Fall 200 Data Science / Stats profile evaluation

[Do_EE]

Hi everyone,

I'm looking for some much-needed feedback and advice for data science / statistics applications for Fall 2020. I started applications late last year, and after receiving a few recent rejections, I am now concerned that I've overshot my applications.

I am asking for:

1. Feedback on my profile below, and my chances on the programmes I've applied for thus far (be brutally honest)
2. Any recommendations on safer programmes I can still apply for
3. Any other advice you can give

Current occupation: Management Consultant at Deloitte, 2 years experience

Undergrad institution: University of Auckland (ranked first in New Zealand but 100+ globally) 

Majors: Bachelor of Commerce (Economics major) and Bachelor of Laws conjoint

GPA: 

Commerce: 8.0 / 9.0

Law: 5.909 / 9.0

Type of student: International Asian male

Courses taken: math, stats and programming:

• STATS 108 Statistics for Commerce: A+
• INFOSYS 110 Business Computing: A
• MATHS 108: General Mathematics 1: A+
• COMPSCI 111G Introduction to Practical Computing: A-
• ECON 381 Foundations of Economic Analysis: A+
• ECON 221 Introduction to Econometrics: A
• ECON 321 Econometrics: A

Recommenders: 

• Consulting director from my workplace: Very strong recommendation, worked closely with him over a year
• Ex-team coach who supervised a startup I worked on in 2016: Very strong recommendation, close relationship
• Economics professor: Haven't seen his recommendation, but I don't expect it'd be very strong (I didn't have any other options for the academic recommendation)

Work experience: Tax Consulting Internship (3 months), Management Consultant at Deloitte (2 years) with many data-relevant projects

GRE General: V165 (96%), Q170 (96%), AWA 5.0 (92%)

Scholarships: Fulbright scholarship (conditional on acceptance into a school)

My main concerns: Unimpressive GPA (despite strong performance in all quant-heavy courses), lack of technical and quantitative depth in my background, and weak academic recommendation

Application statuses: 

Applied:

• Columbia: Data Science
• Columbia: QMSS
• UPenn: Data Science
• NYU: Data Science
• Harvard: Data Science
• CMU: MSPPM

Rejected:

• Stanford: MS Statistics
• Chicago: MSCAPP
• Chicago: Statistics

Thinking of applying for:

• UCLA: Applied Statistics

Any advice would be greatly appreciated; starting to wonder at my chances at getting into any of the above.

Edited February 23, 2020 by Do_EE
Wrong course name

[bayessays]

I would think most programs would automatically reject you because you don't have the calculus/linear algebra classes that are required. 

[whiteshark243]

@bayessays I know NYU and Columbia DS programs accept MOOCs but they give priority for students who have formal credits in linear algebra, calculus and statistics. But this is a very good point considered that he applied to Stanford and Chicago stats.

@Do_EE You might want to look into some analytics/business analytics programs. They have a more lenient requirements in prerequiste classes. Otherwise I would try to take at least 1-2 advanced statistics classes prior to applying to any statistics programs. With that being said, I think you still have a good chance with Columbia and NYU.

[Do_EE]

Maybe a bit optimistic with Stanford and Chicago stats then - it's somewhat relieving to clarify that my lack of calculus/linear algebra would be my main issue!

@whiteshark243 thanks, I'm looking into the UCLA Business Analytics course right now and think I might be a good fit. I will look for other similar programs. Do you have any suggested programs that would be a good fit for my profile?

@bayessays appreciate the honesty.

[whiteshark243]

@Do_EE UT Austin has a BA program that is very well regarded. UCSD also has a DS program that fits toward people like us who have work experience. Northwestern has MS in Analytics which is very solid but unfortunately the deadline was Jan 15.

 

[statsday]

All the people I know that had success applying to those masters level programs finished the standard calc / lin. alg courses and most had at least one real analysis course. Additionally, most of the international students I know that got into those programs were math or stats majors with solid credentials. 

I think you have to either take those courses at the local university or apply to a different type of program. Maybe business analytics if the course route isn’t an option. Keep trying and don’t give up. It’s never too late to do what you’ve been dreaming about!

[Do_EE]

@statsday Thanks for the advice!

Now I realise I should have taken the prerequisites a lot more seriously. With that said, I have now received offers from NYU MS DS, Columbia QMSS and CMU MSPPM:DA! I consider myself extremely lucky - will spend dedicated time studying up on calculus and linear algebra before the course (Covid 19 permitting).

[honguyen94]

On 2/23/2020 at 9:30 AM, Do_EE said:

Thinking of applying for:

• UCLA: Applied Statistics

I wouldn't suggest you applying for this program, since it's designed for those who are already currently employed and/or will be employed in the local Los Angeles area by the time school begins.  

If you are willing to apply for another year, I'd suggest you taking a look at Purdue M.S in Statistics.  It's a decent program