Should I go to Cambridge to maximize my pedigree?
Background:
I have an AB in Economics from Harvard, Class of 2019, worked in EB IB for 2 years in Chicago before moving to the UK and getting my MSc in Economics for Development at Oxford (Magdalen College), Class of 2022, before pursuing MBB consulting which I’ve worked at in London for about 3 years now.
With that in mind, I plan to go back to the US and pursue a career in the Department of State/something international relations oriented. Cambridge’s MPhil in Politics and International Studies is very appealing to me and is only a one-year degree, so I’m open to pursuing it and then moving to DC post-grad.
Anyways, my point is that I’ve already gone to Harvard and Oxford, probably the two most well-known and prestigious universities in the world (Harvard 1st and Oxford 2nd), but Cambridge is almost certainly the 3rd most well-known and prestigious university in the world and has a top master’s program in the field I desire to enter. Should I just get it in part so I can say I’m an alumnus of all 3 of the top 3 most prestigious universities of all time?
It would be cool to be able to have that status but pragmatically it’s probably better to just try to network my way into that career. What do you all think, should I get the degree or not?
P.S. I understand that this may be perceived as a silly post but I am being serious.
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Might as well see if you can get into Eaton too while you're at it lmao
Would be sick but being real it makes no sense considering opp cost
It would be sick for sure but I’d argue that if he actually wanted to maximize pedigree, then Stanford or MIT would be preferable options before Cambridge.
Stanford and MIT will continue to be the dominant schools of the future (with Harvard), while Cambridge’s name value declines as older generations from former British colonies die out.
Oxford’s name will withstand the decline of the UK in my opinion because it’s become so entrenched in global academia and history, but Cambridge being its little brother is going to see a decline similar to that of Yale (being the little brother of Harvard).
So long-term, I think that a Harvard + Oxford + Stanford/MIT combination would have more pedigree.
It doesn't matter because Oxbridge undergrad alumni won't consider you a real alumnus if you only attended them for postgrad. Joever
My undergraduate alma mater is more internationally well-known and prestigious than both of Oxbridge so even if that’s true then it’s not a big deal. Regardless, what you say isn’t true.
If Oxford Master degree holders aren’t true Oxford alumni, then does that make the Rhodes scholarship worth nothing? Oxford and Cambridge’s official university policy confirm that postgraduate alumni, like undergraduate alumni, are alumni of the broader university as well as their college, and become a part of both alumni networks upon graduation.
The phenomenon you described is an American one. I agree that at Harvard, someone with a Master’s degree from the GSE won’t be viewed as part of the alumni network by a college alum, but that kind of mentality doesn’t exist at Oxbridge, and the prestige confers to all legitimate degrees regardless of the degree level.
What’s your particular experience on this?
What about an Oxford DPhil?
Oxbridge postgraduates degrees (including DPhils) are almost always going to be cash-cow programs.
Only Oxbridge undergraduate degrees will be respected by Oxbridge undergraduate alumni and those in the know of things.
Totally get the temptation, and for context, I’m a Columbia & Stanford alum, so I’ve definitely felt the “maybe I should collect another stamp” impulse.
But I’d frame it like this: education is a means to an end, not the end. And the end (ideally) is doing something genuinely useful for society.
Pedigree matters early because it’s a signal that tells people you’re smart, capable, high potential. But just it’s a placeholder until you have a real body of work. Eventually the signal gets replaced by evidence, what you’ve built, led, shipped, or changed. If that evidence never shows up, the pedigree stops helping and starts to backfire. People thing “you had every advantage… so where are the results?”
So if the main reason to do Cambridge is solely more status, your returns will be extremely diminishing. The more impressive play is doing something hard and useful that makes the logos irrelevant.
Same with IB/MBB. It’s great early training and a solid starting point, but it’s still just that, a start. If you want people to be impressed long-term, go take real swings. Build a business, tackle a genuinely hard problem, get reps in the domain you care about, and produce outcomes that compound.
Cambridge only makes sense if it’s clearly instrumental. It provides unique access to a a specific pipeline, a network you can’t get otherwise, or is a real requirement for your path. If it’s mostly for the flex, I’d skip it and invest the time in building something useful.
Fair enough. I probably won’t go for the MPhil right now but it may be something I get down the line in my life when I’m older and retired.
Or, even more likely, I’ll be too burnt out to bother. But we’ll see. Harvard and Oxford are more famous than Cambridge anyways.
Deldel
Firstly this amount of detail probably is enough to identify you easily so would edit / delete if I was you.
A valid reason to do this would be if you wanted to do a PhD and go into academia.
Otherwise I think this is extremely silly and would encourage you to consider priorities in life. If this is a serious post, it’s quite sad to try to maximise prestige this much. After several years of work experience I have started to care less and less about uni (I went to one of the three you mentioned) and more about professional achievements and think this applies to most people.
Alright. I probably won’t pursue the degree considering I already have two schools on my CV more prestigious than Cambridge.
Do you think an H/S MBA would help?
Like silverbackape said, another education degree (no matter what it is) will help you unless you can actually drive impact. Department of State won't hire you just because you have three degrees, but they will hire you if you can prove that you can actually drive value.
All that prestige and still cannot anonymise a post properly…
Yes I guess it will give you more prestige, but why would it even matter for your goal
Because it would be cool. I might get the MPhil for fun when I’m retired and in my 40s/50s.
Bro you need professional help, why are you posting about those schools on Reddit and WSO every two days? Jesus Christ..
I wouldn't get another degree for 'prestige' solely. The masters does sound related to your goal, but I'm unconvinced of its benefit given you already went to Harvard (i.e. a US school) - I'd focus on using using your Harvard network.
Also, alumni networks are not as big of a thing in the UK compared with the US....
Separately, not sure where you see additional prestige is coming from? I think is well known if you attend a top university and had good enough undergrad grades then you could go to another one for Masters/PhD/DPhil if you wanted to [All Souls college fellowship/Part III Maths Tripos/Rhodes scholarship/Gates scholarship are impressive, but are separate conversations and most of those don't lead to political careers]
Summary: wouldn't suggest another degree unless you absolutely love the content so much. Instead, focus on getting back to the US and using your H network (or Oxon if applicable).
A JD from Yale would be better no?
Personally I have no interest in law school. Also Cambridge is more prestigious than Yale internationally.
This is why people think Harvard grads are annoying dweebs
- fellow Harvard alum
Overkill
Would you say that the Harvard + Oxford combinations beats the Harvard + Oxford + Cambridge combination in terms of pedigree?
What about getting an H/S MBA instead?
Too many years abroad, accompanied by too many visits to dubious countries— Russia, say — and you will have trouble getting a security clearance. And without a security clearance you can’t work for the federal government in any serious capacity.
Come back to the US and start looking for the job you want before it’s too late.
Dubious countries? I’ve spent my entire time abroad in the UK and EU lol
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