UniformlyDivergent

Congrats! Good things come to those who wait. ?

A lot of this is going to depended on what state your school(s) are in too. From what I understand, universities in the states of California, Oregon, Washington, and New York are most restricted, but much of the rest of the country is attempting to at least remain open in a hybrid setup. In the US, a lot of those rules have been set at the state level, so it will really depend on that. Further, different univeristy systems will have their own rules. I know the UC system schools have opted to remain at distance for Fall 2020 and Spring 2021. There's a good chance they will continue to do so unless something drastically changes. If I'm mistaken on any part of this, please correct me, but this seems to be the case from what I've seen so far. I live in the US, for what it's worth.

Hey guys, I'm thinking about trying to form a couple of small study groups in preparation for the math PhD/Masters programs many of us will be starting in Fall (2021). Personally, I'm choosing to focus on Algebra and Geometry/Topology. I'm hoping to get a group of 4-5 individuals together, pick a book we all want to read/review, and work together on the exercises. Below are some suggestions I'm considering: Topology (Munkres) Algebraic Topology (Hatcher) Intro to Algebra (Gallian) Commutative Algebra (Atiyah/MacDonnald) Homological Algebra (Rotman) I'm open to others as well. If anyone is interested, hit me up, or let me know what you think in the thread. Good luck out there. -UD

For pure/applied math, definitely not acceptable. This was instilled in us as undegraduates doing research. Wait to be accepted/rejected, than try elsewhere.

Reporting in for Mathematics PhD. I'm waiting on a couple of other offers/rejections, but I've got a feeling this is my school. So... Roll call!

Welcome to Atlanta (I live here, for now)! My former Supervisor as a math tutor is now a MD student at Mercer. Congrats on your acceptance! I'm not an expert on the school, but if there's anything I can tell you about the area, let me know!

All good suggestions above. I'll only add a few recommendations. 1) Start applying for 3rd-party fellowships/grants EARLY. The deadlines for a lot of these are ahead of the application deadlines for some schools (no, I don't know why). You're in a STEM field, so definitely go after the DoD/DoE grants like the GRFP. Better yet, start compiling a list of grants you want to apply for. UCLA has a database called GRAPES that keeps tabs on fellowships for grad students. Link here: https://grad.ucla.edu/funding/#/ 2) The SoP is a SOB. It's also likely the single most important aspect of your apps, excepting you LoRs. If you have a high GPA, good courses under your belt, research, etc. that's fantastic. A lot of other people do to, but you can really set yourself apart in you Statement. Start writing that early. Do many revisions. Get other people to read it and make edits. Take your drafts to a writing/career center. Cal Berkeley has a really good guide for writing a rock-solid Statement of Purpose, link here: https://grad.berkeley.edu/admissions/apply/statement-purpose/ Speaking of Berkeley, the UC schools have an additonal essay you're supposed to write. It's called a "Personal History Statement" (or similar), and it's different from the SoP. This was easily the hardest essay I've had to write, so if you're looking west, plan on spending some time on this one too. 3) Lastly, application costs are expensive. If you've done an REU with a particular school, or if you're in a recognized national program/fellowship like Fullbright or TRiO, chances are you might be able to wave the fee. Definitely look into that, because otherwise it's pretty steep. Hope this helps. -UD

YMMV, but in the case of at least one school on my list, I got accepted and had to wait about three more weeks before a funding offer came through. I'm not sure how common that is, but it's not out of the question. Depending on when the deadline is, it might be worth while to simply ask (politely, of course). If it's a recent acceptance, I would wait, but if it's been more than a month, I would email your adviser and ask if funding offers have been dissemenated already. Good luck. I hope you get it.

