【HELP】Cambridge or Columbia/LSE?

Hi guys,

I am original from China but proceed my undergraduate studies in a British University. Now I got two offers from postgraduate studies and I don't know which one to choose. The two offers are:

01. University of Cambridge, Mphil in East Asian Studies
02. Columbia University, LSE, MA/MSc dual degree programme in International and World History

The latter one is a joint degree programme. The first year is in New York and the second year is in London.


There is no doubt that Cambridge has the excellent reputation. But two years experience in New York City and London also makes me feel excited.

The Cambridge one seems more research-oriented whist Columbia one has more taught elements.

I have no idea. Does anybody here currently study in Cambridge?

I have to decide before 16th May. I would appreciate very much if somebody could offer me some suggestion!!! If you were me, which one would you chose and why?

Thanks very much!

Hi guys,

I am original from China but proceed my undergraduate studies in a British University. Now I got two offers from postgraduate studies and I don't know which one to choose. The two offers are:

01. University of Cambridge, Mphil in East Asian Studies
02. Columbia University, LSE, MA/MSc dual degree programme in International and World History

The latter one is a joint degree programme. The first year is in New York and the second year is in London.


There is no doubt that Cambridge has the excellent reputation. But two years experience in New York City and London also makes me feel excited.

The Cambridge one seems more research-oriented whist Columbia one has more taught elements.

I have no idea. Does anybody here currently study in Cambridge?

I have to decide before 16th May. I would appreciate very much if somebody could offer me some suggestion!!! If you were me, which one would you chose and why?

Thanks very much!

Hello.

To receive offers from Columbia/LSE and Cambridge shows that you have talent and you could succeed in any environment.

I am not a student of Cambridge, LSE or Columbia and I would provide my suggestion as an outsider.

First of all, both courses seem interesting, but you need to remember why you applied to these institutions and the programmes. I have heard that some people apply to Cambridge for either the idea of studying at Cambridge or because the course is excellent there. This is also the case with LSE, but I do not know about Columbia. Your passion for the course could help you during the programme.

On one hand, the idea of not studying at Cambridge could be something that you regret in the future. However, two years in New York and London at world class universities would be a dream to many. Also, living and studying in both the States (US) and the UK could boost your personal profile in the long term.

If it was me, I would think about my short term to medium term goals, see what I plan to do with myself and how each course would help me to achieve these plans. To me, it does not make sense to study a course, just for the fun of it. You need to know why and how the course would help you and the key experience that you hope to obtain from it.

After that, I would think about the type of contacts that I could make from any of the universities. Trust me, having contacts is very important. I have personal friends that have obtained key favours based on their contacts. Although their abilities were excellent, they needed the contacts to move forward.

You also wrote about the research-oriented and teaching-oriented styles of both universities. Which one do you prefer? Are you the type of person that likes carrying out research or do you prefer more teaching? These are questions that you need to answer.

Also, look at the atmosphere and environment of both places and see which one better fits you. You would be there for at least one year and you would not want to be in a place, where you would not feel comfortable.

I cannot state my choice because I am in a completely different academic discipline and I would not appreciate the courses. As I previously wrote, I do not study in any of the universities and I cannot give you first hand knowledge of studying and living in any of the universities.

You should be confident with the decision that you make.

I hope that you make the right choice for yourself. Good luck

Thanks for your detailed answer. I have thought about it for few days and eventually I decided to take my tutor's advice that to defer Columbia for one year, go to Cambridge first and then go to the joint degree.

I am thinking about how to draft an email to Columbia for the deferral. Should I tell them I plan to go to Cambridge for one year? Usually how's the possibility for a deferral? Very limit, or university often welcome a deferral? Do you have any idea?

Thanks!

I think that it is a good idea to do both. You would not miss out. I do not think that deferrals are frowned upon, but you need to contact the department before making that decision.

Do not tell them that you are going to Cambridge first. They may think that you decided to put them in 2nd place. I think that you should tell them that you are thinking of taking a gap year where you can acquire some more experience and you hope to join them in September 2014.

I think that you need to contact Columbia and/or LSE to know what their policy would be on deferrals. Please do not mention Cambridge at all, you may ruin your chances.

Let me know how it goes. Good luck

I think that it is a good idea to do both. You would not miss out. I do not think that deferrals are frowned upon, but you need to contact the department before making that decision.

