2020 MS Biostat Evaluation

[nat_1421]

I am applying for master's in biostats programs for fall 2020. Any feedback is appreciated!

Undergraduate: Large state university, top 35 public 

Major: Statistics, Math

Minor: Computer Science

GPA: 3.91

Type of Student: White Female

Relevant Courses: Calculus I, II, and III, Linear Algebra, Spaces & Functions (proofs class pre-req for real analysis), Discrete Mathematics, Numerical Analysis, Linear Regression, Intro to math stats 1 & 2, math stats 1 & 2, Comp sci 1, Comp sci 2 (data structures), Algorithms, optimization techniques, real analysis, bayesian stats, experimental design, math of finance 

A's in all,  A- in Calc 3 and linear algebra, some are upcoming 

GRE General Test:

Q: 166

V: 152

W: 4.0

Research Experience: Research assistant for an education curriculum for 2 years. Most stats done in Excel or SPSS. Attended a couple conferences. Hoping to have a paper submitted by the time apps are due. 

Awards/Honors/Recognitions: Dean's list all semesters, President's list last year, Phi Beta Kappa, a few departmental scholarships

Letters of Recommendation: Professor from research job (knows me very well and will write a great letter), Professor from linear algebra course - knows me somewhat well and should write a decent letter, Visiting prof from math stats class - know just a little bit but did well in course (kind of anxious about this third letter) 

Additional Experience: Experience working in R, Python, C++, Java, Excel, OpenBUGS, and LaTex. 

Applying to:

Minnesota

Michigan

Wisconsin

UNC

Washington

Boston 

Iowa

Penn

 

Comments/Questions: Taking the GRE again to try to bump up my verbal score -- I was pretty sick the first time I took it. Looking for feedback on the caliber of schools I should be shooting for. 

[bayessays]

Looks reasonable to me.  You have a great GPA and solid GRE Q from a decent school, so I think any biostat program would be reasonable to apply to and schools like Iowa/BU should be pretty safe. Your GRE Verbal does stick out as a little low but I don't think it'll be a big deal even if you don't improve it.

[bstat95]

You could aim higher and perhaps add JHU/Harvard/Berkeley to your list as well. I wouldn't be surprised if you get into all of the schools you listed. Iowa/BU are definitely safeties considering your background. Also, from what I've heard, Michigan actually has a pretty high acceptance rate for masters.

[cyberwulf]

Yeah, you'll likely get into most, if not all, of those places. In fact, if you were applying for a PhD, you'd have a decent shot at most of the ones you listed.