Most of the comments seem to be referring to US programmes. I chose to do my PhD in the UK and not bother with US programmes, which seem to have a toxic culture

Most of the comments seem to be referring to US programmes. I chose to do my PhD in the UK and not bother with US programmes, which seem to have a toxic culture (similar to interns in banks working ridiculous hours for no reason). I accept that I'll probably have to do a postdoc before being considered equal to a US PhD, but that's a low cost for not being abused as free labour and having the opportunity to get out with something. I also wonder if in the US not having to have a masters first, four year undergrad masters courses are the norm here for hard sciences, makes it harder for people to make informed decisions. Ultimately, does the UK, or other countries with different systems such as France, produce less good science? No.