Pierre

I applied and was acepted to UBC (and Toronto as well but for statistics) and I can only give praise to the department. That is of course with regards to their research in probability theory, since that is the field that I work in. The reason that I didn't end up going there was all non-academic and I would think that if one considers research in probability theory (particularly of the more theoretical nature, if that even makes sense) then it is one of the top departments in all of North America. As for the rest of mathematics, I'm not quite sure but I would imagine that they offer a solid education.

My opinion is that it is very very "dangerous" to let brand name decide where you're going. Of course if you have two schools who are equally well reputed in the specific field, offering you the same amount of money etc., then you should perhaps take the one more "famous" one. But as many have already pointed out, if you go on to work in the field that you have your PhD in, your co-workers will know the reputation of such departments and the usual suspects (i.e. Harvard, Yale, Princeton etc.) might not carry as much weight. Therefore IMO one should always go by research interests and how they correspond with the faculty at different departments when deciding where to go. Of course funding is also a crucial aspect. Brand name (in the sense of the general public's opinion) should not be brought into the equation until the very end, if at all. I feel very much the same about different rankings, as they are not tailored to your own specific needs and interests and therefore can give you the wrong idea about a department or school. In this particular case, UNC is to me the obvious choice. I am a bit biased since I already love the town (although I am a the type who prefers a big city, go figure) and the school, but the biostat dept. is nothing but awesome. Also, you have an incredibly stat dept. from which you can take courses and collaborate with people in and of course the research triangles provides a great deal of opportunities.

Unfortunately you won't. Uncertainty regarding my girlfriend's possibilities of getting a work permit made me stay in Sweden and I will therefore be attending the Royal institute of technology in Stockholm (possibly Oxford, but that is very unlikely). I can only congratulate you though for going to CH, I absolutely love the department and the people there are just great. The town is rather nice to live in as well and of course if you're into sports it's a really nice area.

It might work, but I highly doubt the exam thing will do much for your application. Grad courses in relevant subjects and possibly research on the other hand will of course without a doubt help you. Taking courses that coincide well with what you list as your research interests shows that you actually know some things about the topics you mention in your SOPs. And of course getting good LORs from relevant professors will open some doors. But you already know this... Good luck, hope you don't have to worry when it's all said and done

Can't do anything but agree with the above posts. If you just tell them the situation there should be no harm done. I would say that this is in some ways similar to a student applying to more than one school and then choosing amongst those that he/she receives an offer from. Or even applying for multiple jobs at the same time (even though then you probably won't tell the different companies about each other, thus hurting the analogy) - my point is that you rarely put all your eggs in one basket and hope for the best. Again, just tell them the situation (without freaking out about it) and you should be fine. Good luck !

Late last night (European time) I saw that my status had changed to "decision made". However the results are only sent out via mail so that's five or so days before it gets here - I emailed the dept. asking them to reveal my result since I have to respond to non-North American schools before or just when the letter will arrive here. Let's see if they can oblige...

Haven't decided just yet, but if I go there I'll be studying for a DPhil in statistics and belong to St. Catz college (if I'm not moved, I don't know how that goes).

I am in a sort of similar situation myself and I must say that things like this makes you not enjoy getting into that top program as much as you would want to/should. With that said, I definitely don't think that you're being selfish. If you've already done long distance and it seems to work for you, then by all means go for that top program and kick *** at it. Think about the possibilities that it will give the two of you in the future. Now if I can only apply this logic to my own situation I should be fine (the old saying "easier said than done" has never been this true). Good luck to you

Even though I can't answer your questions, I was wondering what school(s) in Sweden you had in mind and what particular subjects you would want to study? It's always nice to see some interest in your home country

I never saw the re-written "guide" for applicants, I could have sworn that the subject test at least used to be mandatory since this was actually one of the reasons I did not apply to U.Chicago...Oh this hurts a little, I would definitely have thrown in an applications otherwise. And here I tell people how important it is to really research the departments you are considering . Congrats on Iowa, that's really nice. I haven't made a final decision yet. Oxford is indeed tempting but we'll see, I am waiting for their funding decisions and that is of course a quite crucial part of the offer. I'm also going to talk some more to the inteded supervisor to see how well my interests/aims coincide with what he wants to do.

Thanks. I'll definitely turn some offers down before April 15 so that others can take my place. Unfortunately this probably won't help you - UNC is one of my absolute top choices and until I get all the info I need regarding my significant others visa status I won't be able to make a decision. If everything turns out well it is a high probability that I'll accept that offer actually. In that case, hopefully we'll be able to meet in CH next fall. Best of luck to you - if I do not get the news I want I'll of course let the dept. know ASAP and hopefully that can help you.

No problem. I have tried to be consistent when it comes to really looking at the research and course work available at each institution that I've considered before choosing to apply/enroll there. It is sometimes very easy to be blinded by a very good name or rankings and forget to really think about how well the particular school/program will suit your interests and goals. I left out several highly ranked/famous universities that I first thought that I would apply to because I felt that they didn't coincide with my "needs". With that said, most "top" universities of course can appeal to a very broad group of students and will offer you an excellent education. Thank you. I am having a really hard time choosing and am trying to decide which of the many topics that I am interested in that I would want to study for 4-5 years. Oxford is certainly a good candidate, but having spent time at UNC and knowing the faculty there I seriously considering going there. It's a good thing there is still some time until April 15

Although I am in general a person who is very fond of Stanford's program, I think I would really think twice before turning down Iowa. One question that I would at least consider is what type of industry you want to work in - the term industry isn't exactly precise. I would the look at Stanford's program and see what classes are mandatory and what possible electives there are, perhaps you will be able to take only one class that is very close to the particular field that you want to work in or perhaps the entire program fits perfectly into what you want to do... Remember that Iowa is still a top program and going there wouldn't be a "step down" IMO. Also, aren't rankings (since this is a big pro for Stanford here, I tend to try and disregard rankings in general) generally done for the PhD programs? Yes the MS program should also be very good of course but my impression is that Stanford is great for very theoretical studies of probability and mathematical statistics and if that is what makes the program #1 this should perhaps be considered...I don't know, just my thoughts. Anyways, just make sure that Stanford at least gives you some edge if you choose to go there because even though it's no problem, you will still be out 100k and will have to pay this back with what you earn...BTW congrats on the admits, you do have a rather pleasant dilemma

Forgot about this thread. I'm the international (at least if there is only one that have posted results) admitted to the stats dept. My impression is that they are still looking at applications and deciding, but perhaps bumath has more knowledge than I do (just extrapolating from what they've stated in emails). Might visit there soon - a little tricky since I'm in Europe right now - and will try to make a decision as quickly as possible. Any insights regarding the city of Boston or the dept. in general? If I don't visit I'll talk with some of the professors on the phone and I'll try to gain some knowledge regarding number of students they plan to admit etc. for the different programs and then post what I learn here. Good luck everyone!