I've got three schools that I'm looking at for a distance learning program. Syracuse for a Masters in Social Science, Virginia Tech for a Masters in Political Science and Tulane for a Masters in International Development. Anyone familiar with the reputation of these schools? I've looked at the US News rankings and other websites, but want to pick the school and program with the best reputation. I'm from the west coast, so any insight would be appreciated. Thanks!
Those are all excellent schools. But I think the field of study is much more important than the small differential between the schools. You are talking about three very different programs. I would suggest thinking about why you want this degree and what you plan to do with it, and pick the field of study that most closely fits those goals. Then decide which school you want to attend.
Thanks guys. I'm glad to hear that you both agree they all have a good reputation. At this point, my long term goal is to teach at the college level. My undergraduate degree was in international relations (poli sci/history/economics) so I'll probably stick with the Political Science track for a graduate degree (since it seems to be the most similar) and I can eventually apply to a PhD program. The programs at all three are fairly similar - I suppose my primary concern is understanding which school seemed to have a better perception aka B&M reputation.
It depends on what you mean by "college level." If you are talking tenure-track university positions, your master's degree is almost irrelevant. You will need a Ph.D. The school that grants it, your dissertation topic, additional research you have done, and your advisor will be far more important than anything having to do with your master's degree. And I don't believe that a degree at any of the schools mentioned would put you at a significant relative advantage or disadvantge for entry into a Ph.D. program. If you are interested in teaching at the community college level, I would suggest getting the most generic degree possible in the field that you want to teach. To teach in an academic area at the vast majority of community colleges, you must have a master's degree with at least 18 hours in the discipline you will be teaching. Very few (if any) community colleges have programs in international development, but all (or nearly all) have political science departments. So unless your degree included a significant portion of credits that could be classified as political science, you would be out of luck. If you really want to teach in the state where one of these institutions is located, you may be better off going to that school. Otherwise, I think that the difference in perception among these three schools in negligible. They are all very good schools.
Jeffs advice is very sound. Any of these degree programs will serve your needs. I'm not familiar with the Tulane degree, but of the two remaining, the Virg Tech Poli Sci most closely duplicates their B&M program. By contrast, I believe the Syracuse MSS is unique, despite drawing on its graduate-level faculty. It also has fewer course choices--you may find this too restrictive. But having also looked closely at it myself, I know that you can obtain a great deal of information from them--even down to the textbooks used in their courses (via online links)! --Orson
I don't live very far from Virginia Tech. The school has a MASSIVE campus. It's VERY well known for its engineering programs. VT now has a medical school as well. It accepted its first students into its new Doctor of Osteopothy just recently. Cy
