is it a good idea to Pursue a PhD from Well Know Supervisor but not a well know university, any comments,, or does Brand name does matter..

if your supervisor is so great, why is he at podunk U instead of brand name U?

Sometimes we find some great academia teaching in some smaller university. Why has to be in the big university?KackToodles shame on you. If you are a good teacher, you don't make such comment. How good do you think you are?

It depends, (OK, that's not a great answer).Some HRs and HHs filter on brand of university, if your supervisor was John Hull or Piotr Karasinksi I'd give it less than 50% that a given person drawn randomly from either of those two sets would recgonise him.For Myron Scholes, it wouldn't be much better.As for Schonbucher, or Taleb, I doubt if as many as 15% would recognise.I'd bet >80% wouldn't recgonise Richard Feynman.A well known supervisor knows some useful people who he may call on your behalf.Presumably he may be able to impart a greater understanding of the subject, but that should not be assumed.The Great Man may spend so much time wandering the world speaking to conferences of lesser folk, or doing consultancy that you don't see him much.Of the conusltancy may mean he can set you up with a good internship/job at a whim.He may or may not be a good teacher, this correlates with being smart, but is far from deterministic.Also well known, does not quite equal useful in applied finance of the form that will get you a job. Academics by their nature are more likely todo stuff that isn't so applicable. An analytical solution is nice, for an academic, but your career need a mix of good maths, programming and finance. There is also a certian kudos if the person is very well known, since it implies that he chose you from a set of well qualified competitors.You can PM me for an answer that is less on the fence....

If you have a specific supervisor in mind, find out what all of his recent students ended up doing

QuoteOriginally posted by: ppauperIf you have a specific supervisor in mind, find out what all of his recent students ended up doingThis is great advice - I cannot emphasize enough the importance of checking how a potential supervisor treats his students and how well they are doing after Ph.D.About great school & not-so-great supervisor vs not-so-great school but great supervisor, one can argue either way. The final choice will depend on the specifics - too many variables. PM if you want my 2 cents.BestReddy

QuoteOriginally posted by: RiskCapitalis it a good idea to Pursue a PhD from Well Know Supervisor but not a well know university, any comments,, or does Brand name does matter..If you are going into academia in the sciences, it is, because reputation of supervisor counts for a lot more than reputation of university in most academic fields. For industry jobs, it doesn't matter for HR because they don't know any of the names, but it might matter to the hiring manager.

The other thing is that personal compatibility is more important than anything else. Your dissertation supervisor is going to be a major part of your life for at least several years and likely much longer than that.

What about someone who wrote a brilliant thesis under a less well-known suoervisor and uni? I reckon that it would soon be obvious that that person had talent.For example, the most cited mathematician in the world in the last 15 years? Any guesses? here

I am a bit surprised nobody mentioned anything about quality, status, content, applicability of publications. This is the No1 factor that adds actual value to the PhD holder. And i am not talking about thesis itself, a document that most probably will collect dust at some uni library self. I am talking about peer reviewed papers. I guess this factor adds more special weight to the supervisor than the university.

QuoteOriginally posted by: AnthisI am a bit surprised nobody mentioned anything about quality, status, content, applicability of publications. This is the No1 factor that adds actual value to the PhD holder. And i am not talking about thesis itself, a document that most probably will collect dust at some uni library self. I am talking about peer reviewed papers. I guess this factor adds more special weight to the supervisor than the university.Well said Anthis. You sum it up pretty well.

I would say go for the well known supervisor, not the school b/c as anthis has said your personal accomplishment is what's going to bring home the bacon. A good school might get a foot in the door, but a good supervisor may bring out the best in you. However, in academia (sadly) someone who is 'well known' would often be better described as notorious. When deciding who to work for, look at these things:a) Their publication record, but particularly citations. How is their average over time? Is it dropping off sharply? Then run like hell. Was it high early in their career due to a smash hit and has now flatlined? Run like hell. No citations? Run like hellb) Their funding. Push hard on this one, b/c if you don't you're going to be a TA *AND* an RA and it's a bitch trying to do both as a grad student. c) Their demeanor. Tough one to gauge b/c, well, you're both on your quote-unquote best behavior (ED: when you meet), but if they reek even just a tiny bit of desperation or psychosis then run like hell. Ask a former post doc of theirs what they're like to work with. A colleague will be biased, forget it. Their grad students depending on where they're at will probably be biased negatively. Take lots of samples on this one, be ruthless.d)The facilities. Here at least the brand of school may matter. For example, are they going to ask you to use the 286 with a 5 1/2 floppy in the corner with no FPU and a 5MB H drive to do a CFD calculation? If yes, run like helle)your potential co-labourers. f)Will they work with you? This is a biggie in my books. I deeply resented the fact that my well known bosses were never there and on the road 50% of the time smoozing. If you want a smoozer/political type b/c they may be well connected and can score you a job, that's fine, but I would take a worker anyday which brings me to the conclusion of my little diatribe:g)decide what you want to do with your research before you walk in the door, don't be told what you'd like to do. good luck and enjoy your research!

QuoteOriginally posted by: KackToodlesif your supervisor is so great, why is he at podunk U instead of brand name U?makes me wonder whether u really got a PhD, u seem to be ignorant of too many things.i know ppl who have specific advisors in mind when they apply to grad programs, also certain univs r good in certain disciplines.

QuoteOriginally posted by: zetaa) Their publication record, but particularly citations. How is their average over time? Is it dropping off sharply? Then run like hell. Was it high early in their career due to a smash hit and has now flatlined? Run like hell. No citations? Run like hellOne other thing to look at is whether or not their research excites you. Grad school is a long slog, and if you don't have occasionally moments when you look at what you are doing and think "this is cool stuff" then it becomes unbearable.

QuoteCuchulainn:For example, the most cited mathematician in the world in the last 15 years? Any guesses? hereNo it's not. It's this one. And she works in a small provincial university.Apropros the topic: if you're good enough, the question is irrelevant. It's irrelevant where you go, as long as you're allowed to do your work. In a PhD you'll most likely have to find your own way, your own problem to solve, given an initial direction from your advisor. If you're good enough, they might let you work without an advisor. What ultimately counts is how you dig yourself out of the hole that is the PhD -- i.e. your own achievement. Anthis is absolutely right. DCFC describes the reality that many people -- evidently including the cretin Psycho-Cacker -- have a knee-jerk reaction when they read the name of a top name school in your CV, and the opposite kneejerk when they don't. But DCFC's just describing dead-ends. You should look for ways to succeed, not ways to fail. What are you good at? What do you like? Which place will allow you to work? Have you got it in you to produce something noteworthy? Those are the real questions.