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mathgeek282

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  1. I don't really know so much about programming skills for what you want to do. I got into MITs EECS area 2 (AI) and I have only had an intro CS course. I had tons of math and stat courses though and a few research experiences that required programming. But all that is to say that I think AI is actually a field where math background is more important than a formal programming background...just my two cents. Good luck!
  2. While I think you'll get into a few, your list is a bit top heavy and I would add a few more safeties just to make sure you don't miss out. Your recommendations will matter a lot (esp for top schools...)
  3. That does seem like a nice spread. What level of math did you reach? If you are set on going to a top school u might want to go for the masters. It seems that the only real thing you lack might be math classes. Although i don't know if it will be worth the money. I think if those are all phD you have a good shot of getting into quite a few. Good luck!
  4. Yes it's pretty bad. I had a B- in a freshman year math course but then took more advanced classes later on and got A's so I think depends on how much math you are planning to take/where you are in you academic career/what your other grades are. I don't know I would retake the course. Maybe you could try and master that material independently and take more advanced courses. If you could do that without getting way over your head that would be good...
  5. My friend did a post- bacc in math so it definitely exists...
  6. That will depend on which other math classes you have taken and which grades you got. It also depends when you took the accounting class. I doubt it will matter that much if you got an A in real analysis and took the class freshman or sophomore year... Have you taken real analysis or other similar rigorous math classes?
  7. so Pauli im sorry but that is wrong. wine in coffee cups is completely right...the entire package matters, but GPA matters quite a bit and is not merely a cut off. and if you think about it makes sense. You spent an entire 5 months studying this one subject so your grade is a strong indicator of your mastery of the material. Other things that will matter a whole lot is letters (and who they are from) and your statement (although not as much)... I would take the math GRE if i were you (if you are keen in top 5 schools like Stanford, Berk, Harvard etc.)...
  8. Your gpa is weighted by the strength of your ug institution as well as rigor of math classes. Your recs will also matter a lot as stated above.
  9. ANDS while i agree with you about sports being important and there being professors who are interested in it, i also think wine in coffee cups is right insofar as i think that in your statement of purpose you might want to generalize and say you interested in the social sciences, with particular interest in sports and how you experiences with sports (in particular the statistical element of it) is what has excited you and let you know that statistics is what you want to pursue. That is, i dont think you statement of purpose should be too sports oriented (definitely mention it as a passion but dont say its your sole interest....) Thats just my read. I can see how it could come off to some universities as someone who doesn't exactly know what they are getting themselves into with a statistics phD. So just make sure you are careful when writing your statement of purpose. Those and recommendations are very important. Good luck
  10. If I were you I would not graduate early and take an extra year of math classes... That will strengthen your app. It is well known that masters classes are notorious for being grade inflated so I don't think it's entirely equal. If u do well in your last year you might be able to bipass the masters and actually save money... I don't know what kind of program you are looking to get into, but you are going to need more math to get into most programs
  11. And let me add, that i meant all this for the field you are in. I.e theory at princeton, NLP at Columbia etc.There are certainly great professors at non-top schools that you should take over a top school, but unless you are working for one of them, it is better to go to the school with better faculty and students.
  12. So this is just not true. I dont mean to be a jerk about it, but i just dont think youre right (and this is from several years working with a professor at MIT). And i am strictly talking about academia because you are perhaps right about industry positions although i dont know much about it. While i concede what you do in grad schools is far more important, and some of the other factors are very important as well, a lot of at least top faculty positions are going to be hard to get not coming from a top school. As jjsakurai pointed out, the caliber of student and even faculty are going to be higher at top places and will increase the quality of your collaborations, publications and just overall training. Like i said, having a well known good professor at a top school is going to be paramount in where you end up (of course barring as you said the student actually performs well). So while you are right that nothing can make up for a good performance in grad school, the stark reality is that unless you are a rockstar at your university, ending up with a faculty position at a top school is going to be hard if you did not coming from a very good (top) graduate program. I dont mean to be elitist, and surely there are tons of other really great schools and they have a lot of faculty positions from other very good schools as well, but having talked to many faculty members again at a top school, i just wanted to correct what you are saying, because although that would be the ideal situation, it is not the reality.
  13. I would only pick GT over Berkeley if your advisor is actually better known/regarded in your subfield. Otherwise if u actually want to do academia u might be shooting yourself in the foot. Advisor strength/connections is paramount in getting positions. I don't know what your subfield is but you ought to make sure there isn't a strong advisor at berkeley who could advise you before making your decision...
  14. Lets not be misleading here. While its better to choose a university based on the faculty fit, numbers are numbers, and the fact is if you want to do academia a more prestigious department is important. http://pages.cs.wisc.edu/~estan/alumnistatistics/top25/Alumni_matrix.html Its not everything and advisor is more important but i really think you need to take this into account (especially if the lesser ranked program is not better in a particular area). Of course what is left out is subject area in CS. Anyone who thinks that department prestigious is entirely unimportant is kidding themselves.
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