So, I'm learning this all myself for the first time too. Regarding the April 15th rule, this is a standard agreed upon by an orginization called "The Council of Graduate Schools" (ominous) in a resolution entitled "Resolution Regarding Graduate Scholars, Fellows, Trainees and Assistants". Basically, any university within the agreement promises to set the deadline no earlier than April 15th, for the very reasons that you're describing. A comprehensive list (at time of writing) of said schools is below. Regarding your specific predicament, I would consider e-mailing the March 15th school and informing them of your situation. If they aren't giving you any mercy, consider reaching out to the other schools on your list and asking if you are accepted, explaining that you are running up against a deadline with a standing offer. If that doesn't yield anything, ask yourself if there is any other school you would rather go to other than the one you in question. List of CGS member schools (all April 15th deadlines or later): Abilene Christian University Air Force Institute of Technology Alcorn State University Alfred University American University Andrews University Angelo State University Appalachian State University Arizona State University Arkansas State University Auburn University Austin Peay State University Ball State University Baylor College of Medicine Baylor University Bloomsburg University of Penn. Boise State University Boston College Boston University Bowling Green State University Bradley University Brandeis University Brown University Bryn Mawr College Caldwell College California Institute of Technology California State Polytechnic University, Pomona California State University, Bakersfield California State University, Fresno California State University, Fullerton California State University, Hayward California State University, Long Beach California State University, Los Angeles California State University, Northridge California State University, Sacramento California State University, Stanislaus California University of Pennsylvania Case Western Reserve University Catholic University of America Central Michigan University Central Missouri State University Central Washington University City University of New York Graduate Center Claremont Graduate University Clark Atlanta University Clark University Clemson University Cleveland State University College of Charleston College of New Jersey College of Saint Rose College of William and Mary Colorado School of Mines Columbia University Concordia University, River Forest Coppin State College Cornell University Creighton University Dartmouth College Drew University Drexel University Duke University Duquesne University East Carolina University East Central University East Tennessee State University Eastern Illinois University Eastern Kentucky University Eastern Michigan University Eastern Washington University Emerson College Emory University Emporia State University Fayetteville State University Fairmont State University Fielding Graduate Institute Fitchburg State College Florida A & M University Florida Atlantic University Florida International University Florida State University Fordham University Fort Hays State University Gallaudet University George Mason University George Washington University Georgetown University Georgia Institute of Technology Georgia Southern University Georgia State University Hampton University Harvard University Hebrew Union College - Jewish Institute of Religion High Point University Hofstra University Hood College Howard University Idaho State University Illinois Institute of Technology Illinois State University Indiana State University Indiana University Indiana University - Purdue University Fort Wayne Indiana University of Pennsylvania Iowa State University Jackson State University James Madison University John Carroll University Johns Hopkins University Kansas State University Kent State University Lamar University Langston University Lehigh University Lipscomb University Loma Linda University Louisiana State University and A & M College Louisiana State University Health Sciences Center Loyola Marymount University Loyola University of Chicago Marquette University Marshall University Marywood University Massachusetts Institute of Technology Medical College of Georgia Medical College of Ohio Medical College of Wisconsin Medical University of South Carolina Miami University Michigan State University Michigan Technological University Middle Tennessee State University Minnesota State University - Mankato Mississippi State University Missouri State University Montana State University - Bozeman Montclair State University Mount Mary College Murray State University National University Naval Postgraduate School New Jersey Institute of Technology New Mexico State University New York Medical College New York University North Carolina Agricultural & Technical State University North Carolina State University at Raleigh North Dakota State University Northeastern Illinois University Northern Arizona University Northern Illinois University Northern Michigan University Northwestern State University of Louisiana Northwestern University Nova Southeastern University Oakland University Ohio University Ohio State University Oklahoma State University Old Dominion University Oregon State University Park University Pennsylvania State University Pepperdine University Pittsburg State University Polytechnic University Princeton University Purdue University Queens College of the City University of New York Radford University Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute Rice University Rockefeller University Rockhurst University Rosalind Franklin University of Medicine and Science Rowan University Rutgers - New Brunswick Rutgers - Newark St. Bonaventure University St. Cloud State University St. John's University Saint Louis University San Diego State University San Francisco State University San Jose State University Santa Clara University Shippensburg University South Carolina State University South Dakota School of Mines & Technology South Dakota State University Southeast Missouri State University Southern Illinois University at Carbondale Southern Illinois University at Edwardsville Southern Methodist University Southern University A&M College Spalding University Stanford University State University of New York at Binghamton State University of New York – Upstate Medical University State University of New York at Stony Brook Syracuse University Temple University Tennessee State University Tennessee Technological University Texas A & M International University Texas A & M University Texas A & M University - Corpus Christi Texas Christian University Texas Southern University Texas State University, San Marcos Texas Tech University Texas Woman's University Towson University Trinity University Truman State University Tufts University Tulane University University at Buffalo, State University of New York University of Akron University of Alabama University of Alabama at Birmingham University of Alabama in Huntsville University of Alaska, Fairbanks University of Albany, State University of New York University of Arizona University of Arkansas University of Bridgeport University of California, Berkeley University of California, Davis University of California, Irvine University of California, Los Angeles University of California, Riverside University of California, San Diego University of California, San Francisco University of California, Santa Barbara University of California, Santa Cruz University of Central Arkansas University of Central Florida University of Chicago University of Cincinnati University of Colorado at Boulder University of Colorado at Denver University of Connecticut University of Dayton University of Delaware University of Denver University of the District of Columbia University of Florida University of Georgia University of Hartford University of Hawaii at Manoa University of Houston University of Idaho University of Illinois at Chicago University of Illinois at Springfield University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign University of Iowa University of Kansas University of Kentucky University of Louisiana at Lafayette University of Louisville University of Maine University of Maryland, Baltimore County University of Maryland, College Park University of Massachusetts Amherst University of Massachusetts Boston University of Massachusetts Lowell The University of Memphis University of Miami University of Michigan University of Minnesota University of Mississippi University of Missouri, Columbia University of Missouri, Kansas City University of Missouri, St. Louis University of Montana University of Nebraska-Kearney University of Nebraska-Lincoln University of Nebraska-Omaha University of Nevada-Las Vegas University of Nevada-Reno University of New Hampshire University of New Haven University of New Mexico University of New Orleans University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill University of North Carolina at Charlotte University of North Carolina at Greensboro University of North Dakota University of North Texas University of North Texas Health Science Center - Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences University of Northern Colorado University of Northern Iowa University of Notre Dame University of Oklahoma University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center University of Oregon University of Pennsylvania University of Pittsburgh University of Puerto Rico - Rio Piedras Campus University of Rhode Island University of Rochester University of San Diego University of Scranton University of South Alabama University of South Carolina University of South Florida University of Southern California University of Southern Mississippi University of Tennessee at Chattanooga University of Tennessee at Knoxville University of Texas at Arlington University of Texas at Austin University of Texas at Brownsville University of Texas at Dallas University of Texas at San Antonio University of Texas Graduate School of Biomedical Science at Galveston University of Texas Grad School of Biomedical Science at Houston University of Texas Grad School of Biomedical Science at San Antonio University of the Pacific University of Toledo University of Tulsa University of Utah University of Vermont University of Virginia University of Washington University of Wisconsin – Eau Claire University of Wisconsin – La Crosse University of Wisconsin – Madison University of Wisconsin – Milwaukee University of Wyoming Utah State University Valdosta State University Vanderbilt University Villanova University Virginia Commonwealth University Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University Wake Forest University Walden University Washington State University Washington University in St. Louis Wayne State College Wayne State University Wesleyan University West Chester University West Virginia University West Virginia Wesleyan College Western Carolina University Western Illinois University Western Kentucky University Western Michigan University Western Washington University Wichita State University Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution Worcester Polytechnic Institute Wright State University Xavier University of Louisiana Yale University

