PhD in Statistics Profile Review

[manylives]

Hi guys, 

I'm from India and I'm currently working in credit risk analytics for a major US bank. I've done my undergrad in material science engineering from one of the top 2 engineering institutions in India. I have one research project in the field of cognitive science, which I'm currently writing up with my adviser from college and would soon send out to journals for publication. Assuming that I apply this December and I get into a program of my choice, I'll have a work experience of 2 years before I go for graduate studies. 

My undergrad GPA is 8.1 on a 10 point  scale, the simple online conversions to a 4 point scale put me at 3.5/4, but I have a feeling that getting a WES evaluation would put me around 3.7, since the grades in my undergrad institution, tend to be deflated. In terms of my courses, I have completed all the minimum Math requirements for Stats programs while in college: Calculus, Linear Algebra, Differential Equations, but my grades weren't great in them since I did them all in my first year. Apart from these, I took 4-5 Stats courses in college and did well in all of them (A, A-).

I love working with data and I want to move towards a research profile. I want to get into a PhD program in statistics.

What are my chances of getting into a top 30 PhD program in the US and, more specifically, how realistic would be my chances in the following programs:
Phd Statistics - Stanford, UC Berkeley, UCLA, Caltech, UChicago, CMU, UWashington, UMadison
Data Science - NYU,UPenn
Apart from these I'm also interested MIT, IDSS, PhD Social and Energy Systems 

What do you suggest I do over this year, along side my job, to work on my profile, before the 2020 December deadline? Should I focus on getting another publication, this time in the field of Econometrics (I have talked to one of my Professors in my previous institution, and it seems that I can work on a project with him.)? Or should I focus more on courses on Real Analysis, Advanced Linear Algebra, Probability to make up for my poor grades from my first year Math? I'm also planning to take the Math GRE Subject Test this year - what sort of a percentile here should be my minimum target in order to get into a top 20 PhD program?

Thanks in advance for your help

[Stat Assistant Professor]

How much mathematics have you taken beyond Calculus I-III and Linear Algebra? Have you taken any proof-intensive courses, namely Real Analysis?

Based on your description, I will assume that you attended a school like IIT Bombay or IIT Delhi, which should be favorably viewed by admissions committees. Most adcoms will likely either have at least one member who is from India, or if not, they will be able to consult an Indian colleague in their department about your school. So I am sure that they will be aware of the grade deflation and the rigor of your institution.

I think you could potentially have a shot at some Statistics programs in the top 30 if you have taken some advanced mathematics beyond the Calculus sequence and LA. However, you would be competing against some very strong applicants from Indian Statistical Institute (all of whom either have or are in the process of obtaining Masters in Statistics and have already taken classes like measure theory). So I would consider a school like University of Michigan to be a more appropriate "reach" school for your profile (I know of some people who attended the IIT's for engineering and then went to a school like UM for a PhD in Statistics).

Edited February 9, 2020 by Stat PhD Now Postdoc

[Stat Assistant Professor]

Oh, I just noticed in the end of your second paragraph that you mentioned you've only taken the minimum math requirements. I think your best bet would be to take a few more advanced, proof-based courses and submit these grades with your application. I am not sure how feasible it would be to take these classes at a reputable institution in your home country and get grades on a transcript for them in time for the December application cycle. But if this is in the realm of possibility, I think that should be your absolute top priority rather than working on economics research or studying for the math subject GRE. Economics research is unlikely to factor heavily in the admissions decisions, and there will be a *lot* of international applicants who scored well on the math subject GRE, so I'm not sure how much that will be make your profile "stand out."

[manylives]

Hi, Stat PhD Now Postdoc. Thanks a lot for your inputs. You were right about my engineering schools.

My exposure to proof based mathematics took place in my first year Calculus course which covered some real analysis for Calculus - Sequences, Series, Convergence/Divergence, Taylor Series, Continuity, Reinmann Integrals, etc. Aside from that I had to study Real Analysis for a Microeconomics course which I took.

While, I won't be able to enroll into an institution just to take a few math classes, in India we have a website called https://nptel.ac.in/ , which is a government run website that has recorded lectures of all sorts of courses from different IITs. I can enroll for one of these courses, complete the weekly assignments and take proctored exam to receive a grade/score. This seems to be the closest I can get to enrolling into courses and getting grades. Do you know if taking courses on edX or any other platform would hold any weight? Also what sort of courses would you suggest I should aim for? Should I go for advanced courses in Real Analysis and Linear Algebra, or should I explore complex analysis and functional analysis?

