Northwestern or Ohio State

[Imon D.]

Which among Northwestern and Ohio State University has the better Statistics department (for a PhD)?

Would appreciate some quick responses as it is urgent.

[Casorati]

Ohio State is a tier above Northwestern overall. Ohio state has a much larger statistics department and more research areas. Despite the Northwestern's general prestige, its statistics department is relatively weak.

[Guest]

Ohio State for sure, not even close.

[Guest]

I am just taking a guess here in case this is your situation, if Northwestern is discussing an offer with you and urging you to make a decision quickly, you should let all your options come in. Northwestern has a terrible system where they pressure students to accept quickly, mislead them about being admitted to the department, and then revoke their offers.

That being said, Ohio State is objectively the better department for someone who wants an academic career, regardless of any other issues with the department.