Statistics Grad School Advice

[Apples]

Hey everyone, new here! Finally created an account since I'm looking for some advice.

Right now I'm between my junior and senior years of undergrad and one of my huge goals for this summer is to come up with a plan of what I should do after graduation. I've thought a LOT about looking for jobs after college, grad school, and other random gap year opportunities. I have come to the conclusion that I would very much like to go to grad school in statistics next fall. I see advantages to taking a year or so off, but I enjoy school and even if initially I'm a little burned out I am always very very ready to return in the fall.

Basically, I want someone to let me know which level of grad schools I could realistically get into. I am not sure exactly how my credentials stack up against other applicants. It's intimidating when one reads that a school accepts something like 5 of 150 applicants.

I go to a pretty well respected undergraduate institution (one of those "new ivy" ones) and am double majoring in math and econ. The reason I've decided on grad school in statistics is because my favorite courses have included classes such as probability, stochastic processes, and econometrics. I also have to take a fair amount of pure math courses but do not like them as much and don't do quite as well in them (more of a B+ to A- student). I feel that in the pure math subjects I am just below the level of the very top students, whereas in applied math and stats courses I feel I am one of the strongest students and also enjoy the material more. I have TAed for probability at my school and loved that job. Also, I am more intereted in applied statistics than theoretical statistics.

I have a 3.76 overall gpa with about a 3.74 in technical courses. I also defnitely feel that I can improve my gpa senior year as I will be taking more applied courses since I am pretty much done with the pure ones.

I have also participated in 2 REUs. One was more focused on math/programming and the other was more about data analysis/econ experiments.

My computer skills include C, C++, Matlab, Stata, and Excel. I am also taking a course on SAS and R this upcoming fall.

Last, I am very involved with sports on my campus (where I have held leadership positions) as an extra curricular.

I will be taking the GREs in August and have done very well on math standardized testing in the past so I am confident I could get at least a 750 on the analytical section, even if I have to retake it once. (I am studying for it as well.)

One thing that I have not done is taking grad courses as an undergrad. Is that very important? It's possible I could squeeze one in senior year, but it is such a busy time already.

Overall, I figure I may apply to a couple jobs for after college, since work experience couldn't hurt if I get one. But I will definitely be applying to grad school in stats and this would be my first choice of what to do. From what I can gather a PhD leads to jobs with more advancement opportunities with better pay than a masters. Therefore, I figure I would go for the PhD as opposed to a masters. However, I would like to be out of grad school in 4 years. Is that the norm for statistics PhDs, or does it often take longer? Last, grad school is only feasible for me if I can get financial support. From what I can tell support for PhDs is pretty common (but correct me if I'm wrong.) I am not necessarily looking to get into a top 10 school, but of course that would be great. I would be happy at a mid or lower level school if I liked the department/research and could be supported.

Right now my goal would be to get a job in government or industry after my degree. (But I am still open minded to careers in academia.)

This is getting pretty long, but thanks for reading if you've made it this far! Any advice about statistics grad school and about what level school is feasible for me to get into with funding would be great. And now that I think about it, it would be awesome to hear about anyone's experiences in statistics grad school and how they like it. Or if there's anyone who's done with grad school and in the job world.. it'd be great to hear about your experiences with that too!

[statsguy]

Hey everyone, new here! Finally created an account since I'm looking for some advice.

Right now I'm between my junior and senior years of undergrad and one of my huge goals for this summer is to come up with a plan of what I should do after graduation. I've thought a LOT about looking for jobs after college, grad school, and other random gap year opportunities. I have come to the conclusion that I would very much like to go to grad school in statistics next fall. I see advantages to taking a year or so off, but I enjoy school and even if initially I'm a little burned out I am always very very ready to return in the fall. I would recommend not taking a year off unless you absolutely need to or are really burnt out. If your goal is to go industry, finish the PhD as fast as possible and start looking for jobs.

