thesebrokenwings

Sorry for bumping up an old thread, but the posts in this thread was very informative and I have additional questions. I'm a Canadian undergrad in my third year thinking about applying to the States for grad school. I'm not applying for any professional programs, so I presume that if I get accepted, it will be funded. I also understand that I will most likely be applying for the I-20, and I would have to prove that I have enough money to pay for first year tuition + living expenses. In the case that I get funding (a tuition waiver or something of that sort), would I still have to prove that I have enough financial resources to pay for it? I'm currently on government loans for my Canadian undergrad, so I definitely don't have the money... As well, in general, can international PhD students live by on their stipends, or would they have to fork over extra money just to go to school in the States?

Then what separates me from those who get into the 'top' schools and those that don't? What do I need to be more competitive?

Thank you! I'm at McMaster. How important are these upper-year stats courses for these programs? I only have intro to stats and it doesn't fulfill any of the requirements for the stats courses offered next term.

Hi, I'm a third year undergraduate in Canada studying in a bio/health-related field and doing a minor in mathematics. I'm looking to see how competitive I am (or will be) and what I can do to improve my application for the upcoming year. School: Pretty well-known University in Canada for the Health Sciences; it's ranked within the top 100 on the TIME University rankings. GPA: 3.97 in first and second year; 4.0 in math Math courses taken: Calculus I, II, Advanced Calc I, Linear Algebra I, II, Intro to Stats, and Real Analysis. I'm planning on taking topology and complex analysis next term. GRE: I'm planning on writing in the summer of 2014 (is that a good time to write it?) Should I write the math GRE too? Research: I have had two research projects so far, my first in mathematical modelling and the second in bioinformatics. No publications so far. How competitive will I be to get into the top Biostats program in the States? (ie, Harvard, Johns Hopkins, Berkeley, UCLA, Columbia, etc.) Thank you! Any input and constructive comments are appreciated.