Both Duke and Minnesota admitted me to their PhD program in Economics and I would like to get your responses about some points to facilitate my decision.
Minnesota is much more traditional; they have a strong Macro group. Also, they offered me TAship $14k and fellowship $5k.
By the other side, Duke has improved a lot in the last years and hired some great professors. Also, they offered me fellowship for the first year $25k and summer research $5k.
I have heard many good comments about the work environment in Minnesota, but nothing about environment in Duke. Do you guys know how things work in Duke, how students and professors interact, how much students cooperate with each other?
In a general way, how do you compare these two programs? Which school would you choose?
Is there any difference in taxation between fellowships and TAships? And what about the states of Minnesota and North Carolina? Specifically, do you know how much I would receive (after tax) in each school?
I appreciate any help.