UNC biostat PhD without funding vs Chicago stat ms vs UW biostat ms?

[timaximum]

Hi everyone! I am an international undergraduate student and an applicant in this cycle, and I am trying to make a really hard decision right now, so I hope to get some advice here. I am primarily choosing between three programs: Chicago stat master/UNC biostat Ph.D./UW biostat master. And here is some information and personal thoughts:

 

UNC biostat Ph.D.:

Pros:

1.      It is PhD. I intend to get a doctoral degree ultimately, so it will be great to go directly into a Ph.D. program.

2.      I am pretty interested in the researches going on here. Actually I am open to many different problems in the biostatistics field and the researches about precision medicine/statistical genetics/medical imaging at UNC all seem interesting to me. And it seems that the biostat at UNC has a pretty strong connection with their stat department?

3.      Good climate and good surrounding natural environments. Definitely a better place to live than Chicago I guess.

Cons:

1.      I have not received any funding yet. I emailed several professors but they either don’t have available RA positions right now or have to wait until late May to know if they will have enough funding to support me. UNC’s biostat department states on their website that over 95% of their current Ph.D. students receive financial support, but it does not seem like a quite positive process for me:-(

2.      The department is pretty big. I am not sure if they show enough care for their PhD students.

 

Chicago stat MS:

Pros:

1.      Chicago’s program is probably the best master’s program for Ph.D. preparation. I could have chances to get into other top-tier PhD programs two years later.

Cons:

1.      With 25% tuition waiver, I still need to pay about 40k for tuition for my first year. However, this does not seem that bad since I do not have financial support from UNC either.

2.      I will have to reapply for Ph.D. programs two years later. Considering how fierce the competition is for international students, I am not quite confident that I will get a better result than UNC biostat two years later.

3.      My research interest lies in statistical methodology with applications to biomedical data, and I have zero interest in financial statistics/econometrics/time series kind of stuff. Considering my personal interest, I guess there are not as many POIs at UChicago as at UNC?

 

UW:

Pros:

1.      Top school in biostatistics with a lot of exciting researches going on. They have an internal application process at the end of the first year of MS study, so there will be chance to transfer into their Ph.D. program.

2.      Better location than Chicago.

Cons:

1.      They only admit one student through the internal application process each year, so the competition could be fierce. From the information I have gathered, two of their MS graduates went to UPitts biostat PhD last year and one student got offers from UPenn biostat and UCD stat this year. These results do not seem that impressive compared with the placements of MS alumni posted on UChicago’s website.

2.      Again, I need to pay for my tuition. And considering the living costs and the length of the program, the total cost is almost the same as UChicago or even a little bit higher.

 

I am not sure whether I want to go to industry or academic position after I finish my PhD. It is probably 50/50 for me. Personally, I am leaning towards UNC a little bit right now, but it is hard to convince myself to pay for one year’s study at UNC and turn down the opportunites at UChicago/UW since I will have to pay for my tuition either way. Does anyone know how likely it is to have guaranteed funding at UNC biostat since my second year? Or is it possible that I could still receive my financial support for my first year after April 15^th? Also, I am currently on the waitlist of NCSU stat and UMN biostat PhD. Which one should I choose if I get off the waitlist?

I am really torn apart between these choices right now. Any advice will be greatly appreciated!

Edited April 7, 2018 by timaximum

[gc2012]

I think there is a decent chance that you would be able to find funding at UNC. We get emails periodically from investigators in other departments looking for 10-20 hour/week RA positions, so opportunities definitely seem to pop up. I'm not sure how competitive they are, but it certainly seems possible that you would be able to find something. However, with no guarantee from the school, you would be pretty much on your own and it could be stressful. Also, of the three programs you mentioned, UNC is by far the cheapest both in terms of tuition (particularly if you establish in-state residency) and overall cost of living. 

[bayessays]

How much money is worth attending a slightly more prestigious PhD program? If you are on the cusp of so many great programs, I feel like you could reapply and set your sights on a top 30 program and not spend $50k next year. 

[timaximum]

11 hours ago, gc2012 said:

I think there is a decent chance that you would be able to find funding at UNC. We get emails periodically from investigators in other departments looking for 10-20 hour/week RA positions, so opportunities definitely seem to pop up. I'm not sure how competitive they are, but it certainly seems possible that you would be able to find something. However, with no guarantee from the school, you would be pretty much on your own and it could be stressful. Also, of the three programs you mentioned, UNC is by far the cheapest both in terms of tuition (particularly if you establish in-state residency) and overall cost of living. 

Thx for the reply! Surely it could be stressful and unsteady, and that is what I am worrying about. It seems that the overall financial situation of the department is not bad, they may just have some trouble allocating these funding resources to provide guaranteed funding for phd students. Do you know if the situation will become better after passing the QE and finding an advisor? I suppose your advisor normally will try to provide funding for you, am I correct?

[timaximum]

10 hours ago, bayessays said:

How much money is worth attending a slightly more prestigious PhD program? If you are on the cusp of so many great programs, I feel like you could reapply and set your sights on a top 30 program and not spend $50k next year. 

Thx for your advice. Actually I applied to almost all top 30 programs which I think are good fit for me, and UNC is the only phd acceptance I have got this year, with several waitlists, so I am not betting my chance on reapplying.

[StatsG0d]

I can't really comment that well on Seattle but I can say definitively that although Chicago is much colder, Chapel Hill (and even the greater Research Triangle area) cannot really compare in terms of things to do / places to see to Chicago (and I seriously doubt Seattle can compare)--so I wouldn't discount Chicago just for the climate. It's also an extremely affordable for being the 3rd largest city in the US (much more affordable than Seattle and probably a little more expensive than Raleigh). 

As far as funding goes, I would say there is a solid chance to get funding within the first year at UNC and a very high chance to get funding for your second and further years. As @gc2012said, emails go out all the time.