iBrutus2012

Thanks for the suggestions, everyone. I will be retaking the GRE, and now that the semester has settled down a little, I'll actually put in some study time. @marmle I would't say my research interest is solely topological data analysis, but it does seem to be gaining traction within the statistical community, and it gave me some exposure to biostatistical applications. I'm also broadly interested in functional data analysis and Bayesian statistics, though I don't have formal experience with either. Do you think I should avoid mentioning too much about TDA so my research interests aren't confusing?

Hi everyone, I'd sincerely appreciate an honest profile review. I recently took the GRE, and unfortunately I haven't had much time to study, so my results were way less than stellar. Also, my GPA seems to be mediocre. I do have decent research experience and grades in upper-division and graduate courses. Taking all of this into account, I'm unsure of the strength of my profile. I come from a theory-heavy background, and I've only recently discovered all of the neat applications within biostatistics, so this is now the route I want to pursue. I've tried to include schools in the 4-15 range for biostatistics, but I'm unsure if this is too ambitious. Applications are expensive, so I don't want to waste a ton of money. Any advice would be extremely appreciated. Undergrad Institution: Ohio State University Major(s): Computer Science Minor(s): Mathematics GPA: 3.5 (upper-division and graduate work is 3.75+) Type of Student: Domestic white male GRE General Test: Q: 159 V: 157 W: Programs Applying: Biostatistics PhD Research Experience: REU at Duke on Topological Data Analysis; 9 months working full-time with a private research and development company on data fusion stuff; reading group on algebraic topology Awards/Honors/Recognitions: Graduating Cum Laude, University Honors program Letters of Recommendation: 2 pretty known professors within the Topological Data Analysis community, one from Ohio State and the other from Duke. My other letter writer was my boss when I worked for the private research and development company. They should all be decent. Any Miscellaneous Points that Might Help: I've taken graduate courses on Complexity Theory, Advanced Linear Algebra, Topological Data Analysis, Differential Geometry, and Algebraic Topology. All of these were either A's or A-'s. I've also taken the standard undergraduate analysis sequence and abstract algebra. I got A's or A-'s in them. Schools: - UCLA - Columbia - Berkeley (MS biostat) - Michigan (MS biostat) - Penn - UNC - Boston University - Duke - Ohio State - Rice (PhD Statistics) - Brown