Mathematics department sent me a decision today for the PhD program. Totally different department, but for what it's worth. Good luck to you.

I'm lucky enough to have two have two standing offers for Arizona State University and the University of California, Riverside. Both of these are for a PhD in Pure Math, and both of these funding offers are roughly equivalent. The UCR offer is a bit more generous, but with the elevated cost of living in Riverside compared to Tempe, I'm calling it a draw. There are professors at both schools that I like in similar areas. I'm basically trying to get into Quantum Computing theory by way of low-dimensional Topology and/or Quantum Algebras. UCR has a few notable knot theorists, and ASU has some strong mathematicians in Graph/Tessalation/Lattice theory. Basically, I'm at a draw with these two, and I feel like the rest really comes down to culture fit. To anyone who has experience with one or both of these schools, what are your opinions? Specifically, what is life like in Tempe/Riverside, what are the math communities like, etc. Any feedback would be helpful.

May somebody correct me on this, but I think the general rule is that schools give you until April 15th. I know that most of the major schools have agreeded on that. It seems to me that if a school is pressuring you to make a decision way before any of the other schools are in (and it's still very early), that might be a "redflag" for you. But that may just be my thinking.

Dude, you're a lifesaver. I got a similar offer from UCR (pure math) and I was trying to break down what the actual offer was. Thanks for the clarity!

A little outside my area of expertise, but I know UIUC has both a really strong math department and physics department, which is often a good sign for their engineering school (though there are exceptions). I don't know anything about MichiganTech, so won't speak to that. Clemson University has a pretty solid chemistry department at the grad level (undergrad appears to be different). I've also heard really positive things about their engineering school in general. They're competing with Georgia Tech, if that's any indicator. I do know in general that ME graduates are having a lot of trouble finding work across the board compared to EE and SE folks. Again, my area is more in the theory, but I would recommend finding something to compliment your ME degree to help your job prospects. Perhaps a second language, or some other additional skill. -UD

Yes, but 12 seems to be (from what I've seen) the upper bound of what grad schools expect students to take. Honestly, 4 grad classes in a term seems like academic suicide. It seems to be closer to 3 (9 Semester Credits). Some are even less for full-time status if you have a TA position, eg. ASU only requires it's TA's to take 6 credits to stay full-time. Disclaimer: All my experience is STEM based. Your milage may vary. -UD