Biostat_Assistant_Prof

I think real analysis and advanced calculus are essentially the same thing... With that said, take Advanced Calc and Linear Algebra before all other math courses... 3.62 is not as low as you think, but by all means work on improving it, as you will definitely increase your chances at top programs.

Based off of the way you describe each scenario, It sounds like Duke is the best option because there seems to be the most faculty with whom you are interested in working with, that coupled with the higher ranking leads me to suggest you go with your instinct here and choose Duke...

I emailed the director of graduate admissions last week and he got back to me within an hour.

I'm planning on getting one. I have a desktop for my games, videos, and music collection (which consists of >300gb of data alone) and plan on getting the13in MB Air primarily for school use and travel (and a small subset of my music library). I'll probably wait until August before buying it, because knowing Apple, new ones will be out sometime this summer (and rumors suggest a better screen).. As for HD space, 128gb should be fine if you use it for papers and school work, along with just a little music... I plan on getting a 256gb though, just to be sure I have enough space.

For me it was - Research focus/interest - Funding - Feel/Fit with department - Feel/Fit within University as a whole - Location - Rank/Prestige

Remember, all the posts on this website indicating acceptances are only making up a small sample of all applicants. On top of that, think about the type of person who would frequent this forum, looking for and posting results -- this type of person is probably pretty obsessive/focused in all parts of their life. Because of this, I'd bet that it's likely the people that post here have higher credentials than the average (meaning they probably hear decisions first)..... I have about 5 other friends applying to graduate school this year and none of them ever come on here. Chill, it isn't over until its official

I'd like to add. I had a comparable application this year to you: domestic student, 3.55 GPA (Biology major), lack of math classes (that I was currently taking and signed up to take), and a tad lower GRE scores (158V, 162Q)..... I definitely think it hurt me not actually having calc II or linear algebra on my record for the applications I sent in before grades in those classes were official, as well as having only signed up for Calc III in the spring.... I'm saying this only because you mention you won't have Calc II until winter (when apps will be due again)..... The one advantage you have is an already completed MS, however, I've heard that MS's don't really help your admission chances unless they were from one of the top place, and it doesn't sound like yours is..... Because of all this, I would honestly take the Pitt offer if I were in your shoe because for me, the pros outweigh the cons. As for advisor, in a field like Biostats, I don't think it's necessarily important for you to nail down one single individuals with whom you'd like to work, but rather a couple different groups of people working on something you find interesting and make sure some of the faculty within that group will be able to mentor you (Ex. For me, I have an idea of 5-6 faculty members I'd like to have as an advisor, but won't decide until after the first year of coursework when Im completely sure what I want to further specialize in)

I'd agree, Emory is usually consided to be right around 8-10 in the ranks... However, as Biostat_prof advocates, rankings don't matter nearly as much as your mentor/advisor and the work you do while in the program, especially when you start getting out of the top 3 or 4 schools... Also, I believe the rankings are created based off of the overall quality of faculty research/publications and grad student placement after graduation... Because of this, higher ranked programs will typically provide more opportunities for students to succeed (becausd of the connections they have to quality research opportunities) but attending a lower ranked program doesn't condemn your academic career because it ultimately depends on how well you perform.

I'm sure it differs from program to program, but the way I see it is if you manage to get an interview, your fate is in your own hands because you control how your interview goes!

Aside from the basics and obvious (clothes, computer, flatware, toothbrush, etc.), my top 5 things would be: - Coffee Maker (for me it's a French press and burr grinder) - Tablet/E-reader - High quality speakers/headphones for relaxing to music - Crockpot (makes cooking good food really easy) - Eno hammock (find a park, hang it up and enjoy relaxing outdoors!)

I'm beginning my PhD program in the fall and have no objections to dating fellow grad students. In fact, I'd quite enjoy an intelligent woman with similar goals (I.e. pursuing a PhD)... However, I will not date within my department, especially being that my department is so small (~20 students, 5-6 in my cohort). Sure it's possible everything could work out ok, but I'm not taking that chance. If things ended on bad terms, I'd have to continue to see that person on a daily basis and that would not be fun.

Just thought I'd mention this, the USNR rankings we last updated in 2010... So it's possible things have changed a good bit in the past three years in terms of schools making a name for them-self (just a guess though).

I agree, but its limited to 3 questions and 20 choices per question on these forums, so I'm already at the maximum survey length.

Yes it is, it's 122

If you don't have interest in biostatistics, then I don't think it would be a good idea to attend a biostatistics program, even at a world renowned brand name place like Yale (who's Biostat department in particular isn't ranked all that high to begin with). If I were you and not interested in being constrained to biomedical research, then I'd consider offers from all the statistics programs before any biostatistics offers.

I'm interested to see what the experts on here have to say (the few faculty members that frequently comment)... But if I were to guess, I'd think that positions in academia will become harder to obtain in years to come, but positions in academia will still be available for most graduates.

FIXED IT!

