NYC Programs - Physics Question

[m4thguYY]

Hi all,

So, I am an american mathematics guy and I am applying to PhD programs near NYC.

I have a B.A. in Math from a medium public school, pretty good overall reputation but nothing crazy.. GPA 3.1 with 4 C's. Two of those C's I made up over the summer and got an A in both. I did some independent study but nothing big.

I have an M.A.T. in Math & Math Education from same school as undergrad. GPA 3.65. Did plenty of independent study in educational psychology linked to mathematical teaching methods. Also took three grad math classes. Two A and one B. The main advantage here would be my enjoyment for teaching. Schools need their PhDs to teach, so having a student that has a strong teaching background is definitely a plus. NYU Astro chair said a strong interest in teaching is very advantageous.

I have an M.A. in Math from large public school, pretty good math department, ranked ~50. GPA 3.7. Concentration in Probability & Stochastic Processes, and Pure Math. Concentration GPA 3.95. I also have a thesis that I did during this masters titled "Economic Forecasting Using Stochastic and Poisson Processes."

I still need to take the GRE but last time I took it I got 800Q/600V. I am assuming this time I will still get perfect math, verbal should hopefully increase.

My letters of recommendations are from my thesis advisor & probability professor (I ranked #1 of 70 in her grad probability class), my cryptography professor (I ranked #2 of 15), and abstract algebra professor (I ranked about #2 of 15). They are all really great professors, really nice, and I enjoyed having them. I think they will reflect nicely and accurately on my passion for math and teaching it.

I do not have the time to take the math or physics subject test, and none of my schools require it. Its just not happening, I am too busy as a professor at a local state college.

I am applying to these PhD programs:

Rutgers Statistics

Columbia Statistics

Stony Brook Applied Math

CUNY Math

Rutgers Economics

The main issue:

I really do not have much preparation in physics. I have college physics I (classical dynamics undergrad A), mathematical physics (graduate B+), computational physics (graduate B ). Those 3 are the ONLY physics courses I have, although I do have a lot of applied math courses.

Due to my math background, I was looking for programs that have ASTROPHYSICS (my only interest) but also programs with no qualifying exams and the ability to take undergrad core courses to catch up.

The only program like that which is still respectable (rank 40) is NYU Physics PhD. NYU has qualifying courses, all of which I need to take and get at least a B, which I could do after taking the core undergrad courses.

It is safe to say that I will make at least one of my schools in math, so this is really a reach program, yet if i got in, i think this would be my #1 choice. I have always wanted to pursue physics or astronomy.

I am just trying to see how competitive that program is to get into with a really broad math background but no physics gre or high level physics core courses.

Thanks!

Edited August 30, 2012 by james8787

[m4thguYY]

22 views .. no opinions? I'd say bump but I am still at the top of the forum list..

[SymmetryOfImperfection]

post this in the math forum, this is for those who are actually applying/are in/interested in physical sciences.

[m4thguYY]

You took the time to answer and said that? This is about a physics phd program. Math people don't know physics PhD programs, physics people do. Anyone have something useful to say?

[TakeruK]

I'm not sure why you chose to respond to people in a rude manner. From the layout of your post, I thought you were asking about Stats/Econ programs because you list those as the programs you are applying to. Only after reading your response and then re-reading your post a few times, I saw that your real question is the paragraph after that list, where you say you also want to apply to the NYU Physics PhD program and asking what are your chances. (If I understood you correctly)

Since each school tends to have its own procedures and you are asking about a very specific case at a single school, I think your best bet is to contact the NYU Physics department directly, unless someone here is a NYU Physics PhD student, we won't be able to help you very much.

However, I do know someone who is currently a NYU Physics PhD student doing astrophysics research. That person finished a MSc in Astronomy in Canada before being accepted to the NYU Physics PhD program, and I understand there is a lot of coursework (especially graduate level physics courses which will require core 3rd/4th year undergrad physics courses). This means it will likely take you longer to finish the program, which might hurt your chances of admission since you will probably need to be funded longer! But you should probably contact NYU Physics directly.

[m4thguYY]

Thanks for your response. Yes, I was talking about NYU Physics program. I have contacted NYU Physics Department and they seemed excited to get an application from someone who has experience and education pertaining to teaching math/physics at the college level. They said expertise and interest in teaching is highly valued.

I also asked about the PGRE and haven't gotten that reply yet, so I don't know how much that will hurt my application. E-mails from departments are often very apathetic, and haven't really given me much besides relevant information, never admissions probabilities. I figured people would have an opinion if this was a reachable astro program.

Congrats on starting Caltech, that's awesome.