Basically, I want someone to let me know which level of grad schools I could realistically get into. I am not sure exactly how my credentials stack up against other applicants. It's intimidating when one reads that a school accepts something like 5 of 150 applicants. Lately, schools have seen HUGE increases in applicants, most likely due to the economy. Most schools receive anywhere from 150-250 applications. The top schools probably accept 8-10 people, but almost all offers are accepted. School in the top 10-20 range probably make around 20-30 offers for 8-10 spots, on average. Keep in mind that due to budget issues, schools are not able to take as many students as before. My university used to take 8-12 first year students each year, but is only able to take 5-6 for the next few years. This is probably less drastic at better funded private universities.

I go to a pretty well respected undergraduate institution (one of those "new ivy" ones) and am double majoring in math and econ. The reason I've decided on grad school in statistics is because my favorite courses have included classes such as probability, stochastic processes, and econometrics. I also have to take a fair amount of pure math courses but do not like them as much and don't do quite as well in them (more of a B+ to A- student). I feel that in the pure math subjects I am just below the level of the very top students, whereas in applied math and stats courses I feel I am one of the strongest students and also enjoy the material more. I have TAed for probability at my school and loved that job. Also, I am more intereted in applied statistics than theoretical statistics. Sounds good so far.

I have a 3.76 overall gpa with about a 3.74 in technical courses. I also defnitely feel that I can improve my gpa senior year as I will be taking more applied courses since I am pretty much done with the pure ones. Lots of application deadlines are mid-December, so your senior course grades may not be on your transcript. However, your transcripts should say those courses are in progress, so that should help. Also, your GPA is fairly high, so I wouldn't worrk about that.

I have also participated in 2 REUs. One was more focused on math/programming and the other was more about data analysis/econ experiments. These are always good to have.

My computer skills include C, C++, Matlab, Stata, and Excel. I am also taking a course on SAS and R this upcoming fall. Focus on R. It's used and loved in Statistics departments. SAS is great for industry and used there quite a bit, but I wouldn't worry about picking that up until your 3rd or 4th year of graduate school (unless of course you need it for an internship or if your department happens to use it, which it probably won't.)

Last, I am very involved with sports on my campus (where I have held leadership positions) as an extra curricular. This might be great for med school or law school, but grad schools could care less. The REUs are MUCH more important - focus on those in your admissions essays.

I will be taking the GREs in August and have done very well on math standardized testing in the past so I am confident I could get at least a 750 on the analytical section, even if I have to retake it once. (I am studying for it as well.) This test is irrelevant unless you score extremely low (<750). It's also very easy. A high Math GRE subject test score could help a little, but unless you know the material well, don't bother with it unless your school requires it (I think Stanford, UNC Chappel Hill, and U Chicago require it.)

One thing that I have not done is taking grad courses as an undergrad. Is that very important? It's possible I could squeeze one in senior year, but it is such a busy time already. It would definitely help, but again, don't worry about it if it would be too difficult. Your application looks strong as it is.

Overall, I figure I may apply to a couple jobs for after college, since work experience couldn't hurt if I get one. But I will definitely be applying to grad school in stats and this would be my first choice of what to do. From what I can gather a PhD leads to jobs with more advancement opportunities with better pay than a masters. This is absolutely true, especially in settings suchs as Pharma companies. Therefore, I figure I would go for the PhD as opposed to a masters. However, I would like to be out of grad school in 4 years. Is that the norm for statistics PhDs, or does it often take longer? 5-6 years is standard in most programs. Finishing in under 5 years is pretty uncommon. Last, grad school is only feasible for me if I can get financial support. From what I can tell support for PhDs is pretty common I'd say its standard. Lots of schools don't accept unfunded students. Although you may want to look at what happened with U Washington - Seattle this year. (but correct me if I'm wrong.) I am not necessarily looking to get into a top 10 school, but of course that would be great. Go to a school that has professors doing the work you want to do. Unfortunately, most top 10 programs are very theoretical and geared towards producing academics rather than practitioners. I would be happy at a mid or lower level school if I liked the department/research and could be supported. This is the absolute correct mindset to have. You are MUCH better off having done research in an applied field at a mid-tier school than completely irrelevant research at a top-10 school.

Right now my goal would be to get a job in government or industry after my degree. (But I am still open minded to careers in academia.)

