shuggie Posted April 12, 2020 Posted April 12, 2020 Both of these programs have been in my consideration for a year so I'm happy to have them as options. Briefly, I have preliminary interests in functional data analysis and nonparametric regression. I am aiming for academic research positions upon completing my PhD (and likely a postdoc). Due to the crisis I've had limited contact with both departments, but significantly less with FSU. Iowa State: I like the program/department a lot. The students I've spoken with are very positive about the department culture. Being a large program everything seems very refined. I have a friend from undergrad in their 2nd year who is very comparable to myself and doing well in the program (a nice comfort, but more of a mental prior) Research interests are less clear. They have people working in the areas I'm interested in, but I'm not familiar with their work, and I would be tempted to explore other areas. Florida State: Almost no contact with the department. Communication has been slow amidst the crisis. I'm not holding this against the department, but I don't have a lot of info to go off. Very interested in the Shape Analysis group at FSU. Interdisciplinary work with the the math department is very enticing. Several faculty members conducting research that piques my interest (specifically Srivastava, Wu, and some new(ish) hires that could be strong/interesting co advisors) Don't have much placement data. Looks like many of Srivastava's students have gone on to research labs, and Sebastian Kurtek is at OSU. I did speak with one Alum from FSU who spoke highly of the program, but they entered with a MS and started research quickly. I only have a BS. I also happen to have friends in the math department at FSU. I would like to know if one program has an edge over the other concerning placement in academia. I plan to directly email the faculty I'm interested in working with at FSU to gauge availability in a couple years. I'm reasonably confident I would enjoy the research at FSU, and if I attend I would be choosing to do so mainly for research. However, with only a BS I am far more familiar with coursework than research and don't know if I really have the background to pick an area now. I think having a general topic in mind is beneficial, but my concern is: if I change my mind in two years I won't have as many options as I would at Iowa.
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