Does it matter where you get your undergraduate degree?

Original post by #ChaosKass

For a Masters/PhD, of course - if you have to decide between someone from Cambridge and someone from (say) Lancaster, you're not going to give it to the person from Lancaster, are you?

Rubbish.

Reply 3

Charles III

Original post by jneill

Rubbish.

Reply 4

chazwomaq

18

Original post by Mistletoe

Do employers or admissions for Masters/PhD people even care where you got it?

Yes to an extent. For jobs it's most important for highly competitive entry areas like law, finance, consultancy etc. For many other jobs it becomes less important (but still, Cambridge looks better than London Met).

For postgrad, it does make a difference, particularly as the admissions people will be familiar with other universities in their field. I would definitely consider it when looking at PhD applicants, for example. It's one of several factors, but you can't ignore it.

Reply 5

Original post by iEthan

Indeed.

Lancaster undergrads can "even" make successful applications to do their postgrads at Cambridge.

:smile:

(edited 7 years ago)

Reply 6

Charles III

Original post by jneill

Indeed.

Lancaster undergrads can make successful applications to do their postgrads "even" at Cambridge.

Posted from TSR Mobile

Shock horror, some may not even consider Cambridge. :eek3:

Also, PRSOM.

Reply 7

Original post by iEthan

Shock horror, some may not even consider Cambridge. :eek3:

.

They go straight to MIT.

Posted from TSR Mobile

Reply 8

wolfmoon88

Original post by jneill

They go straight to MIT.

Posted from TSR Mobile

Nah they go to CalTech... where all the "real" smart ppl are :tongue:

Reply 9

john2054

6

Original post by Mistletoe

Do employers or admissions for Masters/PhD people even care where you got it?

I think the grade is more important than the uni. So for example, someone with a 'good degree' would be chosen over someone with a desmond, even if the first was from a 'poor' university, and the second from cambridge. I may be mistaken though??

Reply 10

To be specific, Lancaster undergrads have a 20% offer rate when applying for a Cambridge masters. This is only slightly below average and shows "prior university" is not a major factor.

Posted from TSR Mobile

Reply 11

Original post by wolfmoon88

Nah they go to CalTech... where all the "real" smart ppl are :tongue:

Feynman.

Reply 12

johnperp

6

Original post by jneill

To be specific, Lancaster undergrads have a 20% offer rate when applying for a Cambridge masters. This is only slightly below average and shows "prior university" is not a major factor.

Posted from TSR Mobile

Do you have statistics for UCL/Edinburgh?

Reply 13

Original post by johnperp

Do you have statistics for UCL/Edinburgh?

Yep, but not on mobile... I'll dig it out later. There's a whatdotheyknow foi request about it.

Edit
UCL 37%
Edinburgh 40%

http://www.thestudentroom.co.uk/showthread.php?t=4207500#post66451582

Posted from TSR Mobile

(edited 7 years ago)

Reply 14

wolfmoon88

Original post by jneill

Feynman.

Meh have a penchant for Merton and Pauling but maybe that's just me :mmm:

Reply 15

johnperp

6

Original post by jneill

Yep, but not on mobile... I'll dig it out later. There's a whatdotheyknow foi request about it.

Edit
UCL 37%
Edinburgh 40%

http://www.thestudentroom.co.uk/showthread.php?t=4207500#post66451582

Posted from TSR Mobile

Great, thanks!

Reply 16

ThePricklyOne

18

Original post by Mistletoe

Do employers or admissions for Masters/PhD people even care where you got it?

No it doesn't matter.

Employers want a degree in a relevant subject if you're applying to be a teacher or work in STEM area. Better if you have work experience in the area you are applying for.

For Masters/PhD - the classification of the degree & subject matters more.

Original post by Mistletoe

Do employers or admissions for Masters/PhD people even care where you got it?

Here's an analogy - that's a bit like asking Does anyone care where I buy my clothes from?

Most people couldn't care less - why is it even a question they would think about (ie all those aspects of your life where your clothes/degree don't matter)

Some people will notice that you are always a snappy dresser, always the right clothes for the occasion, always smart etc (ie look at certain aspects of your life and deduce positive things about your clothes/intelligence, but it's abroad theme/classification and might not matter to you)

For a few people, it really will matter, because it's a function of how much they can hire you out for, how safe you are etc (ie your dress/academic background add positive value/need to their relationship with you).

For a very few people, they know the difference between Versace and Dolce & Gabbana (or Cambridge and Lancaster) and it really does matter.

So you have to decide whether, in the rather more serious context of your future career, rather than fashion sense, whether it matters to your likely employers and colleagues, where you got your degree.

This is complicated by two further factors - the first is that some generally not very prestigious/well known universities have very specific specialisms - so why would you go to Reading to do any degree at all, unless if was Food Technology, and then why would you go to any university other than Reading to study Food Technology?

Second, under the current funding system, all universities are going to cost you more or less the same amount of money/debt. If a suit is going to cost the same wherever you buy it, are you better to buy it at Versace rather than Primark?

The answer to all those questions is down to the individual, their circumstances and their ambitions, but it is a decision that will last a lifetime. There is a clear 'precautionary principle' logic that says attend the best university/course combination you have the grades to get in to.

Reply 18

tomtjl

18

Original post by jneill

Yep, but not on mobile... I'll dig it out later. There's a whatdotheyknow foi request about it.

Edit
UCL 37%
Edinburgh 40%

http://www.thestudentroom.co.uk/showthread.php?t=4207500#post66451582

Posted from TSR Mobile

Surely this shows that prior university is a massive factor? If you go to a higher ranked uni (e.g. Oxford, UCL, Edinburgh) then you're twice as likely to get in than if you went to a more average university (Lancaster)?

Reply 19