Hey guys, I need some of your help. I was planning to apply for a PhD programs in Statistics, but you will see my major drawback below:
Undergrad: international no-name university but the best in my country
Majors: Math
Minors: Econ
GPA: 3.45, Major GPA: 3.81
Type of Student: International male
GRE General Test: 169 Q (96%), 162 V (88%), 3.5W GRE Subject Test in Mathematics: None
TOEFL: 108
Programs Applying: Statistics (Ms/PhD)
Research Experience: Currently I am working on my capstone project which is mainly about numerical methods and working on another paper on finite elements (hopefully submit for publishing by the end of the year). In addition, last year I had some research experience in studying matrix factorization in NLP with one of my prof but did not results in paper.
Research interest: Nothing specific
Letters of Recommendation: I am thinking about three professors: one I am doing capstone project with (I think he is pretty well known in some research group), one I have studied NLP with and the last one taught me 3 advanced math classes (got 3 A's).
Math/Statistics Grades: Calc II A-, Linear Algebra A, Intro to Proofs B+, Applied Stat methods A, Diff Eqs B+, Real Analysis I A, Graph Theory A, Numerical Methods A-, Probability A, Regression Analysis B+, Actuarial Math I A-, Stochastic Processes A, Stochastic Calculus A, Nonlinear Diff Eqs A-, Nonlinear Optimization A, Design of Experiments A-, Math Stat B+.
Any Miscellaneous Points that Might Help: this semester taking 2 graduate level classes (one in statistics and one in applied mathematics).
As you see my cumulative GPA is a disaster. In a freshman year I had some issues and eventually got 2.7 as my first year GPA, then I changed my major into math and the average GPA for the last two years was something about 3.75. I wonder if you can give an advice on whether should I try directly apply for a PhD or first do Ms in Stats? I will be also grateful if you can help me in composing list of universities: should I aim only top 20-30 or give a try for top 10?
Thank you guys!