Hi everyone! I just wanted to post my stats and figure how I stack up!
Student Classification: Domestic White LGBT Male
Undergrad: R1 Large state school, US News top 150
Major: Statistics
Minors: Math, Economics
GPA: 4.00
Relevant Coursework: (All A, no A+ system)
Math Coursework: Calc I-III, Diff Eq, Linear Alg, Mathematical Modeling(has some analysis)
Statistics Coursework: Stat Methods I-III, Stat Theory/Probability I-II, Statistical Computing, (the following are 4000 level electives): Biostat methods, Sampling Methods, Categorical Data Analysis, Bayesian Analysis
Computer Science Coursework: Intro to Programming, Numerical Calculus, Security Methods for Computing
Economics Coursework: Intermediate Microeconomics, Intermediate Macroeconomics, Econometrics I
Real Analysis is not offered at my school until the graduate level, I don't know if that is common but I worry that my coursework is a bit weak/too general considering the programs I'm interested in.
Research Experience:
2 years of undergraduate research in machine learning, using Bayesian statistics and estimators. (2 first author publications)
2 Semesters of independent school-funded research in IEMS (poster presentation at conference)
1 Semester of research in data science with professor
1 REU in data analytics
GRE General Test: 166Q, 160V, 5.0W
Awards: Nothing except purely academic, i.e. Summa Cum Laude, Top Dean's list every semester, etc.
LOR's: 1 Super strong, 1 Strong, 1 Average (Based on general estimation.) In order:
From relatively well-known IEMS professor I did my two years of research with.
From REU I did over a summer.
From professor I did my one semester of research in data science with.
Applying to: Statistics PhD. Also would be willing to apply to Statistics MS if it would better prepare me for PhD coursework. Honestly, I'm a bit unsure of what I want to specialize in as far as research goes. I enjoy machine learning/optimization, econometrics, and statistical computing. I'm not a fan of biostatistics, so that helps me narrow it down.
Schools: CMU(Machine Learning + Statistics), UChicago(Econometrics + Statistics), Berkeley, Duke, UNC Chapel Hill, UPenn
Thoughts:
I think that my coursework is my weakest area, and my research is my strongest area. I'm very open to hearing about other schools that would also fit my interests. CMU is definitely my top choice right now, because I have the most experience in this area of research and their program really interests me. The rest are mostly thrown together through light research and recommendations from professors. Any guidance/advice/evaluations would be super appreciated!