<p>I am finishing my masters in the US and am thinking I want to get my phd abroad. Would a PHD from another country hold a lot of weight in the US. I am thinking of American University Beirut or Central European University in Hungary. Does anyone here know about these schools?</p>
<p>Why? What do these schools have to offer? What’s your field?</p>
<p>I am looking into International Relations and History and have wanted to travel and live abroad for a while.</p>
<p>According to what I have learned, the tough part is two things- getting a job in the US without a known US faculty sponsor to write your LOR, talk to their old students about you, and just generally provide to a prospective employer the “known entity factor” If you go abroad, seek well known, well reputed PI.</p>
<p>Secondly, in the US, most PhD students teach, not all abroad programs require that. You would need to have some provable teaching experience somewhere, at least as part of your masters in the US.</p>
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<p>While I know nothing about the merits of the universities you mention, the above is not a valid reason for choosing to get a PhD in a different country. If you specialize in one of those regions, you will likely be able to travel there to research while you are a student. At the very least, you can travel/live/teach there after you get your PhD – provided, of course, that you have reasons to do so. Lebanon and Hungary are two such different countries that it seems as though you are less interested in academics than in experiencing new cultures.</p>
<p>If you just want to live abroad for a while, you might want to apply for the various programs/scholarships to teach English or to do some sort of research or to work for an NGO – anything that can help your eventual application and give you more international experience. Afterward, you can apply to PhD programs.</p>
<p>I think travelling is great. Who knows how things will turn out! Maybe doing a PhD abroad will be your chance to realise a dream. I assume you chose those schools because they use English as their working language? </p>
<p>The Netherlands are very reputed in IR (The Hague!), use English, will fund your PhD and can be well regarded in the USA since due to its will to internationalise, a reasonable proportion of its academics is in fact American. Then again, you have to find something you would like to work on. Check out:
[The</a> Dutch Academic Career Network — AcademicTransfer](<a href=“http://www.academictransfer.com/werken-in-de-wetenschap?set_language=en]The”>http://www.academictransfer.com/werken-in-de-wetenschap?set_language=en)</p>
<p>It lists most funded Dutch PhD positions. Somemom is correct, you would not have to teach or take courses. In Europe, you will become a doctor in 3/4 years.</p>
<p>However I was advised not to go to Japan since the structure of the PhD there is apparently different and arcane to the rest of the world.</p>
<p>You should also keep in mind that doing a PhD abroad does not mean that you will not travel even more; I saw a PhD position in Aerospace Engineering offered at Delft which required you to spend a lot of time in China!</p>
<p>Best of luck with it all!!!</p>
<p>One thing to consider, if you do something abroad and become fluent, consider the language recommendations and requirements for your major. Many want fluency, so pursue fluency when abroad and then use it to make your app more attractive.</p>