ADVICE: St Andrews vs. Edinburgh for International Relations

Hello everyone! I currently have two offers for postgraduate study, one for International Relations at University of Edinburgh and one for International Security Studies at the University of St Andrews. I am very excited about both, but now have the impossible task of deciding which offer to take. I am hoping for some advice and guidance to gain more perspectives as I consider which offer to accept. I have some questions that I am considering:

For both universities:
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[li]What is the international and UK reputation for International Relations at the university?[/li]
[li]What was it like being a postgraduate student at the university?[/li]
[li]What is the atmosphere among students at the university?
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[li]Are people more collaborative and friendly or competitive in academics? [/li]
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[/li]
[li]How is the relationship between students and academic staff?
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[li]Is help easily accessible in areas of tutoring, career support, etc? [/li]
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[/li]
[li]What is the alumni network for the university?[/li]
[/ul]

And then a few specific to St Andrews:
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[li]The university has a reputation for being number one for student experience, however I wonder if this also extends to postgraduate students. What was it like being a postgraduate student at the university?
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[li]Did the traditions and opportunities for student experience extend to postgraduates?[/li]
[/ul]
[/li]
[li]What is the town of St Andrews like?
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[li]How open and welcoming did you find it?[/li]
[li]Did you feel isolated or bored at all by living in a small town?[/li]
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[/li]
[/ul]

I would really appreciate any and all insight as I make my decision. Thank you in advance!!!

First off don't worry about things like reputation as they mean little. Focus on what the courses cover and which one appeals to you more. Look at where grads up and links with industry.

Thanks for replying! I know rankings/reputation don't matter in the grand scheme of things, but they are important to me and I am not ashamed to admit that. As for courses, I like both equally and the locations for that matter, so I have to dig in pretty deep to figure out which one I would rather go to, hence the above questions.

I’m not here to argue what employers look for, I’m really just interested in the above questions that I asked. I have done my research in the other areas and those questions are ones that will help me make my decision. If you could speak to those, I would be grateful. Otherwise any other comments aren’t very useful to me at this point in time

No worries hun, good luck! I wouldn't advise going about choosing a uni for postgard study this way but we can only advise. Finally it's up to you how you decide to spend what is + to a lot of time, effort and money!

@alleycat393: You have the patience of a saint and could work in customer service.

Ha not sure if that’s sarcasm or genuine!