CauchyProcess Posted February 12, 2014 Posted February 12, 2014 (edited) I think "prestige" matters most if you're interested in getting TT positions at RU/VH schools (very high research universities). If you're fine with ending up as a prof at a mid-tier or less well-known, regional university or college, going to one of the lower ranked PhD programs won't really hurt you. I got my MS at a top 70 math program that was by no means top tier but I still loved it, and there were PhD graduates who got TT jobs at less well-known colleges, like Merrimack College and Endicott College. It is unlikely they would have gotten TT jobs at Harvard or MIT, but they did end up somewhere. Plus, it seems as though industry cares much less about the distinction between different tiered schools or R1 vs. R2 universities (apart from possibly places like Google that would probably prefer a PhD statistician from Berkeley or Stanford, for instance). In any event, it's good to look at alumni placements to see how well alumni are doing. If the post-graduation placement is good for academia and industry, then I wouldn't worry as much. So in short, program prestige is nice and all, but it isn't the *most* important thing unless you're really gunning for a TT professorship at an R1 or just below R1 school. To some extent, that's the case. But saying that is like saying that in order to get into Harvard's PhD program, one has to go to get their B.S. from Yale. I think to some extent, people's research can speak for itself, but who knows, it may be much more exclusive than I anticipate. Edited February 12, 2014 by CauchyProcess
Stat Assistant Professor Posted February 12, 2014 Posted February 12, 2014 "To some extent, that's the case. But saying that is like saying that in order to get into Harvard's PhD program, one has to go to get their B.S. from Yale." Huh? I was just saving that the most top tier universities will care the most about pedigree when it comes to hiring TT faculty. Industry and lower-tier schools will most likely care less. Although based on what faculty and current students have said on this forum, PhD programs do care a lot about where you got your undergrad degree too (so students from less-known, regional universities will most likely be at a disadvantage compared to those from more well-known, elite institutions, all other things like GPA, GRE, etc. being equal).
echlori Posted February 12, 2014 Posted February 12, 2014 I guess it depends on what you mean by "many" and "most," but in general I disagree. More people are pursuing PhDs in biostats than ever before, but most UM MS students still use it as a terminal degree. Demand and salaries at the MS level still make it a good bet financially. Perhaps you meant fewer PhD-track students elected to move elsewhere, but even then I don't think that's true; UM usually does well at retaining students when they want to. It was just that a bigger chunk of the 2013 MS class chose to pursue a PhD at all (not surprising in the context of our increasingly credential-obsessed labor market). I saw a similar number of external PhD admits matriculate in 2012 and 2013, and near-constant class sizes in general. I sense that the applicant pool is getting more and more qualified each year, but I don't believe Michigan gave out way fewer offers than usual to outsiders unless their yield got much better. Well, I heard last year was an "anomaly", but it doesn't really matter now, does it?
mhnaomi Posted February 12, 2014 Posted February 12, 2014 I have heard back from the latter three. Emory is doing interviews, UCLA seems to slowly sending acceptances, and UNC seems to have made most of their decisions. Haven't hear back from UNC yet. Does it mean rejection?
muzili Posted February 12, 2014 Posted February 12, 2014 Congrats to all who got new offers! Any international students got offer from Minnesota? And, anyone hear news from TAMU or Rice?
coffeehouse Posted February 12, 2014 Posted February 12, 2014 Congrats to all who got new offers! Any international students got offer from Minnesota? And, anyone hear news from TAMU or Rice? I am Canadian (not sure if that counts as international)
muzili Posted February 12, 2014 Posted February 12, 2014 Hope Minnesota will send out more offers. but don't have any confidence...
Stat Assistant Professor Posted February 12, 2014 Posted February 12, 2014 (edited) muzili, I think Minnesota already sent out two rounds of acceptances, and they set out funding info to boot. So I doubt there will be more offers, except for offers from a waiting list if enough people decline. I might be wrong, but i'm not confident either. Hopefully we're on a waiitng list at least. :-) Edited February 12, 2014 by Stat Applicant
jewioru o Posted February 12, 2014 Posted February 12, 2014 Haven't hear back from UNC yet. Does it mean rejection? I really don't think so. UNC's deadline is today. How could they sent out most of their decisions before the deadline?
mhnaomi Posted February 12, 2014 Posted February 12, 2014 I really don't think so. UNC's deadline is today. How could they sent out most of their decisions before the deadline? i see. Thanks!
aridneptune Posted February 12, 2014 Posted February 12, 2014 For what it's worth, I got a UNC Stats acceptance last night.
