Unconventional Applicant: Seeking Advice for Ph.D. in Statistics

[Abuelo]

Hey everyone,

I am what I think would be considered a very unusual applicant. I graduated with a BS in Economics in 2015, worked in banking for a year and then worked odd jobs here and there, as well as took time off to focus on my family and health since then. I also got an MS in Finance online since at the time (2017) I thought I wanted to work in Finance. All my math courses from Calc 1 and up were completed after I graduated starting in 2020 since I always had a loose plan of applying to PHD programs. I am ready to go for and I have two main questions: 1: Am I likely to be a competitive candidate for any reputable Ph.D. statistic programs? 2: What tier of programs should I apply for?

 

Type: Domestic Hispanic Male

Undergraduate Institution: Florida State

Degree: Economics

Cumulative GPA: 3.6/4.0

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Graduate Institution: CSU Global

Degree: Finance

Cumulative GPA: 3.6/4.0

GRE: not taken yet

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Courses Taken (Grade):

- Calc 1,2,3 : A

- Ordinary Differential Equations : A

- Linear Algebra : A

- Intro to Advance Mathematics (intro to proofs)  : A

- Advance Calculus (baby Rudin) : A-

- Numerical Analysis : A-

- Probability : A

- Econometrics : A

Research: None

Letters:  None yet. My plan is to ask math professors who I took past classes with but I don’t expect these to be particularly strong, as most probably do no remember me.

Other Possibly Relevant Info: 

- I got an F in College Algebra my first semester of community college in 2009.

- I recently took classes at a community college to solidify my programming skills within an academic setting: Intro to Programming (A), Objected Oriented Programing (A), and Data Structures and Algorithms (A).

 

Any advice or feedback is greatly appreciated!

[bayessays]

What type of school did you take the math classes at?  Was it an online university?

Your biggest issue obviously is that you don't have any letters of recommendation, so that will make it very difficult to get in anywhere since there isn't any research or pedigree that makes you a standout candidate.

In your current shape, I'd probably start the search at US News rank 60 and below for statistics PhDs, and 25 and below for biostatistics.  You would benefit a lot from a master's program where you could form some relationships with professors, get some research experience, and drastically improve your results.

[Abuelo]

@bayessaysReally appreciate the response. I took all my math classes at Florida State except for Calc 1, Calc2, and ODE which I took at my local community college.

[bayessays]

In that case, your math background is actually really solid for most programs.  I'd figure out your letter writers - even if you weren't super close, are there professors who stand out in your mind as being supportive?  Even if you don't have "real" research, is there a professor you did a project for that could stand out?  If you can throw together 3 decent letters, I'd apply a little higher than what I stated above, and throw in some master's as a backup.  I definitely think you belong in a program that's higher than what I stated above, but you just gotta put a couple pieces together in terms of selling your profile.

[Abuelo]

@bayessays When you mention 'did a project for that could stand out,' are you referring to working on a project with a professor or completing a project for a class taught by a professor? If it's the latter, then I can recall one class where we had to present some proof of our work. Apart from that, most of my courses were primarily exam-based.

However, a couple of professors definitely come to mind as being supportive, so I'm hopeful I can scrounge up those letters from them. I'll definitely toss in some applications for a master's as a backup plan, although adding another 2 years of schooling to my plan might have me retiring by the time I'm done with school, considering I'm already on the older side of applicants. 😂

[bayessays]

Anything - obviously a more involved project is better, but you just want people that are able to speak on your ability to work independently.  But obviously also just choose people that you think will write the most positive letters.

I don't know anything about this at all and I don't know if this is something you are interested in at all, but some schools may have special programs available to Hispanic applicants or may go out of their way to recruit more diverse classes.  I have some departments in mind that are more explicit about this.

A lot of programs will consider you for their master's as a backup, so you don't necessarily have to apply separately.  You could always apply to a wide range of programs and try to see how the results go while you're still working, and then narrow down more after seeing how the first rounds of applications go.

[Abuelo]

On 3/26/2024 at 6:15 PM, bayessays said:

I don't know anything about this at all and I don't know if this is something you are interested in at all, but some schools may have special programs available to Hispanic applicants or may go out of their way to recruit more diverse classes.  I have some departments in mind that are more explicit about this.

@bayessays I'll definitely look into this and if you are willing to share what departments you have in mind that would be really appreciated.

On 3/26/2024 at 6:15 PM, bayessays said:

A lot of programs will consider you for their master's as a backup, so you don't necessarily have to apply separately.  You could always apply to a wide range of programs and try to see how the results go while you're still working, and then narrow down more after seeing how the first rounds of applications go.

Prioritizing programs that will consider me for their masters if not accepted into their doctoral programs makes a lot of sense given my profile and is something I haven't really thought of. Thanks!