<p>So I just graduated from my undergrad mechanical engineering program at Rutgers. I want to go to graduate school, but I did not realize I wanted to go until relatively late. Therefore, I was not able to apply to all the schools I wanted to and the ones I did apply to were right on the deadline date. I only applied to 3 schools, but the best that I was accepted to was Rutgers. Although Rutgers is a good school, they really aren't ranked too well in terms of their mechanical/aerospace engineering graduate program. Also, if I apply earlier and polish up my essays and GRE scores, I really think I could get into a much higher ranked school.</p>
<p>So, the way I see it, I have three main options:
1: Go to Rutgers grad school and get my masters degree and maybe transfer to another school for my PhD.
2: Find work as an entry-level mechanical engineer for a year and apply to top 10 or 20 ranked graduate schools for Fall 2013.
3: Go back to Rutgers and perhaps use the year to get another undergrad degree in a related field, such as Physics.</p>
<p>I am not completely sure how realistic option 3 is, but I have always wanted to learn more theoretical physics than the engineering program offered. Anyways, my questions is what do you guys think would be the best option? What would you guys do if you were in my situation? Also, if you think I should do something other than the 3 options above please let me know. Thanks in advance.</p>
<p>I think #2 is the best option if your desire is to go to a higher ranked school. Is this for PhD admissions? Then you should definitely do #2, and preferably get a job that will allow you to conduct some research.</p>
<p>If this is for a master’s, it depends. Engineering often has funding for MS students, so I would polish off my app and try to get some funding to a top MS program.</p>
Yes I am planning to go to grad school for my PhD. If I were to go to Rutgers I would probably try to transfer to another school for PhD work after getting my masters. If I got into a good school next year, I would go directly for my PhD.</p>
<p>Well, I don’t really want a masters from them either. The main reason I am considering going to Rutgers this fall for a masters is just so that I don’t lose a year that could be spent working towards a graduate degree. Just out of curiosity though, why do you say don’t go to Rutgers just for a masters? Would you say I should go to Rutgers if I was going to get a PhD from them?</p>
<p>Work for a year or two, and then apply to top PhD programs in MechE. </p>
<p>If you want to go to MIT/Sanford you will need a lot of good research experience and potentially publications in your field. If the MS at Rutgers is research based and you can do these things then do so. Else, best to work to make your app better and then apply. </p>
<p>I believe that the masters degree from Rutgers is research based. I know it involves doing research and defending a written thesis. I have done some undergrad research, but not a lot. I am also seeing about getting my findings published.</p>
<p>Is it generally easier to get into a PhD program after getting an undergrad degree or a master’s degree, or does it not really make a difference? I was always under the impression that if one planned to get a PhD then it was better to get one’s master’s and PhD from the same school. Is there any truth to this?</p>
<p>The idea of going to a school you don’t want so you don’t lose a year is idiotic. It is substantially harder to drop out of graduate school than undergraduate because you are generally supported by the school and hold some sort of position. It also looks very bad if you try to transfer to other schools because you have committed to do research and teaching there. They are investing a lot of money in you unlike undergraduates. You will also be taking classes, not doing research at most schools for the first year. You’ll really be losing a year you could be doing research which will help you chances at getting accepted. It might be different if this is a terminal masters and not a PhD program.</p>
<p>It really depends on the school and your field - in psychology (my field), it doesn’t matter whether you have a master’s degree or not, what really matters is your research. In public health (my other field), a master’s degree is a requirement for most programs and is strongly recommended for others, although it’s possible to get into a few programs without them.</p>
<p>It’s also not always better to get a master’s and a PhD from the same school; it really just depends on the program. Some programs take their own quite readily whereas others encourage you to go to other places and spread your wings a little.</p>
<p>Thanks for the input wendym3 and juillet. Its not that I don’t like Rutgers. It is a fine school, but I think I could get into to a top 10 school if I apply for next year. If I went to Rutgers I wouldn’t transfer mid-degree, but only once I received my master’s degree. At Rutgers there is no direct undergrad-to-PhD program so once I have my master’s I would have to apply to the PhD program just like any other school.</p>
<p>However, I still do feel that it would be better to get my master’s and PhD from the same school. One of my undergrad professors told me that plenty of people get their master’s from one school and go to another for their PhD and its no big deal. But, if anything it seems to me that going to the same school for both degrees would allow one to form relationships with the professors during master’s work and better prepare them for PhD work at that school.</p>
<p>If I work for a year I would really like to find some work that would allow me to do research, but I don’t think many companies will allow an entry level engineer with an undergrad degree to do any research.</p>