Stat Assistant Professor Posted February 12, 2014 Posted February 12, 2014 Congrats, aridneptune! Was the acceptance letter from the Graduate Chair? Was the e-mail generic or personal? Thanks.
Stat Assistant Professor Posted February 12, 2014 Posted February 12, 2014 fwiw, I received a personal e-mail from a professor at University of Florida today asking if I'd potentially be interested in joining their department. This appears to be a positive sign, but I don't want to jinx it. Just thought people should know... So if you applied to U of F, there is a possibility that a professor might reach out to you personally to see how interested you are in them.
statisticsfall2014 Posted February 12, 2014 Posted February 12, 2014 Great! Looks like applying to late deadlines has payed off, congrats! Florida is a terrific department
lidon Posted February 12, 2014 Posted February 12, 2014 I have been informed that I'm fairly high on UC-Berkeley's waitlist. If any of you have been accepted and don't think you will attend, I'd greatly appreciate it if you declined the offer! Waiting until mid-April before replying really puts the program and those of us on the waitlist in very difficult positions, and consequently forces me to hang on to offers that could go to other deserving applicants. I will decline CMU, UMich, UPenn, Cornell, and Minnesota if I am accepted off Berkeley's waitlist. From the perspective of someone who has a few acceptances, it's very difficult to decline offers until campus visits have been made. It's amazing how the perspective of a department's strengths and fit can change drastically by visiting in person. Most of my departments have their visits in the first week of March. I will (and I encourage others to do so as well) turn down offers as soon as I am able, but recognize that this may not happen until early to mid-March. I certainly won't wait until mid-April. agent229 1
effhorses Posted February 12, 2014 Posted February 12, 2014 From the perspective of someone who has a few acceptances, it's very difficult to decline offers until campus visits have been made. It's amazing how the perspective of a department's strengths and fit can change drastically by visiting in person. Most of my departments have their visits in the first week of March. I will (and I encourage others to do so as well) turn down offers as soon as I am able, but recognize that this may not happen until early to mid-March. I certainly won't wait until mid-April. Agreed. I'm pretty sure I know where I'm going, and I've withdrawn a couple of applications, but I'm probably not declining any offers until I make visits. agent229 1
probstats Posted February 12, 2014 Posted February 12, 2014 From the perspective of someone who has a few acceptances, it's very difficult to decline offers until campus visits have been made. It's amazing how the perspective of a department's strengths and fit can change drastically by visiting in person. Most of my departments have their visits in the first week of March. I will (and I encourage others to do so as well) turn down offers as soon as I am able, but recognize that this may not happen until early to mid-March. I certainly won't wait until mid-April. I completely agree with you. I only commented because the grad chair at Berkeley told me that every year there are people who drag it out until mid-April despite the university repeatedly asking them to decide out of courtesy.
CauchyProcess Posted February 12, 2014 Posted February 12, 2014 It seems like Berkeley just sent out another round of acceptances. There are now 8 people who have been accepted and posted it in database. For comparison, only 3 people last year got an acceptance and posted it in the database. Since, per their website, they admit about 14-20 people per year, I'd say odds are myself & anyone else who hasn't heard from them yet is not accepted.
aridneptune Posted February 12, 2014 Posted February 12, 2014 Congrats, aridneptune! Was the acceptance letter from the Graduate Chair? Was the e-mail generic or personal? Thanks. It was from the Graduate Chair - the email was pretty perfunctory but the attached letter was personal.
Stat Assistant Professor Posted February 12, 2014 Posted February 12, 2014 Thanks aridneptune. Just to clarify, this is for pure Statistics, not Biostatistics, correct? Either way, the e-mail I received from UF today made my day, so if I'm in at UF or Rice, then I won't be too upset about being snubbed by UNC or Minnesota.
aridneptune Posted February 12, 2014 Posted February 12, 2014 Congratulations Stat Applicant! I'm really glad things are working out for you. To clarify: this was for UNC Stats. The email was a bit weird since it started out 'attached is the offer letter'
shallwe89 Posted February 12, 2014 Posted February 12, 2014 I haven't yet heard from Upenn. It says that my application is being reviewed on the website. Upenn sent out some rejections on Jan 28, Feb 4, and Feb 12 (today), but my application decision has not been made. Does it mean that I am likely to be accepted or I will be on the waiting list?
statisticsfall2014 Posted February 12, 2014 Posted February 12, 2014 Anyone have updates on the following: Columbia, NC State, UC Santa Barbara, and UCLA. Those are the remaining mysteries for me.
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