MS in Statistics at CSU East Bay

[MeenalP]

Hi All,

 

I am currently a senior at the University of California, Davis. I am pursuing a B.A. in Statistics and Economics and was looking into a MS in Statistics program. I cam across the MS in Statistics at CSU East Bay in Hayward, CA and was wondering if anyone would be able to tell me more about it or if anyone has gone there for their MS in Statistics program. I mainly want to know what the job prospects are for graduates from there and whether or not it is worth the tuition.

 

Thank You!

[Severina]

I have no direct experience with that department or campus, but I did spend some time looking at it when making up my list of schools to apply to.  To begin with, it's very likely "worth it" since as a CA resident your tuition should be modest at a CSU campus.  However, depending on your educational and career goals it may or may not get you where you want to go. 

 

I spent more time looking at the Biostats option in that department rather than straight Stats, so perhaps not everything I concluded applies equally to the stats track.  But my impression of the Biostats track was it was a program designed for working professionals in the biotech/pharma industry seeking to boost their skills or value to their employer rather than for students coming straight out of academia.  For example all their courses are taught at 4 PM or later - in other words "night school."  Also, they did not talk much about sending any students on to PhD programs.  They just said that they would work with you to design a program that would qualify you for a PhD program if that's what you wanted.  But it was not their focus.  The path to a PhD prgram was clearly not a well-trodden option.

 

So taking all this together I decided not to apply, since I may well choose to go for PhD if my Masters experience goes well.  But you may be looking for other things. Overall I would view East Bay as more of a vocational option rather than an academic one.  If that fits with your goals, go for it.