Northwestern vs. UMich

[Milkshakes]

Originally Posted by Stuy

Is the financial situation equal in both places?

Yes, no funding for the 1st year, but they will give me TAships from year 2 on, as long as I meet certain grade requirements.

[Stuy]

Then, I'd add the following to the very good comparison that asquare made before. From what I know the attrition rate at NW is somewhere around 70%, while I understand that in Michigan it is very low. Also I have consistently heard people from Michigan being very happy with the program. I don't know how much this things matter to you and to which extent they are in fact correct.

[asquare]

Stuy, I can confirm that our attrition rate is indeed very low, and that we are a pretty happy group I know that some TMers visited last week and they might be in a better position than me to objectively assess morale here, especially if they talked to a lot of current students about it, but I'd say it's quite high. People get along, work together, support each other, and have good relationships with the faculty. It's a positive environment.

[Chicunomics]

Originally Posted by Stuy

Then, I'd add the following to the very good comparison that asquare made before. From what I know the attrition rate at NW is somewhere around 70%, while I understand that in Michigan it is very low. Also I have consistently heard people from Michigan being very happy with the program. I don't know how much this things matter to you and to which extent they are in fact correct.

From Northwestern's website:

"Of the 225 students who entered our program during the past decade, 6% left the program during the course of the first year, usually for personal rather than academic reasons. Another 10% left after failing some or all of the qualifying examinations held at the end of the first year. Overall, about 70% of our entering students are awarded a Ph.D., with a typical time to completion of five to six years."

Looking at MIT's figures for comparison, given MIT is basically king of the low attrition rates, they have somewhere in the neighbourhood of 80-85% of people that start, finishing.

[Antonio]

Originally Posted by binky

Why does it seem messy that another person is admitted once a spot is freed up? Seems rather logical to me.

Nothing.
I was just meaning that he must be carefull with respect to the willingness of them for him.
A previous post was saying:"They admitted you just because they think you are able to pass the quals and they want you".
I wanted just the OP to know my decision to decline their offer which, I was wrong, actually occure the 1 of April.
Nevertheless, as I already wrote, I would pick NWU.
It must also be stressed, however, as others have said that NWU is less wide in terms of interests. If you really like Labour, Development or Public Finance (for example, I do not; maybe just the last one) NWU is not the right place.
I heard that their average entering class is 22-25 and that on average 3 guys leave during the first year and 3 guys do not pass quals.
Moreover, given that NWU does not give you money for sure....I dunno. Try to speak with as many profs as you can.

Good luck!

[savingtheplanet]

I suppose it goes almost without saying, but someone interested in development would / should pick Umich over NWU in a heartbeat. They are building up a remarkably strong development group here at Michigan.

I second everything Asquare said about people here being happy, cooperative, etc.

[tm0]

hello,

i went to umich last week and i can attest that it has a very good vibe. all my impressions of the program, students and profs were all extremely positive.

i went to one other school and i got a completely different picture. no idea about nwu though.

try to visit or speak to as many people as you can at both places; visiting practically turned my preferences around.

don't go to umich for io is what students told me from there. i'd say definitely go there for anything closely related to labour in the empirical micro sense.

only very personally, i would still think about city (chicago, right?) vs town if programs are a comparable academic fit.