<p>Hello, college confidential community! I am facing an intimidating choice concerning college, and I would greatly appreciate some input from informed, experienced readers who can emphathize with my dilemma. If you do not want to read all this please skip to the bottom to see the crux of my problem.</p>
<p>I am currently a high school senior choosing between three schools: LSU (baton rouge), Tulane (new orleans), and Trinity (san antonio). My dilemma is that each school appeals to me, yet they each have their own unique complications. Furthermore, because I want to major in philosophy (or English) and most likely become a professor, which means going to graduate school and potentially drowning in debt (which complicates things even more!!), my dilemma seems exasperated.</p>
<p>In short, each school seems to offer pros and cons, and I would like to see what the public thinks of the magnitude of each of these attributes. In short, LSU would be practically free (saving money for graduate school is definitely a pro), but I worry that it will not open as many doors for me, as in gain me access to really top-notch grad schools like the Ivy League. Next, Tulane is super expensive (though I may get a full ride if I receive a scholarship which is not announced till late April >.<), but it seems more respected and may boost my chances in grad school and thus land a better job. Finally, Trinity is in-between these two. I received about half-tuition scholarship, and I would not go into debt attending for four years, but it would deplete my reserves for graduate school. I like the idea of going out of state, but I worry about costs and whether Trinity will open as many doors for grad school. No matter where I go I plan to work my butt off, I promise. </p>
<p>Basically, if you want to skip the above text and get right to the purport of this message, it is this: Should I sacrifice potentially better grad school prospects, afforded by a more prestigious, expensive undergraduate school, or save my money and do well at an average state school to off-set graduate school costs? Does a school's reputation really carry so much weight that it offsets the costs? I know grad schools nowadays do fellowships and some are free but I hear this is getting harder and harder to achieve each year. I really would like to attend a great grad school and avoid a ton of debt. </p>
<p>I really appreciate any advice. Thank you all!</p>
<p>You can get into a good grad school and become an unemployed Philosophy/English PhD from any of those schools. Seriously, have you looked at all into the job market for humanities PhD’s? Or is that far enough in the future that you’ll worry about it when that day comes?
Yes, it becomes clear you have done little to look into the training or job market for PhD’s. It turns out that at many colleges, certainly the good ones, you actually get paid to attend! It doesn’t cost you a cent. You work either as an RA or TA, spend 5-8 years earning your diploma, then scramble to find post-doc positions or work as an non-tenure-track (NTT) part-time faculty member teaching the undergrad classes the tenured faculty don’t want to teach.
<p>I have looked and the numbers are not abysmal, but they are not exactly comforting either. Sure, I would be better off in, say, engineering, but I love philosophy and I love school, so I hope to pursue a career that combines the two. Part of the reason why I am having trouble choosing LSU is because I worry that will hurt my job prospects, but I realize no matter where I go the odds are against me and the market is super competitive. I’ve considered pursuing writing, but that is not much easier. My interests are simply impractical in today’s economy XD.</p>
<p>Anyway, you did not even answer my question. My dilemma does not go away if I decide not to be a professor. Let’s say I decide to go to grad school and become a writer, or even go to law school, my concerns regarding costs versus reputation are still present, but your information is superfluous, though I appreciate the effort.</p>