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British or American PhD?

Hi everyone! 

I am an American who completed my undergraduate and masters degrees in political science at a Russell Group uni in the UK. I returned to the US afterward (about a year ago) and am considering going back to the UK for my PhD. I would likely return to the same university since my academic network is there and I have identified a professor who I believe would make a great supervisor for my project. More broadly though, everyone I am close to (excluding my immediate family) are also in the UK so there is a strong emotional reason to return. That being said, international tuition fees are not cheap and funding opportunities in the UK are dismal at best. This move would require taking on some serious debt and given the current academic job market, I am not sure that is wise.

On the other hand, I have been looking at PhDs in the US, especially since funding is more readily available (at least at more well-known unis). However, I have missed the deadline for applications to the US this year and as such it would be another 18 months or so before starting. The fact that I am barely scraping by in my current job plus the abysmal wages of PhD students in the US and the sheer length of American PhDs, makes me doubt that the US route is much more economically sound.

My master's degree was an MSc by Research which hopefully will help me knock out the PhD in 3 years if I were to do it in the UK. That being said, my research area has shifted so I am not fully banking on it, especially since I will need to acquire some language skills (which I am currently working on). The UK uni would not charge tuition for a fourth year if it was required, but I also couldn't hold down a full-time job either. Even so, I would hopefully be finished with the PhD and in a paid position sooner if I were to go this route which might be more economically beneficial.

Overall which is the better route economically (both short-term and long-term)? Does the additional time spent in a US PhD add more value to it in this super competitive market? My ultimate goal is to teach and research in an academic setting but I am relatively agnostic about where that might be. 

I don't want to cut off options by getting a PhD in the wrong country but equally I want to make a good financial decision (insofar as any of this can be considered a good financial decision). All things being equal, I would return to the UK in a heartbeat because even a year later 90% of my life is there. However, I am aware that's not a great reason to choose a program if a better one is available especially given how competitive the market is.

I would greatly appreciate any advice you can offer.

&#x200B;

**TLDR:**

Have: 

1. Russell Group undergrad and MSc Politics (by Research)
2. US passport
3. UK Network
4. Not a whole lot of money

Want:

1. PhD in Politics
2. Academic Job

Main question: Given my background, is a UK or US PhD a better choice overall?
gpt
One word of advice: Don't go into a PhD expecting it to be a stepping stone to an academic job. That's not to say you shouldn't do a PhD, but make sure you use the opportunity to gain a wide range of skills that would be useful in many types of work settings.