Came across these insane listings on GovDeals. 5000 watt aftermarket mid drive motor? 50AH battery strapped to the rear rack? And doing all that nonsense to two perfectly good Titanium frames?
I'm an American set to matriculate at Roskilde University in Denmark for their Nordic Urban Planning Studies MSc and would like some input on what the ROI might be for an American. The reason I'm asking is that I have a decent transportation planning job offer in the United States in a not-so-great deindustrialized city (St. Louis, if any of you have heard of it).
From what I understand, it would be very difficult to get internships (let alone post-MSc employment) in the region without speaking Danish or being an EU citizen. Because internships and relevant networking are an important component of planning masters programs—nearly as important as the actual coursework and credentialing—if I can't find good internships and if my network won't translate back to the United States, the degree is a lot less useful. Applying for internships in North American is possible but will be expensive (moving to another continent for a few months might mean I spend more than I earn!)
I'm even worried about finding service sector employment while there to help pay the bills—why would anyone hire a bartender or barista who doesn't speak Danish?
In addition, being relatively unfamiliar with American regulatory and governance systems will make me less competitive for many planning jobs back home.
Still, if I go all-in on pedestrian and bicycle planning, RUC will make me a desirable candidate for those sort of American jobs (particularly in the private sector). But that puts me towards the top of a fairly small number of stacks.
Finally, I know that I'd have a lot more fun living and studying in Denmark than taking this job offer. I spent a semester abroad in Copenhagen as an undergraduate, and those were some of the best months of my life!
I'm an American set to matriculate at Roskilde University in Denmark for their Nordic Urban Planning Studies MSc and would like some input on what the ROI might be for an American. The reason I'm asking is that I have a decent transportation planning job offer in the United States in a not-so-great deindustrialized city (St. Louis, if any of you have heard of it).
From what I understand, it would be very difficult to get internships (let alone post-MSc employment) in the region without speaking Danish or being an EU citizen. Because internships and relevant networking are an important component of planning masters programs—nearly as important as the actual coursework and credentialing—if I can't find good internships and if my network won't translate back to the United States, the degree is a lot less useful. Applying for internships in North American is possible but will be expensive (moving to another continent for a few months might mean I spend more than I earn!)
I'm even worried about finding service sector employment while there to help pay the bills—why would anyone hire a bartender or barista who doesn't speak Danish?
In addition, being relatively unfamiliar with American regulatory and governance systems will make me less competitive for many planning jobs back home.
Still, if I go all-in on pedestrian and bicycle planning, RUC will make me a desirable candidate for those sort of American jobs (particularly in the private sector). But that puts me towards the top of a fairly small number of stacks.
Finally, I know that I'd have a lot more fun living and studying in Denmark than taking this job offer. I spent a semester abroad in Copenhagen as an undergraduate, and those were some of the best months of my life!
TL;DR: I got a decent transit planning job offer in St. Louis while being set to matriculate for grad school in Denmark. STL wouldn't be a great place to live, but a Danish masters has uncertain ROI as an American. What do?
I’m an early-career transportation planner in the position of choosing between a good but suboptimal job offer or a good but suboptimal graduate school decision. Either way, I must make this decision within the next 36 hours, and it'll probably be the biggest in my life so far.
For context, I’m 24. I graduated in spring 2024 with a double major in urban studies and sociology. I had employment lined up which fell through due to the NGO’s grant funding not being approved. In the past two years, I’ve been living at home in Portland, scraped together two paid internships, and have done planning-related volunteering at conferences and with PBOT. The latest of these internships was a fairly prestigious one doing ped-bike safety research alongside several nationally renowned subject matter experts.
There are no planning jobs for me in Portland right now. The market is insanely tight across the board. PSU MURP grads who are more credentialed and better networked than me are clambering over each other for the few public-sector openings in the wake of the city and state’s fiscal crisis. Consulting typically only hires people with graduate degrees and draws from a national applicant pool.
Option (A) is to take an entry-level position with the MPO in St. Louis doing long-range/corridor planning. I see this option as lower risk, lower reward.
Option (B) is to follow through with matriculating at Roskilde University in Denmark this fall for their Nordic Urban Planning Studies MS. I see this option as higher risk, higher reward.
What should I do?
TL;DR: I got a decent transit planning job offer in St. Louis while being set to matriculate for grad school in Denmark. STL wouldn't be a great place to live, but a Danish masters has uncertain ROI as an American. What do?
I’m an early-career transportation planner in the position of choosing between a good but suboptimal job offer or a good but suboptimal graduate school decision. Either way, I must make this decision within the next 36 hours, and it'll probably be the biggest in my life so far.
For context, I’m 24. I graduated in spring 2024 with a double major in urban studies and sociology. I had employment lined up which fell through due to the NGO’s grant funding not being approved. In the past two years, I’ve been living at home in Portland, scraped together two paid internships, and have done planning-related volunteering at conferences and with PBOT. The latest of these internships was a fairly prestigious one doing ped-bike safety research alongside several nationally renowned subject matter experts.
There are no planning jobs for me in Portland right now. The market is insanely tight across the board. PSU MURP grads who are more credentialed and better networked than me are clambering over each other for the few public-sector openings in the wake of the city and state’s fiscal crisis. Consulting typically only hires people with graduate degrees and draws from a national applicant pool.
Option (A) is to take an entry-level position with the MPO in St. Louis doing long-range/corridor planning. I see this option as lower risk, lower reward.
Option (B) is to follow through with matriculating at Roskilde University in Denmark this fall for their Nordic Urban Planning Studies MS. I see this option as higher risk, higher reward.
What should I do?