Good afternoon!
Currently, I am in a weird position of choosing between the University of Chicago (where I am planning to major in economics and probably double major in physics) and Oxford University (when I am going to read Economics and Management) for my undergraduate degree. I am an international student, and I would probably prefer to work in my home country/United States rather than in UK/Europe after I complete my studies. So far, I have not been able to choose either university, since both have a variety of advantages and disadvantages. Therefore, I would be extremely grateful for any advice on my situation. Money is no practical issue for me, though £100,000 difference is a persuasive advantage of Oxford. I am also going to post some more specific question, answers to which are most likely to ease my choice.
Traditionally Oxford has remained one of the most prestigious universities in the world, often ranked on par (or even higher by some odd UK-biased rankings) with HYPS, while UChicago is long-famed for its outstanding economics department (I would probably rank it as the best one in the world). Considering the University of Chicago’s recent rise in ranking and its movement towards HYPS in terms of class composition and educational model, are there any doors which are going to be closed for me if I choose to attend UChicago which would have been easily opened by an Oxford degree?
Can the University of Chicago’s discussion-based classes in social sciences be by any means compared to Oxford’s tutorials?
Too vague. What doors would Oxford open? In any case, don’t rely on rankings. Nobody in a position to actually hire or admit cares.
The biggest difference is the actual education. As you know, American higher ed is much more flexible. You actually have the option to choose a major or double major. You actually take classes outside one field. Lectures & seminars with continuous assessment, group work, etc. vs. tutorials and a few big tests at the end. Have you had experience with both?
And where do you have work authorization?
As for the so-called doors (agreed, I might have been a little vague), I would say I meant some very selective companies (especially in financial industry), which tend to specifically focus on applicants from a handful of universities (e.g. they do not even consider job applicants from lower Ivies). I do not know whether such companies do actually exist, or whether they make up a huge proportion of job market, and can only judge based on what I know from resources I have read. As for rankings, I do not know anybody outside from my school or application experience who ever attended an elite university or who is in a position to hire graduates from such institutions, and therefore initially they were the only opportunity for me to achieve at least some understanding of level of education in different universities (in my home city (must be different in our capital where I plan to work), nobody but a few businessmen and government officials has ever heard of the most of them but of Oxford, Cambridge, Yale and Harvard).
Unfortunately, I haven’t had any chance to be subjected to either. However, for me American Higher Ed model is a clearly more preferred option, since I have always found it rather uncomfortable to be limited only to a few educational options (I study in UK, and it has been almost impossible for me to choose my A-level options, for example), and I would have chosen UChicago over any non-Oxbridge option outside from the U.S. However, I have always found it harder to study via lectures than via more personalized forms of contact - I love to discuss and analyze ideas and concepts studied. This is in fact the exact reason why Oxford’s tutorials are so appealing to me. However, from what I know, the University of Chicago is also quite notable for its Socrates-style education. I also love the selection of courses offered by Oxford for my program - yet I am similarly attracted to the wide selection of options in the University of Chicago.
Currently I do only have work authorization in one of EU’s smaller Eastern economies and in my home country, and I am also fully aware of how hard it is to get one in the United States (even if compared to EU/UK).
I also know that UChicago students face some harsh grade deflation (especially if compared to Ivy League’s grade inflation), while about 30% of Oxford graduates get a First, and I wonder whether it is common for companies to cut applicants off solely because of GPA despite that.
The U of C doesn't have much grade deflation these days, though the physical sciences and social sciences would still be challenging.
American companies are generally not as doctrinaire about GPA/marks as European ones.
However, getting a work permit in the US would be nearly impossible for you straight out of undergrad anyway.
But don't focus on your first job out of work. I feel that the U of C would be life-changing for you, but I don't know if the extra cost is a decent-sized deal or not really for you. Going to Oxford, you'd have enough left over to pay for most of an MBA (or all of a Master's) as well. And the U of C would not have a reputational edge over Oxford in Europe (though it seems like a lot of non-Americans are impressed with Chicago econ). Honestly, nobody is looking at it that way anyway, though; they would be evaluating you as an individual.
Oxford University >> Undergraduate Degree in Economics and Management (3-yrs);
University of Chicago >> Graduate Degree in Economics (1-yr).
Essentially, the best of both worlds and get your Bachelor’s AND Master’s degrees in 4-yrs, the same time frame it would have taken you to get an undergraduate degree from University of Chicago (lower net overall cost in comparison to a undergraduate degree from University of Chicago). Does that make sense? Not sure what you hope to accomplish with a double major in Economics and Physics.
BTW, you’d pick up a social science masters (https://mapss.uchicago.edu) or an MBA after a few years of work. Like most elite American econ grad programs, the U of C doesn’t offer a terminal econ masters (you pick one up through the PhD program).
Given that you would prefer to work in the US rather than in the UK, U of C seems to be the better choice. You’ll have a much easier time finding a job with a top notch US company from UChicago as opposed to Oxford. However, Oxford could better provide you more exposure and depth in terms of the types of work you can professionally on a global scale, so if you’re unsure as to what you want to do professionally and want to understand what’s out there Oxford may be the better pick. If location matters to you more than the type of work, I’d choose U of C. If understanding what’s out there on a global level and going after it matters to you more, go to Oxford. Nonetheless, if you’re a good student, you should have no problem finding a job/location of your choice if you have the determination.
@Kaliningrad While Oxford is definitely more prestigious than Chicago (it is even more prestigious than some HYPSM schools, specifically Yale and Princeton), your choice should be based on what type of undergrad experience you prefer.
HYPSM do not really provide any different opportunities than the other top 10 or so schools, they just have more lay prestige and name recognition. Also the fact that Chicago has risen on USNews rankings doesn’t mean that it will now provide you more opportunities than it would have a few years back. You would have gotten the same great education both then and now.
If you care more about prestige then Oxford is the clear choice, if you want more flexibility in your curriculum and studying in the US then Chicago is the way to go. Both have top quality.
Key words here are “more lay prestige”, as in the general public will recognize the name Oxford more readily than UChicago. Employers targeting UChicago will have some cross targeting with Oxford but if you want to work in the U.S… UChicago will be a much better choice due to the familiarity of UChicago graduates with employers. Having said that the education will be different but excellent at both and your classmates will also have the same drive and appreciation for academia, although they will speak slightly different versions of English.
