...Am I right or I might be facing problems with Penn State if I decided to reject their offer now? Thanks a lot guys...I really appreciate your help... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bluesywoozy Posted April 10, 2005 Share Posted April 10, 2005 Herman Bierens is in Penn State!!! :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ronnie2005 Posted April 10, 2005 Share Posted April 10, 2005 Hi! I don't know much about the reputation of UBC (Econ) or Penn State, although I study there... However, since I am also from UBC, I can definitely tell you something about my school. 1. It is SAFE, very SAFE for everyone, including minorities and female in the campus (as long as you are not a big fan of overnight partying, heaving drinking, etc). So this may be a good news to your wife because you will be occupied with your studies in the coming years. 2. The city is also very safe and peaceful. People are generally very friendly. Of course, you may still sense racism occasionally (once in a blue moon), but people in Canada are very mild. 3. The health care package from UBC is pretty nice (even though you have to pay for the insurance at the beginning of the school year). It not only insures you, but also your wife. However, I do agree with you that it might be difficult for your wife to get a job in Vancouver immediately. I know some international students working in food court, shopping malls and post offices, but they don't seem to be able to find jobs from the government or other big corporations. (It may be due to the common stereotype that international studetns won't stay in Vancouver for long). Good luck and feel free to reply if you need to get an extra information from me~! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Quas Posted April 11, 2005 Author Share Posted April 11, 2005 Hi Ronnie2005, First of all, I'd like to thank you for all your comment/pieces of advices. I am glad to know that my perception about Vancouver were not wrong. As of Canadians, I knew by own experience that they are nice and kind people. Just a question, what about living costs in Vancouver? I'd like to know a bit more about housing in there...is it too hard to get a place (off-campus) at a reasonable price? BTW, what did you study at UBC? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ronnie2005 Posted April 11, 2005 Share Posted April 11, 2005 Hi Quas: I am doing computer science and math. As for housing, it is commonly known that housing on campus is much more expensive than living on your own. In my opinion, it is not too hard to rent a place in Vancouver. There's a Student Union Building (SUB) at UBC, there you see many ads saying that they want to split an apartment with you or have a room for rent. The price varies largely as well. If you live farther from the campus, it is like $450 per room. (2 room is usually 700-800). If you live closer to the campus, it will be more expensive ($600 for a room). However, one interesting news from my friends is that they are now deciding to live farther from the campus. Since most UBC students bus to school, those who live close to UBC say that by the time the bus arrives, it is always full (and buses in Vancouver don't get anymore passengeres as soon as it is full). So they often have to wait for 2/3 buses to get on one, which makes them late for classes. Indeed, they have to wake up early to get on an empty bus. At the end, their travelling time is the same as those who live farther from campus. So I guess unless you have a car, living close to campus is not a good idea. Food in Vancouver is considerably cheaper than nearby cities. (It's cheaper than Toronto as well) We have people travelling from Seattle (US) to purchase things. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Quas Posted April 11, 2005 Author Share Posted April 11, 2005 Ronnie2005, Your pieces of advices are pretty helpful indeed! I am thining of renting an apartment, kinda 2 1/2 (montrealers call apt this way...it means one bedroom; other room plus kitchen and bathroom)...according to you, it won;t be that difficult yo find a place near campus...well, I had thought of looking for a place far from campus :D mainly because of the rent...now if you say there is a U-pass option, this option becomes even more attractive! What areas do you suggest to look for a place? What can you tell me about UBC? its people? the living at Vancouver? Thanks a lot for your help! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.