student12345

If this is anything like funding for other Master's and PhD programs, it is awarded solely on the basis of merit, or more specifically, how much they're willing to spend to convince you to attend. It's rare for big players like Stanford to offer funding for these programs because their name is attractive enough. They may have already awarded all of their funding for MS students. I'd say that you should start looking for external funding from scholarships as soon as possible (if it isn't already too late to do so). It might be your best bet at getting funding.

As others have said, the decision should really only be between WashU and Wisconsin. Both have affluent professors and beautiful campuses.

The name shouldn't matter. Call them school X, Y, and Z. No, I mean you should really forget the names of the schools. Would you still want to attend school X, which is expensive and doesn't have any research opportunities? What are you planning on doing beyond the Master's, a PhD? If so, I'd say research is more important than whatever you could learn in classes at school X. So I'd say Y and Z are much stronger options.

Chiming in to agree with everything Eigen recommended. Unfortunately, I don't think any MS or PhD programs will care about the 3.2 GPA since it was boosted by classes irrelevant to your intended field of study. They'll only be focused on that very low science GPA. Re-doing your BA and getting a very good GPA in advanced science courses (I'm talking much higher than a 3.2 here) would put you in a very good position to apply to PhD programs. This would also open up research opportunities. Make sure you do the BA at a school where research in your field is being done. Good luck!

I could be wrong, but I don't believe that any of those three things will improve your application. Your GPA is fine, they know you can handle the work. Having more coursework is the least of your concerns. For reference, I am graduating as a sophomore from Boston U with only a 3.64 GPA. My GRE subject score was at the 65th percentile, which is pretty bad; I'd say you need above an 80-90% for the programs that require it (so just Stanford, but Cornell and Columbia "recommend" it). Definitely not as prestigious a background as you, but I've taken a year of measure-theoretic probability and mathematical statistics at the PhD level. Perhaps that's what you're missing, but I don't think it is. I think you're missing research experience. I have been working with a faculty member since the second semester of my freshman year (last year). I think this and having my recommendations from the top researchers in my interests convinced the committees I was a good candidate. Is there any way you can go back to your undergraduate institution to work with faculty?

Also here to disagree with OhioStateStudent. Duke is known as the single best place to study Bayesian statistics.

I'd agree with everything said above. And I'd contact the department to let them know which three recommendations were the strongest, or the most relevant. It can only work in your favor.

You want to publish in an established journal. You should get your master's from a department that has a lot of well-known and well-connected faculty in your field and make sure that they'll work with you when you're ready to begin research. This is far more important than prestige of your institution.

I've bought a shirt at every school that's flown me down to visit. Eventually I'll just choose which school to attend based on which shirt I like best... Kidding! Although it might be my only way to decide in the end...

Are both stipends livable? It sounds like it. I'd go with school A. Congrats!

I've heart great things about Madison, WI. The PhD would give you more mobility in your field and has the very significant advantage of being free. Meanwhile Columbia's program isn't very well regarded and a master's degree might leave some doors closed compared to the doctorate, especially since Wisc's program is so strong. And congratulations on being admitted, especially with a fellowship! Your research interests must be well-represented there of they're offering you such a generous stipend.

Root beer

Hmm, maybe moving in IS the funding offer...

You shouldn't listen to people who don't know about your field. Ask your professors/advisors which program you should choose.

Ahh, I didn't mean to down vote you. You'd think that after 20 years I'd have enough coordination with my finger to tap a green arrow. Not so. Sorry! Given what OP has said in a private message to me, I'd say staying at his undergraduate institution is the right choice. I say this because his field is very very small.

This is what I've read elsewhere (I'm not sure where, possibly reddit’s /r/gradschool): 1. I'd be wary of doing a PhD at the same school that you did your undergrad *and* master's at. You've already been enrolled there for 5-6 years most likely, and in that time you've probably taken away all that you can from the department and the university as a whole (in terms of course offerings, making professional connections, learning research techniques, etc.). Does School A really have anything more that it can offer you? It might, but probably not that much. My undergrad department has a strict policy of not accepting its undergrads into its graduate program for this very reason. I'd bet that you would benefit a lot more from a new school... you'll be exposed to different perspectives, expand your academic network through professors in a new department (and the connections that they may have elsewhere), and may be able to take courses in subjects not offered at your old school. You'd probably learn a lot there, and it would probably also look better to have more than one school on your CV.

Worst coast

It's before April 15. You have every right to accept, don't even think twice about it. Congratulations!

Not sure if the UNC comment was directed towards me; my program is Statistics, not Biostatistics. The two programs seem comparable but UNC has an advantage with their more notable faculty. I'd agree that UNC over UF is clear for Biostats. And Jim Hobert, the graduate coordinator of UF's department, seemed very positive about me talking to Nikolay so perhaps there is no longer any animosity.

No one plans on going bankrupt, and as hard it is to think about it's a very real possibility for any of us. Having lived in Florida/Los Angeles/Boston I can say right now with absolute certainty that OP should not have a car in Boston. It would be absolutely justifiable in Florida or California (where public transportation is virtually nonexistent) but since I have not met a single student with a car in all of my time in Boston (a city small enough that commute times will be under 30 minutes if you decide to go with public transportation), please go with the advice above and sell the car. Semester T passes are available for students if you cannot find a place within walking distance from the school (you should be able to).

Hi Hopenxx, I am currently leaning towards UNC as there are more faculty there doing the kind of work I'm interested in, but UF is a great option as well and their offer is making the decision very hard for me. Nick

My name is close to Nicolas Cage's; it is some combination of his middle name and the rest of it. Hopefully I will become more well-known than him and overshadow him on google. But until then I cling to the hope that he does not become an academic and establish a presence on mathscinet; in which case I will have to change my own name to have any hope of becoming recognizable.

Hi hopenxx, I visited the department a couple of weeks ago and spoke with one of the faculty in IFAS, Nikolay Bliznyuk. My program is Statistics but as you may know, the two programs are under the same Department of Statistics; the faculty, however, are divided under CLAS (College of Liberal Arts and Sciences) and IFAS (Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences). There are more faculty under CLAS (they do theoretical work); I was under the impression that there are very few IFAS faculty (there are so few CLAS faculty to begin with, due to the recent budget cuts and the recent and tragic loss of Casella) but I don't know much about Biostats departments. Nikolay was very kind and has a lot of research going on, I seem to remember that he has some students (and he talked about the work that students have done as well). I am not sure who your POI are at UF but I had a great time in Gainesville when I visited, you might find it worthwhile to fly over if they are willing to pay for the trip. Let me know if you have any questions regarding the department or the campus (which was lovely!) Thanks, Nick

You may not believe this but I assure you that it is absolutely true. Girlfriend and I were worn out from a long week of classes but were eager to jump into bed; that's when I got my rejection from Berkeley, which was disappointing, but I was in the bedroom and did not mind so much. Then just before round 2 I saw my phone light up with "something something offer"! Unfortunately our night ended there as I couldn't stop thinking about my first offer. But I did get an acceptance as consolation.

I'm at BU right now as an undergraduate statistics major. I can answer any questions you may have about the program or the courses (I've taken the PhD sequence of courses already). I also have some knowledge about the research being done here but not too much.