Do not tell them that you are going to Cambridge first. They may think that you decided to put them in 2nd place. I think that you should tell them that you are thinking of taking a gap year where you can acquire some more experience and you hope to join them in September 2014.

I think that you need to contact Columbia and/or LSE to know what their policy would be on deferrals. Please do not mention Cambridge at all, you may ruin your chances.

Let me know how it goes. Good luck

I think that it is a good idea to do both. You would not miss out. I do not think that deferrals are frowned upon, but you need to contact the department before making that decision.

Do not tell them that you are going to Cambridge first. They may think that you decided to put them in 2nd place. I think that you should tell them that you are thinking of taking a gap year where you can acquire some more experience and you hope to join them in September 2014.

I think that you need to contact Columbia and/or LSE to know what their policy would be on deferrals. Please do not mention Cambridge at all, you may ruin your chances.

Let me know how it goes. Good luck

Thanks for your quick reply!!! You really gave me a lot good advice! Thank you so much!

Columbia only mentioned their deferral policy on their website as follow:

The Graduate School offers admission with the expectation that students will matriculate in the semester specified during the application process. If extraordinary circumstances will prevent you from matriculating, you may submit a request via email to

[email protected]

to defer your admission for up to one calendar year.

But what is the extraordinary circumstances? One year gap of volunteering job can be counted as an extraordinary reason? Or family tragedies or financial issues? (Then that will be a lie..Does everybody do that??)

My original plan was to tell them that I am going to do a research on Sino-Japanese relations in Columbia. But my Japanese is poor and I happened to got a chance to study East Asian studies in Cambridge where have intensive Japanese courses. So I decided to go to Cambridge to learn Japanese first and then I will be better prepared when I arrive Columbia to do research. (And!!! In the meantime, I found there is one or two professors in Japanese Studies in Columbia on leave on 2013 FALL, maybe I could mention that if I deferral one year I could meet those professors whose expertise is perfectly align with my research interest.) Does this sounds convincible?


But I think you probably right. If I was Columbia admission committee I probably would think myself as a backup for Cambridge.

Maybe I should just say I am going to do a research on Sino-Japanese relations but my Japanese is poor. So I decided to enhance my Japanese via one year gap (and not mention Cambridge). At the mean time, I've found that your professors in Japanese studies are on leave 2013 Fall. So I write to ask if it possible for me to defer one year that I can be better prepared to meet those professors.? Sounds better?

BTW, if I mentioned like a language school in Japan, do I need to provide any evidence?

Thanks again!

It seems that Columbia allows deferrals, which is a good thing. As long as you demonstrate that you really want to take up your place, I do not think that there would be a problem. As I wrote previously, you should state that you intend to take a gap year in order to acquire more experience for the programme. This can be in any form such as work experience or academic experience. However, do not mention Cambridge or any other university. Just state that you want to improve your expertise before taking your place. Also, try to stress how lucky you are to have been offered a place and how you hope to join the programme next September (2014).

For family tragedies, you would need to provide evidence such as death certificate. I do not think that it is very good to use financial difficulties, they may think that you would drop out halfway through, because you were broke, if you experience more difficulties. Therefore, do not lie.

If I were you, I would write it like this:

Dear Sir,

Thank you for your offer to join the History programme at Columbia. I am very honored to have been selected from a very competitive and excellent applicant pool.

I thought about the experience that I would need for this programme and I have realized that I still need to acquire more experience. For this reason, I have decided to take a gap year, where I can acquire some practical experience.

I hereby request that my admission should be deferred for one year (September 2014), so that I can join the course with better preparations.

I think that a gap year would provide me with the opportunity to develop the necessary skills that I would need for my course at Columbia.

Thank you and I hope that my request is granted.




Anything that you mention would require proof. So, I think that you would need to provide evidence. Whatever you do, please do not lie.

It seems that Columbia allows deferrals, which is a good thing. As long as you demonstrate that you really want to take up your place, I do not think that there would be a problem. As I wrote previously, you should state that you intend to take a gap year in order to acquire more experience for the programme. This can be in any form such as work experience or academic experience. However, do not mention Cambridge or any other university. Just state that you want to improve your expertise before taking your place. Also, try to stress how lucky you are to have been offered a place and how you hope to join the programme next September (2014).