As for my recommendations, I will get one recommendation from the professor user which I did my major project, one under whom I'm publishing a paper, and another from a prof under whom I've taken 3 courses and who knows me reasonably well. I was told that for PhD applications, getting a recommendation from a Prof under whom I've done only course work would hold little value, and so I wanted to do another project such that all 3 professors would be able to talk about the quality of the research work I did under them. 

12 hours ago, Stat PhD Now Postdoc said:

I think you could potentially have a shot at some Statistics programs in the top 30 if you have taken some advanced mathematics beyond the Calculus sequence and LA. However, you would be competing against some very strong applicants from Indian Statistical Institute (all of whom either have or are in the process of obtaining Masters in Statistics and have already taken classes like measure theory). So I would consider a school like University of Michigan to be a more appropriate "reach" school for your profile (I know of some people who attended the IIT's for engineering and then went to a school like UM for a PhD in Statistics).

Yes, it's also true that I'll be competing against Masters students from ISI, for a PhD position. Earlier I had planned to get an MS from ISI, or from an MS Stats Program in the US at Unis where funding for masters students isn't unusual, and then apply for a PhD afterwards. But, I figured that since I'm serious about research, I should put in more effort and see if I can get into a PhD program straight away. I also plan on applying to a few masters programs this December. UM is an amazing school and I would consider it as an absolute win if I'm able to get into a place like it for a PhD.

Thanks a lot for your help again.

 

 

[Stat Assistant Professor]

11 hours ago, manylives said:

Hi, Stat PhD Now Postdoc. Thanks a lot for your inputs. You were right about my engineering schools.

My exposure to proof based mathematics took place in my first year Calculus course which covered some real analysis for Calculus - Sequences, Series, Convergence/Divergence, Taylor Series, Continuity, Reinmann Integrals, etc. Aside from that I had to study Real Analysis for a Microeconomics course which I took.

While, I won't be able to enroll into an institution just to take a few math classes, in India we have a website called https://nptel.ac.in/ , which is a government run website that has recorded lectures of all sorts of courses from different IITs. I can enroll for one of these courses, complete the weekly assignments and take proctored exam to receive a grade/score. This seems to be the closest I can get to enrolling into courses and getting grades. Do you know if taking courses on edX or any other platform would hold any weight? Also what sort of courses would you suggest I should aim for? Should I go for advanced courses in Real Analysis and Linear Algebra, or should I explore complex analysis and functional analysis?

As for my recommendations, I will get one recommendation from the professor user which I did my major project, one under whom I'm publishing a paper, and another from a prof under whom I've taken 3 courses and who knows me reasonably well. I was told that for PhD applications, getting a recommendation from a Prof under whom I've done only course work would hold little value, and so I wanted to do another project such that all 3 professors would be able to talk about the quality of the research work I did under them. 

Yes, it's also true that I'll be competing against Masters students from ISI, for a PhD position. Earlier I had planned to get an MS from ISI, or from an MS Stats Program in the US at Unis where funding for masters students isn't unusual, and then apply for a PhD afterwards. But, I figured that since I'm serious about research, I should put in more effort and see if I can get into a PhD program straight away. I also plan on applying to a few masters programs this December. UM is an amazing school and I would consider it as an absolute win if I'm able to get into a place like it for a PhD.

Thanks a lot for your help again.

 

 

As it currently stands, I think it would be tough for you to be admitted to the PhD programs you listed in your original post, or a school like UMichigan, since your math background is not as strong as that of the strongest applicants from ISI (or students from more closely related majors like CSE from IIT). You have a solid GPA from a strong pedigree, but I'm not sure that is enough when compared with other international applicants -- it would be a different story if you had lots of experience with advanced math, in addition to your B. Tech from a prestigious school. Mathematical preparation/grades and letters of recommendation are the most important part of PhD admissions for Statistics (I'll assume that your GRE Q score would be more than adequate with your background). Unlike other fields, research experience tends to be downweighted for Stats PhD admissions, and there are plenty of successful applicants from pure mathematics backgrounds who have little to no research experience.

I don't think online courses are a substitute for grades earned in regular classes. If you could obtain a Masters degree in Statistics first (including one from a institution as reputable as ISI), that would help your profile a lot. Even taking just one year of courses in a Masters program would make your profile much  more competitive. I know that this would delay your PhD applications, but I think your chances would improve greatly if you were to enroll in a Masters program.

Edited February 10, 2020 by Stat PhD Now Postdoc

[manylives]

Thanks a lot for your feedback, Stat PhD Now Postdoc. Yes, I understand that my background in advanced math isn't sufficient, and certainly not as strong as a Masters student from ISI or a computer science student from IIT. I'll definitely apply for masters programs in statistics and build up my profile.  I wasn't really aware that it is possible to get into a Stats PhD with good grades in advanced math and little to no research experience. Interacting with you has been of great help!!