This is getting pretty long, but thanks for reading if you've made it this far! Any advice about statistics grad school and about what level school is feasible for me to get into with funding would be great. Very good chances. I'd say you have a decent chance at getting into top 10 programs (Stanford, UChicago, Harvard, etc..), and great chances at getting into top 20ish programs (ie UWisc, Purdue, UMich, OSU, etc...) And now that I think about it, it would be awesome to hear about anyone's experiences in statistics grad school and how they like it. I absolutely love stats grad school. Even though it's stressful at times, I couldn't imagine doing anything else. Or if there's anyone who's done with grad school and in the job world.. it'd be great to hear about your experiences with that too!

Other points:

1. Apply to a LOT of schools this year, due to the budget and competition issues mentioned above (at least 8 schools: 2 reach schools, 4-5 mid schools, 2 safeties. AT LEAST)

2. Letters of recommendation are VERY important. Choose your writers carefully.

3. To emphasize once more, you are much better off going to a mid-tier school with research that interests you and an environment that you fit into, rather than a top-tier school with research that doesn't interest you/bad environment.

4. It will take 5-6 years to finish the degree, so you may want to consider going to school in a bigger city rather than a college town like Purdue, UIUC, Penn State etc.... Just somthing to consider.

5. Good luck!!!

[Apples]

Thanks for the advice!!! Very informative and very helpful. It's good to hear that you like stats grad school. Hopefully I will get in somewhere and enjoy it too!

[kash]

I just had a question for Statsguy, how much can the GRE math subject test help. I mean if one is fairly confident he can score above the 90th percentile after a couple of months preparation, should they decide to spend their time on that? Or does the test not matter that much?

[statsguy]

I just had a question for Statsguy, how much can the GRE math subject test help. I mean if one is fairly confident he can score above the 90th percentile after a couple of months preparation, should they decide to spend their time on that? Or does the test not matter that much?

It depends on the school. Some schools, such as Stanford, require the subject test, so I'm sure a high score would be helpful. Other schools recommend it, so a high score might help, especially if you come from an unknown undergrad university. It can also be used as a tie breaker. In my experience, it seems that most schools don't care about the score, or if you even took the exam (even some top 10 schools.) Although a good score definitely won't hurt, you would be much better off spending the few months doing a small research project in Statistics and expanding your knowledge in the field, rather than studying topics you will never see again (ie Complex Analysis, Topology, Logic, Abstract Algebra, Number Theory etc... ) for a really difficult exam.

So I would suggest that unless one of the schools you are applying to requires it, spend time on research. It doesn't have to be a really deep, extensive, theoretical project; even some data analysis for a professor would look great on an application and would give you some insight into the field. It would also give you something to talk about in the admissions essays.

And do not underestimate the difficulty of the Math GRE subject test. It's an incredibly difficult exam, considering the range of topics on the exam, as well as the time you are given to complete the exam. I've known some incredibly bright people would studied for 6+ months, and just barely broke the 70%ile.

[floffel]

Apples,

Your profile seems like it meets all the basic requirements to be a competitive applicant. The GRE general isn't really all that important as nearly everyone has an 800 or 790 on the math portion and I doubt the verbal portion matters much. Most applicants are math majors who have taken some stats (data analysis/probability/math stat) and programming, and have good GPAs. Standing out from the pack is really going to come down to your letters and the specific nature of the math and stats programs at your school (is your school well respected in math/technical fields as well as overall?). Even though you're interested in applied stats, you need to have a good theoretical background and this includes math stats (be sure to take this course and do well in it).

I also wouldn't totally dismiss the personal statement. Though it won't compensate for weak technical qualifications, it's an important part of helping departments see how well you'll 'fit'. Statisticians enjoy the versatility and interdisciplinary nature of the field, and it is important to show that you want to be a valuable member of the scientific community as a whole rather than somebody who simply like calculating odds and running regressions.

As for the GRE math subject test, if you can do well on it without spending months studying for it, go ahead and take it... a good score definitely can't hurt. Otherwise don't bother, as only a few schools require it and the time you'll need to study for it is probably better spent on other projects.