abacadabra12

Anybody know anything about the Wisconsin stat department? The MS program, in particular? From the alumni lists on their website, it looks like maybe 35-50% of people who finish the MS will go on to finish the PhD.

That's also what I concluded from reading old posts on this forum. Seems like maybe statfan has a different opinion, though? I'll to apply to some places where I don't think I'll get in. Maybe there's enough entropy in the decision-making process among schools for me to get lucky here and there. Or maybe there isn't, and I'll get to see that for myself. Nice username, by the way. I like to think that the tricorders were running MCMCs.

Thanks for the advice. If that's the biggest problem, then that's very reassuring. I could just retake the analysis sequence. No need to sink two years and $100k into a new degree.

Hi all, My profile has some good aspects and some not-so-good aspects, and therefore I'm not sure what to expect with my applications. Maybe you can help me figure out which programs are a good fit. I know the answer will probably include a little "don't get your hopes up too much", and that's okay. Undergrad Institution: Top 10 US, known for grade deflation Major(s): Econ Minor(s): GPA: 3.4 Type of Student: Domestic white male GRE General Test: Q: 170 (97%) V: 170 (99%) W: 5.5 (98%) GRE Subject Test in Mathematics: M: didn't take Grad Institution: Less-well-known professional school at well-known quant-y university Concentration: Social-science-y yet quant-y GPA: 3.4 Programs Applying: Mostly masters' programs in stats, beginning autumn 2018, and probably a couple masters' programs in math Research Experience: I do research at my job, but no publications. Awards/Honors/Recognitions: Mostly just grade-related. Pertinent Activities or Jobs: Lots of statistic-y jobs. Letters of Recommendation: From bosses and colleagues, who will say very nice things about me, but aren't academics themselves. Any Miscellaneous Points that Might Help: Math/stat classes include Real Analysis 1 and 2 (B, C+), Econometrics (A-), Mathematical Statistics (A), Linear Algebra (A). My grades went up (during undergrad), down (first year of master's), and up (second year of master's). I've been reading Baby Rudin, I plan to retake real analysis at a prestigious university this spring, and I expect to do well. I will try to make the case that I have become good at proof-based math now that I've made it a priority, even though I wasn't so good in undergrad. Applying to Where: You tell me. My bet is that the non-elite masters' programs will accept me, because I have the minimum math classes, I have solid test scores, I have solid grades in less-rigorous math/stat classes, and I've already made it through a master's. I also bet that the elite masters' will not accept me, because I haven't gone beyond real analysis, my grades in real analysis were bad, and my GPA is just okay. For example, suppose I applied to masters' programs in statistics at: Baylor Chicago Columbia Duke Ohio State University of Iowa Virginia Tech Who do you think would let me in? Who do you think wouldn't? How come?

I analyze data for a living, and I would like to do a PhD in statistics. However, my undergraduate math background isn't ideal. I'm thinking about doing a master's in statistics, on the grounds that it might help prepare me for a PhD, and, if not, would still be a very good terminal degree. On the other hand, if my undergrad math background is really the biggest thing standing in my way, then maybe a master's degree in math would be a shorter, cheaper, and more direct way to improve my profile. On the third hand, if I ended up stopping with the master's and not doing the PhD, maybe employers wouldn't like the math master's as much as the stat master's. Which path is better? Is my diagnosis of the pros and cons of each accurate? Is there a third path that I haven't considered? I posted my profile below, but I think that maybe this question goes beyond any one profile: what's a reasonable path to a stat PhD if you're starting from a weak math background? --- Undergrad: UChicago, BA in econ/policy, 3.4 GPA Grad: UChicago, master's in policy, 3.4 GPA GRE general: 170V, 170Q, 5.5W Highest math/stat classes: Analysis in Rn 1 and 2 (B, C+), Linear Algebra (A), Mathematical Statistics for Policy (A) Research experience: All my job titles have had "research" or "development" in them, and I'm pretty good at thinking of hypotheses and testing them, but I have no publications. Letters of rec: Two from former supervisors, one from a colleague. None have PhDs. Computer: Fluent in R and Stata, pretty good at Python, know a little C#, generally able to find my way a new language pretty quick. I expect that my lack of publications and academic recommendations will work against me. I also suspect that a master's in stats would be equally useful in dealing with this as a master's in math, but I'm not sure. I self-study math in my spare time (using Baby Rudin, among others), and I recently went back and audited Analysis in Rn-1 and did well, so I'm not worried about my ability to do well in any future math classes.