UBC MA VS CEMFI MA VS BGSE Msc

[asmithb]

Hi, I am an international student who got admitted to UBC and UPF (both with partial tuition waivers) and who is an eligible candidate for a scholarship in CEMFI (they sent me an email saying that I am eligible for fundacion carolina scholarship for latin american students). I think that I will be admitted to CEMFI.

My goal is to be admitted at a top 10 US PHD school after the master's degree. I know it is very difficult, as most students have told me, and that you need to be among the top 10% of the class wherever master program you attend etc., but I want to know that, as happens in Bocconi, If I have an outstanding performance I will be placed in a top US program.

I have seen some recent placements of the CEMFI MA students in MIT and Princeton, and the same with UPF Msc alumni (specially in Chicago). However, I have not seen those amazing top 10 recent placements from UBC MA. The problem is that I have to tell UPF and UBC about my final decision by the end of April, and I haven't decided yet. I really need your help here.

I know UBC is a great university and the campus is awesome, as well as Vancouver and that its PHD program is top 30, but it seems that CEMFI and UPF place their top MA students better than UBC in the US, and I cannot believe this, since UBC is the best Canadian university and I thought it should have better recognition and more prestige in the US. I still cannot believe that and I would like your help to make this important decision. I also know that the 3 programs are extremely competitive and tough, and I am aware that being placed in a top US program is very hard and that you need to be a genius, that every top undergraduate student think that can make it easily and so on, but I want to know that if I do very well at UBC (top 5 or better) I will have be placed at a top US program, as it happens to UPF and CEMFI (if I am wrong with my comments on these Spanish schools please correct me).

Thus the final and most important answer to me in order to choose a master's program is: "Which of these 3 MA programs have better placements at top 10 US programs: UBC, CEMFI and UPF?" (I am specially concerned with UPF, since I haven't known of any recent placements of its MA in top US programs, and I have seen some of CEMFI and UPF). I have also seen more placements of UPF than CEMFI at top schools, but I guess this is normal since CEMFI has a much smaller size of MA students than UPF.

If I had to decide based only on the city, the campus and the university I will definetely decide UBC, but that's secondary to me since my final goal is to end up at a top US program, and I would really like UBC to help me with my final goal. Do you think that CEMFI and UPF will prepare me with better quantitative and analytical skills than UBC for a PHD program than UBC?

Thank you very much.

[daniel.k]

I'm sorry I can't help you with new insights on this question. I'm actually waiting to see what kind of suggestions people will give you. However, I'm in a similar position. I've been accepted at LSE's (MSc Econ), BGSE (MSc), CEMFI and Toulouse (M2) and I'm leaning towards CEMFI for a couple of reasons. First of all, class size matters a lot to me. I've read that LSE's, BGSE's and Toulouse's classes are very large and I believe it might be a hurdle to building a nice relationship with professors. I don't think I'd take advantage of LSE's great faculty attending lectures with 100 other people. Other than that, CEMFI's program is two-years long. That also contributes to getting to know your professors better, what eventually leads not only to better LORs but also to better opportunities during the masters. Even though I believe I want to proceed towards a PhD in the US, I know I might change my mind and at CEMFI I have the opportunity to conclude PhD in a shorter period of time (2 yr masters + 2 or 3 yrs research).
If you're concerned with placement at top 10 schools in the US, though, I was in touch with one of CEMFI's top professors and he said that if one's a top student she'll "invariably" (that's the word he used) be placed at a top school. He argued the intermittent record of top placements is a result of (1) small class size and (2) number of people that don't want to do a PhD.
Lastly, their funding is very good, which is particular rare for a masters. I've also been granted the 10k euros per annum and am anxiously waiting for Fundación Carolina whose stipend would make me live almost like King Juan Carlos in Madrid.

[asmithb]

Any other comments?