<p>I am a native New Yorker who is deciding between two PhD programs. I hold a BA from a top ten American University and a master’s degree from the London School of Economics (LSE). I have been admitted to PhD programs in Political Sociology at both Stanford and LSE. Which degree would be considered more prestigious throughout the world?</p>
<p>Stanford. All you care about is prestige?</p>
<p>Both are extremely prestigious</p>
<p>in terms of prestige, Stanford is wayyy much better.
outside English speaking countries, LSE is not famous. In asia, I have met tons of ppl who have not even heard about LSE. In Taiwan, China, Korea, and Japan, offers from HYPSM always generate much bigger wow factor than those from oxbridge and other European universities. The top European universities are not highly regarded as American universities. Stanford is very well-rounded (maybe the best in the world), so it definitely draws much more attention and gains much more prestige. </p>
<p>BTW, I am an international students from Asia.</p>
<p>A Stanford degree is definitely more prestigious. ARWU ranks Stanford #3 in the world for social sciences, whereas LSE is ranked #25.</p>
<p>No seta and Bruno 123. Stanford and LSE are same class.</p>
<p>Depends on the industries, if for general publics, go Stanford. If for professional banking and finance, LSE will be more recognized.</p>
<p>Since globalballer83 got both Top America and LSE. The answer is globalballer83 should not waste the time and go for work. </p>
<p>Unless globalballer83 wants to be a teacher, it is more difficult to find a good job by holding a PhD than MSc.</p>
<p>I’d say they are comparable in prestige. PhD programs in the UK tend to be far more streamlined than in the US. Find out what’s the typical amount of time it takes to complete the degree at each place.</p>
<p>In terms of prestige-collecting, I think you are definitely better off at Stanford. You just got a degree from LSE so even if LSE were more prestigious than Stanford(and I don’t think it is), you already have the LSE name and whatever cache comes with it. Stanford has a new alum network. an LSE guy is already giving you the benefit of the doubt.</p>
<p>never heard of LSE, so I would go with standford (more name recognition)</p>
<p>Stanford because you already have your masters from LSE. That should be a no brainer…</p>
<p>The international prestige of Stanford is only bettered by Harvard, Oxford and Cambridge, and only matched by MIT, possibly, Berkeley and Caltech. Yale and Princeton aren’t far behind too. LSE is in a league below Yale’s and Princeton’s. Internationally, LSE is as prestigious as NYU.</p>
<p>So, when it comes to international prestige, Stanford >>> LSE.</p>
<p>I think people overestimate the reputation of Stanford, both nationally and internationally.</p>
<p>A few notes…</p>
<p>1) This thread is well over a year old. The “no brainer” should be that the OP has long chosen his/her program by now.</p>
<p>2) Overall institutional prestige is largely irrelevant at the graduate level. Fit is by far the most important factor, both with one’s advising professors and the overall department. The exception is if you plan to do something (wholly) unrelated with your PhD. </p>
<p>3) For whatever reason, PhD programs in the UK are sometimes not considered as reputable as those in the US. I suspect this has much to do with Schmaltz’s correct note of the streamlined nature of British PhD programs; they usually lack the coursework and comprehensive exams that American programs require students to pass. The lack of teaching experience can also be significant when applying for university positions.</p>
<p>4) Why in the world do people persist in spelling it “Standford”?</p>
<p>^ agreed.</p>
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<p>Not sure which is worse, that or “Stamford.” (By comparison Cal students misspelling it as “Stanfurd” is cute.)</p>
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<p>I don’t think so - in a Gallup poll in the US, Stanford and Yale tied for 2nd for most prestigious (obv. behind Harvard) in the eyes of the general public, and Stanford and Harvard are equally prestigious in the eyes of those with college educations, with all other schools falling far behind the two. In an international survey, Stanford came out top 5, roughly equal to Oxbridge (depending on how much error there is). And of course, other surveys - like the peer assessment score in the US News ranking - place Stanford at the very top.</p>
<p>[Harvard</a> Number One University in Eyes of Public](<a href=“Harvard Number One University in Eyes of Public”>Harvard Number One University in Eyes of Public)
[Top</a> Universities by Reputation 2011](<a href=“http://www.timeshighereducation.co.uk/world-university-rankings/2010-2011/reputation-rankings.html]Top”>http://www.timeshighereducation.co.uk/world-university-rankings/2010-2011/reputation-rankings.html)</p>
<p>Schmaltz,</p>
<p>Actually, Stanford is indeed very prestigious in where I grew up (Hong Kong).</p>
<p>^ That’s what Schmaltz said, 'furd reputation is overestimated…</p>
<p>[Top</a> Universities by Reputation 2011](<a href=“http://www.timeshighereducation.co.uk/world-university-rankings/2010-2011/reputation-rankings.html]Top”>http://www.timeshighereducation.co.uk/world-university-rankings/2010-2011/reputation-rankings.html)</p>
<p>UMass ahead of Columbia, Duke, Penn, Northwestern? Yeah, nothing questionable about these rankings…</p>
<p>^ you’re drawing distinctions too finely. I’m sure there’s a margin of error given the sampling, but saying that UMass is “ahead of” those schools, when the difference is <1% for Columbia and Penn, is only technically true. Yes, THE did give them specific ranks, rather than place them in tiers, but I don’t think they intended for any real distinctions to be made among the schools you listed, because there really aren’t any in terms of international prestige. Similarly, even though the spread is greater among the top 2-6 schools, the survey pretty much says to me “Harvard is #1, and #2 is a rough tie among MIT, Stanford, Berkeley, and Oxbridge.” You’ll see steeper drop-offs after those 6.</p>
<p>It’s also totally plausible that schools like UMass would be more internationally prestigious than other schools we regard as prestigious in the US, since international prestige is perhaps even more dependent on research productivity. (Of course, I don’t think the data is saying that about UMass, anyway.)</p>