So I was interested in going more in depth with cost of living and field of study. New poll found here

So, I made a poll yesterday (http://forum.thegradcafe.com/topic/41619-what-is-your-stipend-and-how-do-you-make-it-work/) inquiring about the average stipend per person.... I'd like to go a little more in depth now, taking into account field of study and cost of living in your city. First, the field of study is broken down into 3 categories (from academic discipline descriptions on wikipedia: 1) Humanities/Arts: History, Linguistics, Literature, Performing arts, Philosophy, Religion, Visual Arts 2) Social Sciences: Anthropology, Archaeology, Cultural/Ethnic studies, Economics, Geography, Political Science, Psychology, Sociology 3) Science/Math/Tech/Engineering: Astronomy, Earth Sciences, Life Sciences, Chemistry, Physics, Computer Science, Math, Statistics, Engineering Next, Under each of the three academic disciplines, there are options to choose your stipend range based off of the Cost of Living Index found HERE--> http://www.infoplease.com/business/economy/cost-living-index-us-cities.html .... Please click this link and find whatever city you are in (it looks like most cities containing major universities are on the list) and look at the first column labeled, "100% Composite Index" ... Select your answer based off of the number in the composite index for your city. I have broken this down into 4 choices: - <100 - 100-114 - 115-130 - >130 This is the most in depth I can make a survey on these forums, given the 3 question, 20 choice maximum. Because you have to answer every question, I had to modify the first category of <$15K for each Field of Study.... Please answer correctly for your Field and then select the first option "Mark this if you're not in this field" for the other two!

If the polls on here could be more in depth, I'd like to divide answers by region first (Northeast, Southeast, Midwest, Southwest, and West) and then by broad field of study (Humanities/Arts, Social Sciences, and Sciences/Technology/Engineering)

I was thinking before before taxes, like what did the school quote you when you first heard word of your funding.

I'm generally curious about what the average stipend received is... Feel free to comment including your area of study, the reason for stipend (RA, TA, fellowship, etc.), how much you spend (on things like rent, food, etc.), how much you save, and/or region and cost of living.

Ultimately, this is a decision you need to make for yourself and do what is best for your career goals. With that said, I'll still weigh in because you asked.... I've been put in a similar situation this year. I wasn't admitted to the higher ranked departments I applied to (UW Seattle, Minnesota, Emory, Brown), I'm still waiting on UNC (but things aren't looking good this late in the game, especially for a funded offer, so I'm assuming a rejection). So, I've been left with choosing between an unfunded Michigan MS/PhD fast track, a funded PhD offer to a departments outside the top three tiers, or postponing a year.... Unless by some miracle I manage to get a funded offer at UNC in this last month, I'm choosing the funded PhD offer at a lower ranked department (I would guess to be around the ranks of Pitt). The reason for my choice are based on these things: - I don't see next year getting easier. If anything, it'll get harder... Last year, I followed the application process pretty closely, taking note of where applicants were accepted given their credentials, all to get an idea of where to apply this year. Well, this year has been more competitive than last, and based off observations from 2011, 2010, and 2009 submissions on this forum, the trend seems to indicate next year will get even harder... I doubt my luck would be much better next year. - My interests are very applied and I don't have any goals to get an academic position at a top tier university (I'm interested in an industry position in Pharmaceuticals), so while I wouldn't turn down a top ranked school, ranking matters less to me and I think I'll be fine at a lower ranked program.... So ask yourself, do your career goals require a degree from a top ranked place? - Stemming from my last point, I'll take the lower ranked funded PhD offer vs unfunded UMich offer because I can't rationalize the $80k+ in debt for the higher ranked program..... So ask yourself, what is the best decision to make financially? Is it worth taking the time and money to apply again next year just hoping for better offers, or is it better to accept an already funded offer for next year? - Lastly, and this is one of the biggest, is that when I visited the department I'll probably attend, I really felt like I would fit well there. It is smaller than most, but there are a lot of faculty working in clinical trials, which is what I'm interested in most. I looked at the placement of recent graduates and I'm happy with what I saw..... So, I'd advise visiting Pitt and seeing how you fit. Like I did, you may find that you click with the department and will be happy there, or on the contrary, may find you don't like it there and want to wait... Anyways, good luck to you.

Rest made the biggest difference between the first and second time I took it. Admittedly, I didn't really study all that much either time except for 15ish hours of quant just before the exam... The difference between the times was the first time, I tried cramming with nonstop studying the couple days before the exam (all day Friday and Saturday before taking it on Sunday). I freaked myself out and performed poorly... I took it a second time literally 31 days later. I was confident I knew the material but just freaked myself out, so this time I studied about 15ish hours worth (a couple hours each day for about 10 days to 3 days leading up to the exam), again, only quant, no verbal or writing. I then took off all day Thursday, Friday and Saturday before taking it on Sunday. In fact, I was hungover all day Saturday (probably not recommended). Regardless, my scores improved from 153q/151v to 162q/158v, writing scored 4.0 both times.... I made >30%ile jumps in improvement in literally one month without changing my minimal way of studying, the only difference was the rest before the exam.... Take rest, it makes a giant difference in terms of performance

I'm super excited to find a place, move and get settled in, especially the first couple weeks to explore my new city before orientation and classes officially start..... But I still need to figure out how to come up with the first couple months rent because I won't get my first check until mid September, as well as money to buy a new laptop and some furniture.