Where to Get a PhD 1

[zdas04]

In 5 years I'll be 59-1/2 and able to live off my IRA and 401K without tax penalties. At that time I plan to shut my business down and go get a PhD in ME (actually Fluid Mechanics and Thermodynamics). I don't know if I'll ever teach, but I just don't want to die without completing that task on my to-do list. I've planned pretty well financially for a retirement of leisure, but as it approaches it looks pretty dull.

I think I'll probably have the wherewithal to attend any English-speaking PhD program in the world (my language skills are non-existent). I'm having a really hard time deciding where I want to go. Does anyone have any suggestions of a really great engineering program in a fantastic location?

David



David Simpson, PE
MuleShoe Engineering

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[richkeogh]

May I recommend Melbourne as a great place to live, also a decent university I'm led to believe.
Nottingham University in the UK has a very good reputation in Engineering, and the university itself is very nice (even if not all of Nottingham itself is). I believe there is also a branch of it in Malaysia, which could be an option.
Or my hometown of Cardiff has a good reputation in Engineering, and I can heartily recommend living there, although I doubt it could match the appeal of the likes of Hawaii!
Having said all that, if I was faced with the same problem I'd probably plump for Perth (in Western Australia, not Scotland) or Christchurch (New Zealand) as they are both places I'd love to live in.

 

[zdas04]

I'm such a rube that I never heard of Cardiff before Dr. Who found a rift in the space time continuum there and Torchwood was set there. Neither of those references show it in a good light. I'll look into your suggestions. I was in Melbourne in the '70s and really liked it (I especially liked the kindness that the people showed to a bunch of drunken sailors).

David

 

[Maui]

Virginia Tech has a great engineering program. And it's located in one of the most beautiful regions of the eastern seaboard. One of my former students is currently attending graduate school there, and the Dean of the College of Engineering, Dick Benson, was a member of my thesis committee when I defended my dissertation back in the early 1990s.

One of the most important considerations in selecting a graduate program is finding a professor that you want to work with who is also willing and interested in helping you achieve your research goals. Classes are a necessary and important part of any graduate education, but the relationship that you form with your thesis advisor is critical to your success. Choose wisely, and you will love the experience of graduate school. Make the wrong choice, and it can be hell. Funny how it's like marriage in this respect.

Maui

 

[IAAWVU05]

Well said, Maui.

Finding a professor that you want to work with and who is willing to help you acheive your research goals is the key to graduate school. When considering graduate schools

1. Talk to the department's graduate studies coordinator. This may be different from the department chair. This guy knows which prof is doing what research and is very neutral in terms of department politics.

2. Arrange meetings with faculty who share similar research interests. These guys have had lots of experience in research and will help you advance in your research if your topic is interesting to them. They can put into practice concepts from academia that aren't even considered in "real world" engineering.

3. If given the choice, hand-pick your advisory committee. Be aware of rivalries within the department. It looks better if there are a few committee members from other departments. Most younger graduate students, particularly MS students, pick an advisor and the advisor's buddies are on the committee. This is a trick to get you through the program faster, but if you are going to do it the right way, pick people who are more familiar with your research. If you're doing fluids and thermo, don't have a solid mechanics, beam-bending, mohr's circle type guy on the committee.


Hope this helps you, and best wishes pursuing the PhD.

IAA
WVU '05