For family tragedies, you would need to provide evidence such as death certificate. I do not think that it is very good to use financial difficulties, they may think that you would drop out halfway through, because you were broke, if you experience more difficulties. Therefore, do not lie.

If I were you, I would write it like this:

Dear Sir,

Thank you for your offer to join the History programme at Columbia. I am very honored to have been selected from a very competitive and excellent applicant pool.

I thought about the experience that I would need for this programme and I have realized that I still need to acquire more experience. For this reason, I have decided to take a gap year, where I can acquire some practical experience.

I hereby request that my admission should be deferred for one year (September 2014), so that I can join the course with better preparations.

I think that a gap year would provide me with the opportunity to develop the necessary skills that I would need for my course at Columbia.

Thank you and I hope that my request is granted.




Anything that you mention would require proof. So, I think that you would need to provide evidence. Whatever you do, please do not lie.

Or I should just be truthful. This is the simplest way. Telling them that I have been offered by both places, and I equally value the opportunity for higher education in both places. I wish to complete the Cambridge master first because it is shorter, and will then embark on my next mater degree, having already completed my first masters. It would also make me a better student for the schools (Columbia/LSE), allowing me to better contribute to the learning community.

Just out of curiosity how much is the fee for an Home student for MPhil Economics at Cambridge?

Search for your degree here:

http://www.admin.cam.ac.uk/students/studentregistry/fees/costs/coursecost/costs2013v13.pdf

Scroll down to E for Economics.

Is it £9.8k or £23.6k?

As you said, I may required to provide evidence for my gap year. But how could I provide evidence without mentioning about Cambridge? Because the fact is that I will have to stay in Cambridge for one year. So, no matter I take language courses or work in an institution, it will be in Cambridge, and only Cambridge certificate can proof that I will stay there for one year...

I do not think that you are required to show evidence for another programme. You can state, in the letter, that you are applying for some positions that would give you practical experience and you would not hear back until after the deadline of responding to this offer. So, you decided to defer your entry to next year; rather than rejecting the offer.

They may even think that you intend to live in Japan for one year before joining the programme. Do not write this, allow them to think anything.

I think that they may understand that you want to be on the programme, but you need some more time.

Did Columbia ask for evidence to support your application for deferral?? If they did not, then it would be fine to just state it without mentioning Cambridge.

And in this deferral letter, should I just generally state that "I wish to gain more academic experience in order to be fully prepared for Columbia program", or shall I write in detail, including what is my research interest and what I am going to do (take language courses) in the year I gap.

I think that you should state that you wish to gain some practical experience (this can be academic or otherwise). If you write academic, they may think that you chose to study at another university, which I think would not be good.

I think that you need to write, in detail, what you hope to develop during the gap year and how it would help your Columbia program.

For example, by taking the gap year, you hope to understand the different Japanese dialects and how they influence effective communication. This knowledge would be very beneficial to my research at Columbia because I believe that I would have acquired some knowledge on interaction between the Japanese and other cultures.

Do you think I should write to explain my case and ask if it is possible for a deferral (which means I am still thinking about it and I want to know if the admission committee allows me such a gap year. -- Therefore the decision is not confirmed. If they say no, I still have a chance to take the course this year. But there is a disadvantage. They would probably think that you haven't decided yet therefore they would probably say "no" in order to force you quit your current job or your gap year plan.)
Or I should wrote "I have decided to gap year and I am writing to ask for a deferral." For this, if they says no, then it means that I lose the chance to get into Columbia this year?

I think that this would be tricky. This is because if you ask, as you wrote, they may reject you all together. On the other hand, if you apply for the deferral they may also reject you. I do not think that there are guarantees. You would need to make the decision. Since you have decided to take the Cambridge place, you should be ready to lose the Columbia place (worst case scenario).

If it was me, I would apply for it and see what happens.

If they approve the deferral, then you are lucky. However, if they do not approve it and, may be, reject you all together, then you can apply next year. Besides, I think that the Cambridge name could help the application.

Let me know how it goes.

Good luck

Hi,

Columbia has granted me a one-year deferral, and I am able to join Cambridge before moving to New York. Everything has finally settled down. I am writing to let you know the result, and thank you so much for your help.

That is fantastic news. Congratulations! What college will you be at?